RIT National Press Photographers Association2009 Spring Documentary

Between the Mountain and the MineRIT National Press Photographers Association2009 Spring Documentary

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Reflecting on our week in Beards Fork, West Virginia, it became appar-ent that we had only scratched the surface. As college students, long-time urban and suburban dwellers, photographing in Appalachia challenged our sense of objectivity. It was through finding what was important to those we met that we found a strong, vibrant connection.

The landscape of Fayette County is awe-inspiring, and a resource that is threatened. A debate between industry and scenery remains on the minds of those who call West Virginia home. It was this conflict that first caught our eyes, causing us to turn our cameras outward and meet those who we saw as different from ourselves.

We asked what it was like to live here, what made it “home,” for them. For some, it was their pastimes, for others, it was sense of family shared between neighbors. Financial security and support provided by corporations was im-portant to some, while others saw value in the potential transformation of West Virginia’s economy. Organizations dedicated to education, welfare, and labor were the lifeblood of some areas, while religious expression was found in all places, close to the hearts of the individual and community.

These photographs are first steps, a visual introduction to a diversity of people who welcomed us into their homes. We were greeted with warmth, and allowed to witness the traditions and tensions that make this place a unique part of the country. For this we are grateful, and present to the viewer a record of the richness of the land and its people.

Michael ContiRochester, 2009

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© RIT National Press Photographers Association 2009 All rights retained by photographers

Edited, designed, and produced by

Emily BogleMichael ContiK. Nicole MurtaghEvan Witek

ht tp :// r i tnppa . com

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Since 1986, Larry Gibson has been giving tours of his mountain home to public officials, environmentalists, businessmen, journalists, and scores of students. Kayford Mountain has been home to his family since the late eighteenth century, and is now threatened with gradual destruction. Mountain Top Removal coal mining practices have created valleys out of mountains, surrounding Gibson’s nature preserve with bare earth. The more people come to see the destruction in Gib-son’s backyard, the more aggressively moneyed interests threaten his life. Gibson was the victim of drive-by shootings and arson, and has been verbally and physically assaulted on the roads around his house. His determination has made his home the center of a green energy movement, positing this once fragile outpost as the forefront in the battle for West Virginia’s landscape. In parting with Gibson, he said, “I want to do this for my people, I don’t want to be a tourist attrac-tion.” Focusing now “encouraging young people to take the future into their own hands,” Gibson travels the country to raise awareness about the environmental and public health costs of coal production.

Below are excerpts from our interview with Gibson:

I was able to talk to Obama; I asked him questions when he was campaigning in June. I told him, “Let me tell you about the “War of the Appalachians.” His response was to inform my local authorities, like the DEP [De-partment of Environmental Protection]. I could have embarrassed him. He didn’t know what he was talking about. You see, the industry, they don’t go by the books.

Is it a matter of the rules not being tough enough?

We don’t need any more rules. The rules need to be enforced. The coal companies never abided by the rules in the first place. [West Virginia Governor] Joe Manchin is the smartest governor we’ve had, but he is also the most corrupt. He’s made it easier and more efficient for the coal industry to do what they do.

What about those who are dependent on mining companies for a job, or retirees on a pension?

We are working to make sure that the miners’ pensions are secure. Mining is less than 2% of the state’s employ-ment. It’s never been about energy. It’s never been about jobs neither. With Mountain Top Removal mining, 650 skilled men are replaced by about 19. The government has no intentions of bringing industry to this state. It’s up to us.

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Our first day in Beards Fork, we met Gene Underwood on his front porch. Never a stranger to the many college students who wander through the town, he inquired about why we came from Rochester, New York.

This question, while we had talked over it for months in preparation, is al-ways challenging to answer. Why would anyone do this? Knowing the risks of photographing people who have been so wrongfully stereotyped before, it was a leap of faith on our part, and a challenge to find something that wasn’t a confirmation of prejudices. As students involved in the National Press Photographers Association, we look to find ways to tell stories with a variety of media. We were drawn to West Virginia because the positive repu-tation of the Southern Appalachian Labor School, and sought to learn more about the area and its people. We approached with our cameras and minds focused, hoping to see clearly what it is like to be a West Virginian.

Upon learning that we were photojournalism students, he readily offered to inform us of the “real story,” the so-called “battle for the mountains.” Situated between two mountain ridges at 1,253 feet, Beards Fork is a dramatic microcosm of much of rural Appalachia.

With Gene’s guidance, four of us climbed a snow covered summit, looking for a bird’s eye view of the situation. At the summit, we confirmed a pervasive destruction rather than revealing any understanding. We observed the contradiction that is the mining industry firsthand: while the environmental and health impacts are numerous and negative, what they contribute to the local economy and the livelihoods of hard working people is just as significant.

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The United Mine Workers of America Local 8843 in Cannelton, WV is an unassuming blue box of a building. Inside a group of retired miners is meeting. To the right is their meeting room.

In years past, the strength of the local unions has been waning in favor of the growing bargaining power of the mining corporations themselves. Retired miners still plan union drives, but after losing a lawsuit to Massey Energy in 2004, their reach has been stunted in the area.

Empathy for labor issues runs strong in West Virginia, which has a rich but torrid history of labor conflict. The Southern Appala-chian Labor School is a modern incarnation of this vested interest. Founded in 1977, the school educated local coal and logging work-ers about unions and fair labor practices. With the surface mining moving from the area, the Labor School now serves the community through children’s programs, food assistance, as well as focusing on obtaining low income housing and improv-ing older homes.

West Virginia has the highest per-capita home ownership rate in the nation, combined with one of the highest poverty rates. This came about through the mining industry, as workers were often given temporary shacks known as Jenny Lind homes. These homes often have minimal insulation and plumbing. SALS partners with AmeriCorps VISTA workers and Global Volunteers to weatherize and renovate homes.

Their efforts to educate others of the history of West Virginia and help its people are noteworthy. Half of all proceeds from the sale of this book will go to the Southern Appalachian Labor School.

To learn more about the Labor School, please visit their website at http://sals.info.

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4 K. Nicole Murtagh Smithers, WV

5 K. Nicole Murtagh A mineworker exits from an equipment shack

8 Michael Conti Smith household in Beards Fork, WV

9 Michael Conti Underwood household in Gauley Bridge, WV

10 Evan Witek Resident of Beards Fork, WV on his porch

11 Michael Conti Residents of Beards Fork, WV

12 K. Nicole Murtagh Resident of Montgomery, WV

13 Emily Bogle Thurmond, WV

14 Mohamed Sadek Metallurgical plant in Alloy, WV

16 Mohamed Sadek Winter sunrise in Beards Fork, WV

17 K. Nicole Murtagh A deep mining shaft at a coal mine

18 Mohamed Sadek Clear cut trees remain on the site of Mountain Top Removal mining in Boone County, WV

19 Mohamed Sadek Brush clearing near Deep Water, WV

20 K. Nicole Murtagh Children playing in Beards Fork, WV

20 Evan Witek Mother and child in Beards Fork, WV

21 K. Nicole Murtagh An open stove used for heat in a Jenny Lind home.

23 Anna Solo Larry Gibson walks to his home on Kayford Mountain

24 Emily Bogle Mountain Top Removal process on Kayford Mountain

25 Emily Bogle Coal mining in Marmet, WV

26 Evan Witek The interior of a Jenny Lind home in Beards Fork, WV

27 Emily Bogle A trailer addition to a Jenny Lind home in Glenn Ferris, WV

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29 K. Nicole Murtagh A family in Beards Fork, WV

31 K. Nicole Murtagh Home in Montgomery, WV

32 Zaida Souissi Interior of a home in Fayette County, WV

33 Rebecca Grant Interior of an abandoned home in Twilight, WV

34 Zaida Souissi A resident of Fayette County, WV points out repair needs to a VISTA volunteer

35 K. Nicole Murtagh A VISTA volunteer examines the siding of a Jenny Lind home in Fayette County, WV

37 K. Nicole Murtagh Beards Fork, WV resident in a Jenny Lind home

39 K. Nicole Murtagh Family life in Nitro, WV

41 Evan Witek Children peer out of the roof of their home after a fire in Beards Fork, WV

42 Evan Witek A child takes an assertive pose in Beards Fork, WV

43 Michael Conti Gene Underwood with one of his pet dogs

44 Michael Conti Thursday night church service at Glen Ferris Apostolic Church

45 K. Nicole Murtagh Shumake family birthday party in Fayette County, WV

47 Michael Conti Mural underneath the Earl M. Vickers Bridge in Montgomery, WV

48 Michael Conti A man supervises a game of basketball at the Coal River Public Library in Racine, WV

49 Julian Hom Children in Beards Fork, WV

50 Evan Witek Eddie Shumake waits for his family outside a Toys R Us

51 Evan Witek Boomer, WV

53 Evan Witek Josiah, 4, waits for his mother by the door before opening it to VISTA workers

56 Evan Derickson see caption

57 Nathaniel Flynn see caption