The Appalachian Region

In 1964, President Lyndon Johnson declared an unconditional war on poverty in the United States and the most photographed area was the Appalachia region. Many of the photographs intentional or not, became a visual definition of the Appalachia region. The images have drawn from the poorest areas and people to gain support for the war on poverty, but came to represent the entirety of the region. The point of the Looking at Appalachia project is to explore the diversity of Appalachia and to establish a visual counter point. (Home - Looking at Appalachia.) The three images I am going to analyze are challenge some of the stereotypes put on the Appalachia region. I believe my images challenge the stereotype that all Appalachian people do is work hard, go to church, and don’t have time for anything besides those two things.

     Appalachia is no longer the land of severe poverty that it was three decades ago, now the poverty rate of one in 15 is close to the national average. The number of adults who have received a high school diploma has also jumped from one out of three to two out of three; and the infant death rate has been

Many people may not realize this but multiple states, including Michigan, are facing an epidemic. It is not a disease, however, it is a heroin epidemic. In a country where addictive opioid pain-killer prescriptions are handed out like candy, it not surprising heroin, also known as smack or thunder, has become a serious problem. The current heroin epidemic Michigan is facing, as are dozens of other states, has spiraled out of control in recent years. In Michigan, some of the areas hit hardest by this drug are in the southern portion of the state, like Wayne, Oakland, and Monroe Counties. The connection between painkillers and heroin may not be clear, but this is because both are classified as opioid drugs, and therefore cause many of the same positive and negative side effects. As a country, we are currently the largest consumer of opioids in the world; almost the entire world supply of hydrocodone (the opioid in Vicodin) and 81% of the world’s oxycodone (in Percocet and OxyContin) is used by the United States (Volkow). Along with consuming most of the world’s most common opioids, we have gone from 76 million of these prescriptions in 1991 to 207 million in 2013 – constantly increasing except for a small decrease starting in 2012 (Volkow). This widespread use has caused numerous consequences from increasing emergency room visits – for both painkillers and heroin – to sky-rocking overdose cases all over the country (Volkow). Michigan, unfortunately, currently has one of the

estled between the Blue Ridge Mountains and Allegheny Mountains, Rockingham County is located within the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Originally founded in 1778, Rockingham County has become a historical community committed to implementing an economic strategy of attracting new business and industry that are compatible with the way of life in the Shenandoah Valley and assisting in the retention and expansion of existing companies (Rockingham County). Most commonly known for its beauty, Rockingham County is comprised of six metropolitan cities, of which Harrisonburg holds the county seat (Rockingham County).

In Uneven Ground, the author Ronald D. Eller narrates the economic, political, and social change of Appalachia after World War II. He writes “persistent unemployment and poverty set Appalachia off as a social and economic problem area long before social critic Michael Harrington drew attention to the region as part of the “other America” in 1962.”(pp.2) Some of the structural problems stated by Eller include problems of land abuse, political corruption, economic shortsightedness, and the loss of community and culture; personally view the economic myopia as being the most daunting.

The drug epidemic in America is a growing problem and continuing to take hundreds of lives everyday, particularly opioids. These highly addictive drugs are taking the world by storm and claiming thousands of life with no remorse. The pharmaceutical industry is making millions off the addiction and pain of the American people causing a widespread of drug overdoses and deaths all across the United States. According to The New York Times, “Public Health officials have called the current opioid epidemic the worst drug crisis in American history, killing more than 33,00 people in 2015.” (Scott Morgan) Addiction, money, and the vulnerability all play a part in the opioid widespread epidemic.

The people of Appalachia are often characterized as ignorant, lazy, uneducated, drug addicted, and incestuous. Many believe that this impoverished area is full of hicks, hillbillies, and rednecks, but when examining the truths one might find an enriched culture with generous people who are hardworking, artistic, and family oriented with a strong religious faith.

Opioid abuse in Tennessee is a statewide epidemic affecting both rural and urban cities. One thousand two hundred sixty-three deaths related to opioid overdose occurred in the state of Tennessee in 2014. More people died from opioid overdose than the number of gunshot and motor vehicle accident deaths combined. Known as “Hillbilly Heroin,” the opioid of choice are Hydrocodone, Percocet, Oxycodone IR, and Oxycontin with street values ranging from $5 to $80 dollars per pill. Currently, Tennessee remains the leader in the number of pain pill prescriptions per person (Fletcher, 2015). The misuse and abuse of opioids in Tennessee has resulted in legislative bills proposed and supported by Governor Bill Haslam, as well as local district representatives Senator James R. “Randy” McNally (R-Tenn- Dist. #5) and Representative John Ragan (R-Tenn Dist. #33).

The population change data in the Northeast Mid-Atlantic region of this map shows that the region has mostly experienced a decline in population. This decline also affects the surrounding Northern regions with few exceptions in states such as Delaware, Virginia and Ohio. This region is the backbone of the manufacturing belt and perhaps the major urban development area in the United States since mid-1800s. Despite having the highest population density at the present day, it has been notable through recent decades that there was significant population movement towards the South and the West. This Sun Belt region has been a major attraction for people in the North due to its richness in amenities. This can be seen in the map as places such as

Opioid abuse is a growing epidemic within the United States. Not only are people abusing the prescription forms of opioids (such as oxycodone - OxyContin, hydrocodone - Vicodin, codeine, and morphine) by taking more than they are supposed to, but they are also being bought, sold, and used on the streets illegally; such as heroin. Opioids are highly addicting because of the high they can induce in a person, causing a dependence and yearning for continued use (NIDA, n.d.) In 2007, the United States was responsible for over 99 percent of the global consumption of hydrocodone and 83 percent of the global consumption of oxycodone (United Nations Publications, 2009).

Some people believe the doctors could care less about their patients getting addicted to the medicines they prescribe to them. The doctors in coal country believe in a “quick fix”, this allows the miners to go back to work rather than get the therapy they need to heel the injury. With the jobs these people have doctors aren’t doing what they’re supposed to do. However, the state became aware and cracked down on prescription rules and opened a prescription drug monitoring program. This program lead to the arrests of multiple doctors and pharmacist. Pill mills were a problem as well. Drug dealers moved in with pills from outside the state making the epidemic even worse. When it started to slow down, the prices rose and they began moving in heroin.

Although the Appalachian Region is tied together by the culture the small communities within sparate the region. The region is separated in urban, rural, and mountain areas. Those who live in the urban areas have more opportunities as they are closer to conneting roads. Urban areas also offer more in ways of education and employment. Rural areas prove to be a challenge as connecting roads are few, education is lacking, and jobs are less.

Rocky Mount, North Carolina acts as an inhabitant of two of North Carolina’s 100 counties, Nash and Edgecombe. The various drugs available to the citizens of this city range from illegal prescription pills to harder, synthetic drugs such as Heroin. Though each drug relates to one another regardless of legal status, there are also levels of legality, relating to penalties as well. Some of the concerns in which Heroin is focused include areas such as the history of Heroin within the location, drug raids, arrests, age range of involvement, and treatment availability. Each category being explored plays a larger role than just the individual components, where the multiple instances create a growing epidemic among the city’s population.

A google search of “Appalachia” defines the word as “a term for areas in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern US that exhibit long-term poverty and distinctive folkways” (“Appalachia | Definition,” n.d.). Relatedly, the Appalachian Regional Commission describes that the Appalachian Mountain region includes “all of West Virginia and parts of…Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia,” (“The Appalachian Region,” n.d.). Also, on its webpage, The Appalachian Regional Commission further contextualizes the economic conditions of Appalachia, saying that, “its poverty rate, 31 percent in 1960, was 17.1 percent over the 2011-2015 period. These gains have

The Appalachian area to me contains a wide variety of recourses that are being wasted due to the impoverishment within our area, which makes improvement challenging. These factors also make this area a great target for economic injustices and environmental destruction that comes from the select few who make up the powerful elites. Luckily for us all within this area there are also people willing to voice their opinion and attempt to make social change a reality for this area.