Even our unborn babies aren't safe...

I have lived 24 years in the hills of eastern Kentucky, and for a good portion of those 24 years, I have known that if I were to have children, I’d want to raise them in the hills where I grew up.

Now, I’m not so sure about that because a recently released study shows that birth defect rates are higher where mountaintop removal coal mining occurs, which encompasses the entirety of eastern Kentucky.

   

It’s not that this finding necessarily surprises me. I’ve suspected for years that MTR mining was the cause of higher rates of cancer, heart disease and lung conditions like asthma among those living in the hills. So, really, this new study, which clearly outlines the newest assault on the health of Appalachians, is nothing to be shocked about.

I’m not even shocked at the complacency with which this study was received by the coal industry, mainly because when you’re in the business of pollution, deflecting the truth about the detrimental effects of said pollution comes as second nature.

In fact, I’m quite positive no one living in the mountains that read the media reports about this study was one bit surprised or shocked by its findings.

The most troubling aspect about this report and the reaction to it is that almost everyone – most especially the owners of coal operations in the mountains – knows these studies about the health impacts of MTR mining are most likely 100 percent accurate, yet they chose to do nothing to change the status quo.

All anyone living in Appalachian Kentucky has to do to know the results are truthful is look around their hollers at all the cases of rare cancers, heart troubles, kidney disorders, lung diseases and yes, even birth defects.

But this new round of study results does not concern the already living. Those people have at least some small choice in where they live, the water they drink and the air they breathe.

The unborn, however, have no choice. Though I know no one asks to be slowly poisoned with carcinogens and heavy metals from the land, air and water, it just seems completely and unbelievably criminal for coal companies to stunt Appalachian Kentuckians health before they are even born.

Not only does the health of Eastern Kentucky babies suffer, but their choices in life are becoming increasingly limited because of the disabilities they may inherit from a legacy of environmental degradation upheld by a greedy and pollution-laced industry.

This is an outrageous reality. But what truly enrages me the most is the knowledge that every coal company currently operating in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky is completely aware of the amount of pollution they are dumping into the air and water. They are also completely aware of the true effects on human health those pollutants will cause. I will never be convinced otherwise, especially after a coalition of environmental groups discovered over 20,000 blatant violations of the Clean Water Act committed by the two largest MTR coal producing companies in the state.

I know coal production is on the decline in Kentucky and throughout Appalachia – even the coal industry agrees to this fact. But it seems that until the coal runs out, there’s always going to be a troubling and disturbing undertone beneath the mining and burning of coal – an undertone that we as people of the region can no longer condone, excuse or ignore.

There are alternatives to mining and burning coal. The technologies for renewable energy production free from high levels of produced pollution do exist and are viable alternatives to coal.

We must advocate for options in how our energy is produced; we must fight to save our land and water from the daily deluge of poison-dumping created by the coal industry; and we must support a diversified economy in the mountains that will help us break the shackles placed around our good health by the coal industry.

We need healthy babies to help us create a bigger and brighter future for our region in which coal is no longer king, and if we don’t stand up for ourselves, then we must stand up for future generations, whom we now know are being attacked and assaulted by the coal industry before they are even born.

I will have to make a lot of important choices in my life, but of all the major choices I will have to make, wondering whether or not it’s safe to have my future babies in my homeland of Eastern Kentucky should not even have to register on that list. I, nor any other young woman who wishes to have children in the place of their own birth, should ever have to think about the ramifications which our future children might have to endure simply from living where our families have lived for generations.

The coal company forcing that decision upon us is just plain wrong.

KEEP SUMMIT CITY OPEN

A few weeks ago, I wrote a column for the Hazard Herald about how local governments in the mountains should be working on efforts to entice youth of this region to stay in the mountains and make their lives here.

It seems the points I made in that column about how important this endeavor actually is were ignored because this week the news has broken that Summit City in Whitesburg will be closing its doors on August 1 due to “regulatory concerns.”

To the best of my knowledge, these “regulatory concerns” pertain to alcohol sales in a “moist” city, where 70 percent of total profits made at an establishment selling alcohol must be gleaned from food sales. It’s a well-known fact that the majority of Summit City’s profits are made from alcohol sales, leaving them on the outside of this regulation.

It’s also a well-known fact that Summit City is one of the very few places where young people in about a three-county loop can go to hang out with their friends, enjoy live and oftentimes local music, view local art made by local artists and be among others their own age.

Anyone who actually takes the time to have adult conversations with someone younger than 50 living in the region knows the overarching hindrance to their quality of life in the mountains is not a lack of access to education, recreation, broadband Internet, etc., but the overwhelming lack of places where they can gather with others their own age to just talk, grab a bite to eat, watch a live show or even drink a beer or two.

If one were to take a poll of young people in the area asking them what they would like to see most in this region, I’m willing to bet my life that every single one of them would say there needs to be more things for young people to do here.

When Summit City opened, I was in college, and very envious of those still living in Hazard and Perry County because they had this very cool and eclectic place to hang out that I did not have growing up.

I was also very glad they had such a place because it would provide a space for people of all ages to gather and fellowship with one another, especially those under 50 who are so often left wanting for more when it comes to public places where they feel welcome to hang out.

It provided me with a sense of pride about my region. I could tell others who aren’t from here to go and eat a hot Panini sandwich or enjoy a cup of coffee or a live show at Summit City when they asked what there was to do for fun in the mountains.

And I did tell people that, and they did go to Summit City. And this place that was started by a couple of people who genuinely care about rebuilding a local atmosphere in the region quickly became a culture hub of the mountains. People from Perry County, Knott County, and probably even Leslie County were going to Summit City to enjoy what it provided for the entire region, not just for Whitesburg and Letcher County.

It became a destination for local musicians and artists to perform and display their work. It was the place to be on Karaoke nights and Art Walk mornings. Plays were hosted there, open mic nights were celebrated there and people became friends there.

Summit City is a living, breathing local icon and to allow it to close because of some technicality is criminal and will be detrimental to the quality of life of young people in the region.

I understand laws, ordinances and regulations are on the books for very important reasons. And I understand as council people of the City of Whitesburg, you must adhere to those laws, ordinances and regulations to the letter as part of your duty as public servants.

However, when those laws, ordinances and regulations will force a local institution that is vital to the retention of local youth and the attraction of outside youth, and be detrimental to the quality of life of those living in and around Whitesburg, perhaps those regulations should be reconsidered.

Saving Summit City and keeping its doors open to welcome local artists, musicians and residents into it’s acoustically blessed hearth will only help the City of Whitesburg grow, which will in turn grow the mountain community, which will in turn grow the young population of these hills, which is what this region will need in order to progress positively into the future.

That is something of which I’m sure we can all agree is vitally important.

We urge you, city councilmember’s: reconsider the regulations that would force Summit City to close.

Think about the benefits the community will reap from this important institution.

Think about the culture this establishment helps to keep alive with every gallery-type opening of a new artist’s work and with every live musical performance.

Think about what Whitesburg could be if Summit City – this living entity of the larger community – were allowed to remain open, influencing others to follow in its path, revitalizing downtown Whitesburg to a point where people will make this city a destination vacation spot, or even a destination living spot.

Think about the real future for this place, nestled in the hills, with potential up to its mountaintops, just waiting for visionary politicians to remove the cap on possibilities so it could grow into that potential to its fullest capabilities.

I don’t think I’m wrong in assuming that this is what all of you want to see for this place. You have the power to make this happen. Please don’t let this opportunity pass you by because of bureaucracy. Take the reigns and create real change.

After all, isn’t that what democratic politics is supposed to be all about?   

What a "Good" Christian

I woke up last Tuesday morning with the sun streaming through my bedroom windows to the sounds of the birds singing their morning songs outside, and I thought to myself that the day was going to be filled with promise and productivity.

Most of you know that I’m moving to Lexington shortly, and there is much to do before I make the final transition. So, I woke up feeling energized, ready to start checking that To-Do list.

Then, I logged onto Facebook, a mistake in the first place, but today added extra ire to my fire. There I found a news story from The Advocate (the gay magazine, for those of you who aren’t familiar) about how two mentally disabled gay men were kicked out of the Hazard Pavilion by some bigot who works there reportedly because they are gay.

What… a terrible way to start my day.

I know eastern Kentucky is about 20 years behind the rest of the nation in social policy, but turning away two innocent individuals from a public facility simply because they are different? Come on, Hazard – grow up a little.

While I realize religion still has a strong hold on this region and remains at the center everyday life here, the treatment those two men received is unacceptable. Not only is it illegal to turn someone away from a public facility based on sexual orientation but it’s ethically wrong to turn someone away because of fear and hatred.

The Pavilion employee pulled the “Bible card” to defend his actions. The Bible apparently gives him the authority to turn people he doesn’t like away from the facility. I wonder if he turns away black people and women, too. I’m sure he’s a UK fan, so I wonder if Louisville fans are allowed to swim in his precious pool. What if a Muslim person came to swim? Would they be turned away based on some unofficial Bible authority this guy says he has?

It’s baffling to me that the Bible was this guy’s only excuse for being turning those two men away since all I’ve ever learned from the Bible is how to love and treat others the same exact way I would want to be loved and treated.

Clearly, this guy missed all those hundreds of verses and decided the only ones he was to adhere to are those that could possibly pertain to homosexuality.

And here I was, ready to accept a newfound perspective of my home county as a tolerant, accepting and open-minded place. Not that I was under any delusion that eastern Kentucky was as open-minded as New York, San Francisco, or even Lexington. But still, after working at the Hazard Herald for a year and a half and really getting a sort of behind the scenes look at Hazard and Perry County, I felt this place had come a long way since I first came out in high school.

I faced discrimination here, mostly from the administration at Perry County Central High School, but also from certain members of my family who told me I couldn’t bring my girlfriend to their get-togethers. I’ve walked out of church services in which gay people were mocked and I fought for over a year to establish a gay-straight alliance at PCC. I was made fun of by my classmates and gawked at by the men who work at the Mexican restaurant in town. But I was never – not even if I showed up hand-in-hand with my girlfriend at the time – told to leave an establishment because I was gay.

Perhaps I just didn’t go to where the bigots worked, but perhaps it doesn’t matter because they are clearly still living among us.

I don’t consider myself to be very vocal about my sexuality. I don’t browbeat people into liking the fact that I’m a lesbian and I’m always going to be a lesbian. Either people I know like me for who I am, or they tell me to stay away from family functions. It’s not my problem to fix if someone doesn’t like me because I’m gay – it’s that person’s problem with which to deal.

That being said, my fear is that those men, who are both reportedly mentally and intellectually disabled, will not be able to understand the concept of not caring what others think about their sexuality. They were just being themselves and trying to be “normal” in a world that already sees them as “other,” and this bigot decided it was his Biblical duty to tell them they were not welcome.

The two men walked away crying, in what I can only assume they was a devastated state of mind, and I’m sure on Sunday this guy will tell his congregation about how many stars his crown will have in it when he gets to heaven because he discriminated against two individuals “just like God told him to do.”

The good news is (if something like this can ever produce good news), the Kentucky Equality Federation is planning a protest at Hazard City Hall sometime in the near future. I’m not sure what good that will do in this town, but at least it will let other LGBT people know that the whole state is watching and that there are people, all over this commonwealth, who will support them and fight for them when given the chance.

We’re all just humans – no different than any other human – trying to make it in this world. It doesn’t matter who we love, it doesn’t matter what we believe: we all bleed, breathe and die the same. Instead of drawing lines between us and them and living in self-made walls of fear, we should all be most afraid of the lonely lives we will lead if we remain afraid of one another – lives of which I’m sure Jesus would be ashamed.