Appalachia Beyond Coal
On Tuesday, President Trump sat flanked by coal miners as he signed an executive order instructing the Environmental Protection Agency to review, and likely dismantle, the Obama Administration's signature Clean Power Plan. By making coal miners the face of the order, Trump was invoking a classic framing -- jobs vs. environmental protection -- and inviting well-worn caricatures about the residents of "coal country." But coal workers actually make up only a small percentage of the population of Appalachia, a region far more diverse than the stereotypes imply. Bob speaks with historian Elizabeth Catte, author of the forthcoming book What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia, about the myths and misunderstandings that shape our ideas about that part of the country.
