Appalachia has been a place of movement and migration—for individuals, families, and entire communities—for centuries.
Beginning Again brings together twelve narratives of refugees, migrants, and generations-long residents that explore complex journeys of resettlement. In their stories, Appalachia—despite how it’s popularly portrayed—is not simply a region of poverty and strife populated only by white people. It is a diverse place where belonging and connection are created despite displacement, resource extraction, and inequality.
Among the narratives included:
Hear from Claudine Katete, a Rwandan asylum seeker raised in refugee camps who graduated college into the chaos of COVID-19. Follow Amal as she and her family fled war-ravaged Syria and navigated mice-infested housing and unresponsive case workers. Listen to Mekyah Davis, born and raised in Big Stone Gap, as he describes the “slow burn” of everyday racism and his efforts to organize Black Appalachian youth to stay in their communities. Taken together, their stories and more collected here present a nuanced look at life in contemporary Appalachia.
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FOR READERS OF MI MARÍA, SOLITO, SOLITA, AND HOW WE GO HOME: The newest project in the Voice of Witness (VoW) series, this book will build on the collaboration between VoW and Haymarket Books to lift up the voices of those most marginalized by systemic injustice in today’s society.
HIGHLIGHTING AN UNSUNG REGION OF THE U.S.: This book brings to life the nuances and complexities of life in rural Appalachia—a region too often overlooked, oversimplified, and stereotyped.
A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON MIGRATION: Most often in Western-dominated media, we read about refugees and migrants in larger cities, but rarely do we see these stories take place in rural areas. This book fills that gap.
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The Voice of Witness oral history book series amplifies the voices of people directly impacted by—and fighting against—injustice, using an ethics-driven methodology that combines journalistic integrity and a humanizing, literary approach to oral history.
The series explores issues of race-, gender-, and class-based inequity, featuring a diversity of voices, including those of wrongfully convicted Americans, undocumented immigrants, agricultural workers, Indigenous peoples, communities displaced from public housing, and more. Their personal stories offer readers an engaging understanding of issues that might otherwise seem abstract.
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Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9798888901014
Publisert
2024-06-11
Utgiver
Vendor
Haymarket Books
Høyde
228 mm
Bredde
152 mm
Aldersnivå
01, G, 01
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Heftet
Antall sider
352
Redaktør
Introduction by
Biographical note
Katrina M. Powell is Professor of Rhetoric and Writing and founding director of the Center for Refugee, Migrant, and Displacement Studies at Virginia Tech. Her research focuses on displacement narratives. She is cofounder of the digital-born oral history initiative, VTStories.org, founding editor of the journal Roots and Resettlement, and codirector of Monuments Across Appalachian Virginia.
Poet Nikki Giovanni was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. Since 1987, she has been on the faculty of Virginia Tech, where she is a University Distinguished Professor.