In February of 1926, Carter G. Woodson helped establish “Negro History Week” to educate teachers, students, and community members about the accomplishments and experiences of Blacks in the United States. A native of Virginia, and the son of formerly enslaved parents, Woodson earned a PhD in history from Harvard University, and dedicated much of his life to writing and teaching about information largely omitted from textbooks and other historical accounts. Although Woodson died in 1950, his legacy continues, as “Negro History Week” eventually became “Black History Month” in 1976.
Nearly a century later, Black History is still at risk of erasure, especially in (once) geographically isolated areas, like Appalachia. The standard narrative that Scots-Irish “settled” Appalachia starting in the 18th century hides the fact that there were often violent interactions between European immigrants and indigenous people in the region. Even in the 1960s when authors like Michael Harrington and Harry Caudill reported on Appalachian mountain folk, the people were depicted as Scots-Irish descendants, known for being poor, lazy, and backward, representations that are reinforced in contemporary accounts of the region, such as J. D. Vance’s wildly popular memoir Hillbilly Elegy.


Accounts like these offer stereotypical understandings of poor Appalachian whites, and at the same time, they ignore the presence and experiences of Blacks in the region. Work by social scientists William Turner and Edward Cabell, as well as “Affrilachia” poet Frank X. Walker, and historian Elizabeth Catte attempts to remedy this problem, but the dominant narrative of the region centers still on poor whites and their lives.
Work I have been doing documenting the life experiences of Leslie [“Les”] Whittington, a native of Western North Carolina and a descendent of a formerly enslaved people, has opened my eyes to a historical narrative I never fully knew. African Americans, for instance, accounted for approximately 10% of the Appalachian region’s population by 1860, and many were enslaved, including Les’ grandfather, John Myra Stepp. Yet, their stories are glaringly missing from the dominant narrative of the region.

So too are the stories of Blacks living in Appalachia today. Even though the number of African American residents has increased in some parts of Appalachia, while the white population has decreased, little is formally documented about their lives. That absence has led scholar William Turner, to refer to Blacks in Appalachia as a “racial minority within a cultural minority.” Not only does erasing African Americans from the past and present of Appalachia provide an inaccurate view of the region, but it also minimizes the suffering of poor Blacks, who relative to their white counterparts, are and have been the poorest of an impoverished population.
Woodson established “Negro History Week” to document and share the history of Blacks in the United States, recognizing that, “If a race has no history, it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, and it stands in danger of being exterminated.” The history of African Americans in the Appalachian region is largely absent from the area’s official record, and without making it part of the dominant narrative, we risk losing that history.
Jacqueline Clark, PhD is a professor of sociology at Ripon College. Her teaching and research interests include social inequalities, the sociology of health and illness, and the sociology of jobs and work.
Comments 29
Les Whittington — February 20, 2019
Excellent, thanks for sharing, all need to know this history!
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Mike Coggeshall — February 21, 2019
Here's more research on the topic:
https://www.uncpress.org/book/9781469640853/liberia-south-carolina/
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Matt — March 1, 2019
not exactly Appalachia, but to your point about black settlement in rural areas: https://www.limestonepostmagazine.com/lick-creek-settlement-holds-piece-of-black-history-indiana/
Mercella Fiddler — March 24, 2019
Whenever the term race is discussed on a sociological standpoint, I understand it to be dealing with a cohort of people constructed on shared physical or social qualities into categories generally viewed as distinct by society. Race has been a contentious topic in America due to the disproportionate advantage majority groups enjoy over minority groups over the years. The matter has become a more intense debate in the media today chiefly because of the “Black Life Matter Group” An international group of African-American campaigning against violence and systematic racism towards blacks. The Presidential campaign slogan “Make America Great Again” has also had some detrimental repercussion on the lives of black people”. It brought a refreshed hope into the minds of white American that making America great again will result in an America where the laws of Jim Crow can be reestablished and blacks can again be treated as one- fifth of the value of a white person. Thus, A discussion about race cannot be void of the subject of stereotype which lead to inferior or superior group identity. Another such issue that is deeply rooted into the discussion of race is ethnicity, which is the state of belonging to a particular social group that experience a common cultural tradition. Consequently, Race; stereotype and ethnicity are intertwined and interrelated in all aspects of human society.
In an article entitled Lil Wayne and colorblind Racism by Jeannette Wade, the writer discussed an interview between rapper Lil Wayne and ABC News' host Linsey Davis where the rapper was asked his views on Black Life Matter. The rapper replied unapologetically, “I don't feel connected to a damn thing that ain't got nothin' to do with me." Lil Wayne’s response can be associated with two of the six ways Sociologist Edwardo Bonilla-Silva explained racism lives on through colorblind rhetoric.
“complete inclusion, or the notion that all citizens belong to one race. This allows us to take the focus off specific race groups who are systematically disadvantaged.” (Edwardo Bonilla- Silva)
Lil Wayne belief that he is loved by all races as an African American rap artist gives him complete inclusion into mainstream society. With such honor he chose to turn a blind eye on the major social problems faced by minority groups, the group from which his ancestors are aligned. He cannot relate to the experience of being racially profiled or stereotyped. On that account, he has become numbed to the numerous racial murders by White law enforcement officers targeting African American youths. These officers refuse to follow protocol because they are wired with the stereotypical views of minority groups as being criminal and underserving of life, especially since blacks are no longer slaves and deny “ Make America Great Again”. As such they allow their personal beliefs and the grassroot belief of white America to guide their judgement when dealing with minority groups.
“Avoiding racist language, which implies that racism is only perpetuated via the use of slurs.” (Edwardo Bonilla-Silva)
The response calls into question whether racism has a significant impact on where an individual fall on the social ladder despite race and ethnic background. I use social ladder loosely to incorporate social stratification, Notwithstanding, that blacks are always at the bottom of that ladder in American history, but with money and fame an individual may be able to interact on a level playing field with their white counterparts. Subsequently, I deduced that material possession bestow certain privileges on Lil Wayne, individuals with the lack there of do not enjoy. However, if the definition of the terms race, ethnicity and stereotype holds true then one can not deny Lil Wayne has gone colorblind believing that racism is defined based on material possession.
Food for thought, Would a troubled Wayne Michael Carter, Jr. an African - American teenager from New Orleans responded in like manner to the question posed twenty years ago owing that he possess all the physical characteristics used to define African -American thugs?
Work Cited
King, A. Laura (2017) The Science of Psychology: An Appreciative View Myers David (2010) Psychology Ninth Edition. 455 - 464
Wade Jeanette Lil Wayne and Colorblind Racism, Race/Ethnicity/Theory April 12 2017 http://sociologyinfocus.com/2017/04/lil-wayne-colorblind-racism/ March 23, 2019
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