Why Coal Country Elected Trump

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Published 2020-02-28
Nowhere in America can the coal industry’s hurt be seen and felt more than in Appalachia. The region’s economy revolves around coal, and more miners are losing their jobs each year. The controversial industry became a focal point of the 2016 election when President Trump made the return of coal jobs a central campaign promise, but the economics behind this suffering industry extend beyond policy and regulations.

VICE’s Isobel Yeung goes to the heart of coal country to see what it will take to save Appalachia.

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All Comments (21)
  • @VICENews
    VICE’s Isobel Yeung goes to the heart of coal country to see what it will take to save Appalachia.
    WATCH NEXT: Meet The Indiana Joneses of Hawaiian Plant Rescue Missions - https://youtu.be/59Noq49Swxk
  • @TheLazyass111
    Not a trump supporter. But the people like this and others from the midwest have been ignored for years and as jobs leave and people lose ways to support their family, they will vote for whoever gives them the time of day
  • I was born in Logan, WV grew up in a coal mining family and lived in Belfry, KY for a couple of years before returning back to WV. I was taught at a young age that it was either mining or college. No in between. And that if I chose college, I'd have to leave my home to find work. Seeing all the towns and communities I grew up around, dying, boarded up, half empty because their only economy is being closed has given me a goal and purpose that I will work tirelessly to fill. I went to college and obtained a cybersecurity degree and currently, I am working with state officials and programs to help establish a tech industry in Southern WV. Tired of seeing my people desperate for change and everyone in DC pretending like we don't exist until elections come up. We know coal isn't the future, but when it's all you have you'll do what you can to keep it. A coal miner makes anywhere from $40k-$80k a year and even more when you get into specialist roles like roof bolting or fireboss. There's nothing else in these communities to replace that kind of salary and when you have a bunch of people making that kind of money, feeding it into the local economy, when those jobs are gone, the stores and businesses in town start to close. This has got to change and I, along with many other Appalachians are leading that change.
  • @star4shine100
    Coming from a Liberal and acknowledging that Vice tends to be more left leaning, I'm really happy they ran this episode. The idea that all Trump supporters are uneducated, insulated and racist is quite a classist outlook, and silences the voice of millions of Americans who really do (and understandably so) feel forgotten. Props to Isobel for another great segment!
  • @chrishealey7092
    Wow, those kids doing the 3d printing are remarkable and bright—I really hope that they are able to modernize the communities and lift them and their families out of poverty.
  • @CB-db1qx
    "Rusty Justice". Please take a moment to admire that name.
  • @MoisesZTech
    Coal is a dying industry. It’s sad though that these people have to be in the middle of it-even if we may disagree politically
  • @kingsfan4life2
    Man, I really feel for those people. They all just seem like honest, hardworking folks.
  • That town should look at inventing some sort of year round tourism like hiking, mountain biking and something to do with the natural beauty of the mountains and surrounding land.
  • @dk2428
    Who else is having trouble breathing, just watching this video!?
  • @jimmybond148
    I think there’s been a significant improvement in vice documentaries in the last year
  • @jono601
    Because it’s their livelihood. You try switching careers when you’re 40.
  • @doingtime20
    "The only constant in life is change". It kind of baffles me that even in this day and age where we have so much information at our disposal people don't realize this truth, things always change. Just because the job was available and was very profitable for your grandfather and father doesn't mean it will be there waiting for you and will provide you your whole life, you have to observe your environment and realize the changes that come, and of course act accordingly to them.
  • Let me guess before watching the video. These people had hopes that their jobs would come back and they would thrive but either nothing happened or things got worse....
  • @NortonNice
    8:08 "That's the dream?" "That's the goal." This kid is going places.
  • @snoogboonin
    You have to live where the jobs are these days. Living in rural America limits the amount job opportunities that are available.
  • @Kradle
    Those are some very sharp high-schoolers. Even they know they're relying on a dying industry. We should try to find ways to establish industry related to power and infrastructure in towns like this too, instead of holding onto a dying industry. Seems like they're more dynamic and open to changing with the times than the media and public want to frame them out as.
  • @timmachin3830
    This is Wales in the 80's with the added problem that kids have to pay for higher education and everyone pays if they get sick. Difficult times.