Dr. Anna Rachel Terman
Rachel Terman, Assistant Professor of Sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences at Ohio University, presents “Class Identity, Experiences, and Intersections among Young College-educated People in West Virginia” at the 40th Annual Appalachian Studies Conference later this month in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Terman’s areas of specialization include rural sociology, Appalachian studies, sociology of gender and identities, women’s studies, and social Inequalities and she teaches courses including Sociology of Appalachia and Sociology of Gender, as well as a Seminar in Wealth & Poverty.
The mission of the Appalachian Studies Association is to promote and engage dialogue, research, scholarship, education, creative expression, and action among a diverse and inclusive group of scholars, educators, practitioners, grassroots activists, students, individuals, groups and institutions. Our mission is driven by our commitment to foster quality of life, democratic participation and appreciation of Appalachian experiences regionally, nationally and internationally.
“Extreme Appalachia” is the theme for the 40th annual Appalachian Studies Conference. “Extreme” here means the impassioned commitments people have to the region, the land, and Appalachian communities, ways of life, and livelihoods. And the ways extreme economics—excessive resource extraction and use, underfunding of public education and services, and dismal job opportunities—have sparked community resilience and activism that advance a sustainable future for the region. “Extreme Appalachia” also references exploitative pop culture products like reality television programming—as well as the countering power of the region’s visual, performance, and literary arts to nurture, provoke, and inspire. In the face of extremity, regionalist scholarship continues to augment ongoing struggles for racial, social, economic, and environmental justice.
Abstract:
The symbolic role and meaning of class has shifted in the U.S. as we have become a predominantly postindustrial society. In general, most people identify with the “middle class,” or what is considered to be the “normal” class. However, in West Virginia, like other places characterized by rural and/or Appalachian stereotypes, working class culture based on the historical role of the coal industry is symbolically dominant in West Virginia despite material realities. In this paper I discuss the experiences of college-educated young adults in West Virginia through the prism of class identity. I ask how class, education, gender, race, and sexuality influence relationship to place, and I show that the intersection of these identities can result in alienation from place but can also foster cross-class connections, particularly among young people interested in social justice. I argue that working class culture is a key aspect of the culture in West Virginia in which these youth relationally construct their own identities. This is important to how they interpret and relate to place. In addition to the class privilege available to college-educated youth, they are of course also dealing with other aspects of identity including gender, race, and sexuality. In the context of the white masculine working class culture in WV, women, people of color, and LGBT people occupy a marginalized status and must negotiate their belonging in this context. Thus, their sense of belonging is relational to a white, heteropatriarchal working class culture that is symbolically dominant if not materially dominant. The potential for making alliances across class exists here and is affected by the intersectional experiences of gender, race, and sexuality. In this presentation I will provide examples based on qualitative data collection that show how young people negotiate class identity to progressive and problematic ends.
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