Appalachia's Social Problems

Where there are various regions there are bound to be a variety of people with alternate cultures, beliefs, and ways of life. The cultures found with the Appalachia are unique in their own ways and represent a body of individuals who found their way to such an area. Land that is included within the Southern Appalachia can be best described by Horace Kephart as he does so in his book The Southern Highlander and His Homeland to include: “the four western counties of Maryland; the Blue Ridge Valley, and Allegheny Ridge counties of Virginia; all of West Virginia; eastern Tennessee; eastern Kentucky; western North Carolina; the four northwestern counties of South Carolina; northern Georgia; and northeastern Alabama.” (22-24) With so much

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.

For this year’s Project Appalachia Experience, I hope to contribute my help from fixing up abandoned ground and making gardens for the community to use to get fresh fruit and vegetables. As well as working on making houses and repainting old buildings. My love to help others in need to make their lives a little easier.

In The United States of Appalachia, by Jeff Biggers, Chapter Six, The great American Industrial Saga. Biggers writes in regards to the Appalachia in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Women and children of the Appalachia worked with cotton, coal, and timber while experiencing a life of deplorable conditions, long hours, and without enough pay to make a living.

     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

Behavioral risk factors in the region have a higher prevalence of obesity, smoking, lack of exercise and poor use of cancer screenings available than the U.S. national average. Again, the central subregion of Appalachia is among the most affected as this area tends to be more geographically rural. Nutrition is a major issue and low income levels often dictate poor food choices. Some areas may have only one small grocer with limited selections available. Exercise becomes more difficult for people who become obese, which often leads

Opioid abuse, cardiometabolic diseases, and diseases of lifestyle and social fabric are few of the health problems that are predominant in the southeast region of the country. Tennessee is in the lowest 25th quartile in the overall health performance among the low-income population in the southeast region. Hence, there is a need to address specifically, socioeconomic determinants in tackling these problems. These socioeconomic determinants are usually referred to as the causes of the causes of the diseases.

Being known as the region synonymous with destitution and home to some of the pauperized counties in the country, Appalachia has always been hidden from or sort of isolated from the rest of the world because of their geographic location. The people of Appalachia are often seen as unintelligent and less civilized than other Americans as they were less developed and not exposed to the commercial world. Because of

lexington, Ky: Universtiy press of kentucky. This short book written by Caudill describes the effects industry and modernization has played on the Appalachian lifestyle.

As a society, we expect everybody to follow our norms, rules and regulations. However, Appalachia seems to have its own set of norms. Although they may not consider them to be deviant, the normals and those in power probably would. One of the biggest problems in Appalachia is the leading agents of their society. During the documentary, we follow four different people, and we see their leading agents, which are their parents and families. Shawn’s mother sells pills, Jeremy follows his father-in-law down into the mines to provide for his fledgling family, Courtney’s mom is a high school dropout and Erica’s mom has been in and out of rehab constantly. How can these children break the cycle of poverty and deviance if they are learning and living

Appalachian Poverty Poverty is a global problem, and it has existed from the beginning of civilization. Hunger, homelessness, and lack of health care are major aspects of this world-wide dilemma. Many countries are in complete poverty and a majority are third-world countries. Within the United States of America, a land of plenty, there are also pockets of extreme poverty. Governments around the world are trying to solve this huge problem.

What does this happen to Kentucky and not the rest of America? In order to respond to this question, one must analyze the lifestyle of Kentuckians. Poverty is the cause for most of cancer issues in Eastern kentucky. According to the Fahe, 25 percent of Appalachian Kentuckians live under the poverty line. Additionally, in 2014, there is a difference of $16,000 between the the average income of people in Appalachian kentucky and the rest of the United State.(Fahe.org) Those statistics demonstrate that the economic situation in Eastern Kentucky is terrible ,and people are desperate. Eastern kentucky is probably the worst place to live in the entire United States. According to the NY Times, six of the top ten poorest county are located in Eastern Kentucky; Clay county is the poorest of all. The regions has never been that pitiful; it all happened when coal mining was shut down. It was the source of revenue for most households. In this region, many men did not pursue education, instead they went to work in the coal mines before or right after high school. Therefore, the economy of the regions depended on one variable: coal mining, and now there is nothing left to the

Southern Appalachia alone includes three hundred counties covering most of West Virginia and the Southern Highlands or Upland South. The mountains form a natural barrier between the eastern Coastal Plain and the vast Interior Lowlands of North America. As a result, they have “played a vital role in the settlement and development of the entire continent.”

Have you noticed obesity has become a big problem in the Appalachians? According to M. Wewers, "Nearly 44 percent of the Appalachian population is obese" (Herath 129). For those who struggle with obesity, it is not just having a little extra weight. When you are obese, you are more prone to heart disease, depression, and high blood pressure. In addition, obesity increases the risk of premature mortality (Herath 127). As the number of people who are obese increases, the nation becomes unhealthier. For some of the individuals who are obese, it is not about eating unhealthily or being lazy. For these individuals, they have a medical condition that causes obesity. The amount of obesity in the Appalachians is shocking; however, there are

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.