On Thursday, September 4th, Bucknell University welcomed William H. Turner, Ph.D., as the first speaker in the Humanities Department’s Black Appalachia and the Search for Nowhere series. Dr. Turner holds a B.S. in sociology from the University of Kentucky as well as an M.S. in sociology and Ph.D. in sociology and anthropology from Notre Dame University. Additionally, he has completed post doctoral studies at the University of Pennsylvania and Duke University. Dr. Turner is a foundational researcher in the study of Black communities and culture across the Appalachian region and is credited with co-editing the groundbreaking book, Blacks in Appalachia. His latest book, The Harlan Renaissance: Stories of Black Life in Appalachian Coal Towns, has been awarded both the 2021 Weatherford Award for nonfiction and 2023 Kentucky Historical Society Governor’s Award since its publishing in 2021.
Dr. Turner opened the lecture by sharing his personal connection to his research. Born in Lynch, Kentucky in 1946, his father, grandfather, uncles, and brother were coal miners. As Turner showed images of the Kentucky hills, his family, and the holler he was raised in, he stated that Black residents comprise 20% of the Appalachian population, and thus an accurate picture of Appalachian history cannot be portrayed without the inclusion of their experiences. Further, Turner explained that the “white hillbilly” stereotype is inaccurate because there is a long history of interracial relationships and mixed-race people throughout Appalachia. “Ms. Susie down the street is married to a white man”, he imitated his childhood self, explaining that these instances of coexistence were more normalized than is typically assumed.
Turner focused on the atrocities resulting from company coal mining and the War on Poverty, explaining how Appalachian stereotypes like toothlessness, alcoholism, and incest harm both Black and white citizens: “White Appalachians are the only people in America you could make fun of without it being considered a slur”. He also spoke about harmful portrayals of Appalachia by its own residents, citing Vice President J.D. Vance’s memoir Hillbilly Elegy as an example of rhetoric which pushes the idea that “White people shouldn’t be this far behind in America” in order to justify racism. Rhetoric and portrayals like these encourage division in the hopes of creating distrust within the region while encouraging the rest of America to use Appalachia as a scapegoat. However, as Turner pointed out, Appalachia is not necessarily the ultra conservative hub that it is portrayed as, citing voting statistics in the 2024 election as an example.
Toward the end of his talk, Dr. Turner acknowledged the dwindling population of Appalachia, which has dropped by 60% of its overall population and 90% of its Black population. As a result of this decrease in population, many of the unique cultural elements of Black Appalachian communities are becoming lost to time. He urged the audience to maintain their personal cultures by passing down recipes, music, and legends. He closed the talk by expressing his wariness about current government deportation initiatives, comparing immigration from South and Central American countries to his own family’s experience leaving Kentucky during post-coal economic depression: “At one point there were nine of us in one car heading to Grandma’s house, so if they need to cross the border to find work who am I to judge?”.
Turner’s lecture was as funny as it was moving and informative, and the packed room in which he spoke indicated how important his research is to the broader Bucknell community- Bucknell itself tucked away in a pocket of the Appalachian mountains.
-Lily Hebda