The People Are Best Suited to Change Perceptions of West Virginia, Not Government Officials
Written by Jason Keeling on February 27, 2009
Today Newsweek featured an article highlighting the state Department of Commerce’s “Come Home to West Virginia” campaign, an effort to lure former residents back to the state. For years, leaders across the state have been searching for “the answer” to counter our image problem.
Sterotypes have plagued Appalachia since the 19th Century, and it seems that more than any other state in the region, West Virginia has been on the receiving end of such negative depictions. Various political, economic, and social factors have contributed to this phenomenona, and in fact, some of these stereotypes contain elements of truth.
Talk and Defensiveness
As someone who has participated in various “official discussions” regarding image improvement in West Virginia, I’ve observed a lot of talk and defensiveness. There’s much less focus on taking actions that will address the realities that contribute to these stereotypes.
It seems particularly ironic that government officials feel they are in the best position to re-brand the state, when in fact their decisions (or lack thereof) often perpetuate our stereotypes.
Highlighting our successes is certainly important, but to really change our image, the people have to solve the problems that inhibit us statewide and locally.
Actions Bring Change
This requires fostering our personal senses of leadership, caring about our health, supporting our entreprenerial spirits, eliminating bitterness and the entitlement mentality, expanding tolerance, making prudent environmental decisions, caring about those in our embattled areas, speaking out against cronyism, and holding our government officials accountable.
Granted, it’s sometimes difficult not to be cynical about the state’s image and future, but if we don’t stop waiting on someone else to save us, then change is going to come very slow, and it’s likely to be more of the same.
Posted in Culture, West Virginia
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February 27th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
You note: “It seems particularly ironic that government officials feel they are in the best position to re-brand the state, when in fact their actions (or lack thereof) often perpetuate our stereotypes.”
Tell me, did the Governor change our stereotype by being quoted:
“Are they still running that s––– down south?” … “Well, I tell you what, if you see [the organizer], kill the son of a bitch.”
Talk about perpetuating our stereotype!
“I defend us,” he told Newsweek. In this instance, I believe he offended us instead.
February 27th, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I must concur that in general, until the people of this great state learn how to stand up for it in a non-defensive manner, we are going to suffer. There is so much insecurity here, it is truly painful to behold and experience. When I moved home after 10 years in another state, I was struck by how often people actually apologized to me for the way things are here (the less than great things), rather than showing off the fantastic things (of which there are many).
There are assets and deficits everywhere, no matter where you live. While I don’t oppose the state trying to help, I agree in some instances it may take the responsibility off the shoulders of the rest of us. We are the ones who need to make a change.
February 27th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
The Bernie Maddows and John Thains of the world would never live in West Virginia. I don’t want one hair of WV changed. I like it just like it is. I like my two seater outhouse much more than Thain’s $35,000 toilet. I much prefer the humble people of West Virginia to the Wall Street thugs that perhaps our governor is aspiring to copy. Open for Business is not why I retired to West Virginia. I’m happy with “Wild and Wonderful.”
February 28th, 2009 at 2:25 am
Great post. One of the keys is to stop referring to how our image is incorrect and trying to convince people otherwise. It’s like repeating someone’s attack or inaccurate statement when responding to it; it only serves to reinforce the original comment, which is the last thing you want.
It is better to do as you suggest and focus on how to enhance WV to become that thriving land of opportunity, shared prosperity, love and happiness that we all want. Being overly defensive isn’t the answer, better policy is. When that is in place and results are achieved, then public perceptions will improve as well.
Looking at the attention over Diane Sawyer’s recent report, we as a state and region have spent far more time debating the accuracy and impact of the report on national public opinion, rather than using it as a call to action to resolve the issues that were identified.
I’m reminded about Randy Moss and his investment back in WV. We know Randy has had his moments of bad perceptions, particularly when he was with the Raiders, but rather than hire a publicist, he went about his business and now is regarded much differently.
It’s about action, not public relation campaigns. Which is not to say that PR campaigns are bad, but only that they can’t overcome certain realities that must be addressed before our negative stereotypes are a memory.
February 28th, 2009 at 10:39 am
Agree with Jim, image change is not about defensiveness - regardless of how unfair the steretotypes. We can only shift perceptions with authentic examples of progress. It is frustrating, however, when there are authentic examples that the media refuse to even look for or acknowledge.
It will take something momentous to change this in our lifetimes. It will certainly take a different political ecosystem where majority of politicians are not tied to the status quo and are willing to make some bold, aggressive moves that affect change. And we know that politicians don’t change unless we the people do.
February 28th, 2009 at 10:52 am
When the 1960 article came out in the Sat. Evening Post on “The Strange Case of WV”, I was in high school. People back then were crying for the talented and educated to stay or return. I actually loved my State and took that bilge to heart. Following a masters degree from UNC, Chapel Hill and working at the Smithsonian Institution in DC, I returned to WV. I was hired as a secretary at the WVU Alumni Assoc. and then told that because of that I could never be considered for a position higher than secretary.
Finally in the 80’s I returned to UNC to obtain my PhD. During an interview for a position in my undergraduate departement, I received an obviously phony phone call. The “caller” said he had thought I’d be a man and when had WVU begun “giving” degrees like that to women. I said it was from UNC–he stated they must have “different standards” (they do). In a subsequent phone conversation to tell me I had not been considered for the position (which I had held at the Smithsonian), he said they could not hire me because I was the “wrong politics” and they had to have someone who would do and say everything the environmentalists dictated.
I returned to WV due to a love of the State (that no longer exists–I feel contempt) and to take care of my late parents. I took care of my mother for 7 years.
West Virginia politicians like to say they want us to stay/return, but it is bunk. An educated and talented citizenry would vote them out of office and they are not about to let their power be diminished. Nope, keep the State undereducated and economically depressed to keep their power.
February 28th, 2009 at 11:49 am
My family and I currently live about 3000 miles from home, and every day, I think about coming back, but I’m beginning to think we never will. When we packed up our household back in July 2006, we didn’t so much leave the state as FLED it. We were sinking slowly downward financially and left at the last possible second, before we ended up living in a ditch and begging for food from passers-by. When I see those calls for people like us to come back, I also think of the headlines I read every day about WV, which almost always have news of another business closing, or laying off due to cutbacks.
What “growth” is the government talking about? I just recently read an article about WV’s economy which stated that in the last few months (I think possibly December ‘08 and January ‘09), more than 4000 West Virginians had lost their jobs. And every week since then, I’ve read about more. And the jobs that still exist pay almost nothing. I saw a job proudly advertised in the Fairmont Times which offered $7.00 an hour, part time, so no benefits. The other jobs offered were no better. No one can live on that. Why in h@ll would I come back to that? I have two young children to raise, and as much as I long to raise them in the land that my ancestors settled back in the 1700’s, I want them to have something other than the crushing poverty that I grew up with in the 60’s and 70’s.
One other comment: The Promise Scholarship is a boon to WV students who want to go to college, but the government may as well admit to itself and WV that once the recipients have graduated, most of them will have to leave the state to find a decent job, so any future economic gains are out the window. The scholarship program is a drain on the budget, with very little probable return on the investment.
And what is the legislature doing, capping the scholarship, but then voting themselves a raise? Why is the governor buying a new multi-million dollar plane for himself, when the one he had was only three years old and still functioned well? Decisions like that are part of the problem.
As for the Promise Scholarship Progam, even though I think it’s a financial drain, they should either give the scholarship, or don’t. No conditions, except GPA, should be imposed. Then, if they want to keep these graduates, they’d better start doing something about the job situation in the state. A public image campaign is a waste of money and time, because the realities of the state’s economy and government will trump every time.
Here are a few ideas I’ve had about making positive changes:
February 28th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
“This requires fostering our personal senses of leadership, caring about our health, supporting our entreprenerial spirits, eliminating bitterness and the entitlement mentality, expanding tolerance, making prudent environmental decisions, caring about those in our embattled areas, speaking out against cronyism, and holding our government officials accountable.
Granted, it’s sometimes difficult not to be cynical about the state’s image and future, but if we don’t stop waiting on someone else to save us, then change is going to come very slow, and it’s likely to be more of the same.”
Very good. Some of you folks are starting to get it. Others’ perceptions are not going change because a bunch of preppy WVians try and talk them into changing their perceptions. Others’ perceptions will change when WV changes.
Now, what are you doing to change?
February 28th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
Change takes time. It is also not about any single campaign or marketing effort - government based or not. Change on this scale requires persistent, focused effort. Long term continuums are not often compatible with political motivations or aspirations. It is about the future. Change for our children and their children. Success will only be defined later.
The second dynamic inherent in this conversation that I think requires a sharper point is that I think we need to focus on how thing are, not on trying to alter how they appear. If you want to change opinions, change reality. Facades are much more likely to crack than foundations. It is about how you conduct yourself, what you say and what you do - individually and collectively.
February 28th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
One thing I’d like to see change is the culture of anonymity when people have something important to say. There are lots of voices in our state via the Internet who speak of good ideas, but don’t sign their names to those ideas. As such, there is no accountability, and no real humanity behind the voice that says THIS MUST CHANGE and here is why. How can you build a movement, or a community, when you don’t know who anyone really is?
I know there are many fears out there about putting your real self out there with your ideas. I’ve felt it myself many times, and I do understand where it comes from; still, changing that fear is one thing I would like to see happen. Imagine a West Virginia where there were no shadow voices, only real people with real mandates for change…………not being afraid is an important first step.
March 1st, 2009 at 9:12 am
It is really not so difficult. However, it requires the change of the political culture in West Virginia.
Make the State business-friendly. Get a real and permanent handle on the trial lawyer situation–tort reform w/ teeth. Also make it a right-to-work State. Cut taxes and fees on business and citizens–it works every time it is tried.
That is basically what states in the southeast did several decades ago and they are going gang-busters while we are just going bust.
This solution does, however, require a real 2-party system. That is why it is likely not to happen. Those who have been in the controlling party of the last 80+ years are just not going to give up THEIR personal power for a bunch of citizens or the health of the state.
March 1st, 2009 at 10:26 am
Joan said, “Also make it a right-to-work State.”
Hear Hear!
I think this is an often overlooked point in fostering “entrepreneurship” in our state.
March 1st, 2009 at 6:30 pm
Well I am excited to see that there are so many passionate West Virginians. I think that all of you need a project to put that passion behind. So, we’re all looking for something that puts West Virginia in a good light, generates money, jobs, tourism, and still appreciates the essence of this mountain life we all love. Okay, good. I have a project that does these things, but I need help to support our cause.
The Lilly Family Reunion of Flat Top West Virginia has been hosting Nashville singers, political figures, and thousands of Americans since 1929. This year the Lilly’s are holding their 80th Reunion and we’re going for a Guinness World Record. The Film being made about the Lilly Family began principal photography last August. The work continues through this year’s reunion. The Reunion is held August 7,8,9th off of the Ghent/Flat Top Exit on Interstate 77.
Currently the reunion pulls an average of 7,000 people from 40 states across the country. We need connections with businesses, politicians, media outlets, and people to help promote this event that shows West Virginia’s most valuable resource… its PEOPLE. Hard working, family loving, salt of the earth people that are rare as diamonds in today’s society. I’m here to promote the truth and beauty of where I’m from.
If you want actions, please talk to me and we will see what we can do. Thank you for your time.
Chad Meador 917-478-9715
http://www.youtube.com/user/chadbo1485
http://www.lillyreunion.org
http://www.chadmeador.com
March 2nd, 2009 at 11:06 am
I think that the change must come from within our state first. We as citizens of WV need to feel better about ourselves. We can not expect the rest of the US to view WV in a favorable way, if our own state residents play into the “hillbilly” stereotype. We as Mountaineers need to show our talents, our loyalty, our hard work, and the many accomplishments that our great state has. Once we show pride in ourselves, the rest of the country will follow in being proud of us.
March 4th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
I think it is also important that parents recognize their responsibility in leading by example to change the way we think about ourselves. There is so much opportunity in the state of West Virginia, and as a parent, it is my responsibility to my daughter to show her the beauty, the positive sides of our culture, and likewise the opportunities she has ahead of her in making our state a part of her future to build upon.
As a West Virginian who has had the opportunity to move away, take other jobs, invest in other opportunities external to WV, I have tried to create my own opportunity by staying in WV. I have not wanted to leave our state like many of the individuals of whom I graduated with. WV is beautiful and full of self-created opportunities. That’s what I intend to teach my own daughter about our home state and I try my best to surround myself with those individuals who want the same for their own families.
Professionally and personally, WV has been wonderful to me….but likewise, I try to promote being respectful toward West Virginia and it’s people.
March 8th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Working to change the image of WV is something that all the citizens must do. Yes we need to fix some things in WV and the major issue that needs to be addressed is salaries. How do you do that in the middle of a slumping economy though? I left WV 18 years ago to come to college, and did not return for this reason. I wish more than anything though that I could return to live there and not just visit the family I still have there, but in order to do this I will need to find a job that pays $60k and there are not many of those around the state, especially in my field which is education.
Even though I’m not living there I do still care about the image of the state, and for that reason I am trying to win a competition on a website called nameyourdreamassignment.com . If I can get enough votes I will be given a budget that will allow me to travel through WV documenting the culture, and not just the poor misfortunate “hillbilly”, but the true culture of WV. (Read more about this at http://nameyourdreamassignment.com/the-ideas/edbodnar/document-the-true-culture-of-appalachia/ )
If we all do something like this to show who we really are as West Virginians maybe we will have a big enough impact on the main stream media to convince the world or at least the nation that we are not a bunch of hicks.
March 22nd, 2009 at 12:28 pm
This is truly a good post. I am a native born West Virginian who has recently returned with my husband (a Virginian) and our youngest child after living most of my life in other states. While state “pride” is all well and good, there has to be more to it than words and emotions. I’d like to see some of this pride translate into very basic pride in this state — beginning with cleaning it up and becoming intolerant with those who treat it as one big dump. That would be REAL pride.
March 23rd, 2009 at 6:31 pm
Welcome home, Kelly! You sound like someone who would enjoy http://www.createwv.com as well. It’s become the light of my life since moving home about 7 years ago. Get involved, we need attitudes and energy like yours!
June 19th, 2009 at 11:36 pm
Over the past several years I have compared my home state of West Virginia to other surrounding states. I have noticed that health care in W.V. is on the cutting edge. The improvements to I-64 make W.V. easier to get to for tourist so they can see some beautiful sites.
I love West Virginia.
Ruth
July 8th, 2009 at 12:52 pm
My family has deep WV roots. I was born and raised in the state (1973-1992) and I did my undergrad work there (1992-1996). Although I am not Catholic, I have heard Catholics talk about the Church the way many native West Virginians talk about their home state. It is a kind of love/hate and pride/shame kind of thing, with plenty of apologies to “outsiders”. And while I believe most West Virginians are open and welcoming I do know there are many clannish groups who are bitter and resentful and find solace in the “us” (real country/mountain folk) versus “them” (those who came for a job or to go to school) mentality. So with one crowd apologizing all the time and another barely “tolerating” non-natives, it is no wonder that the state’s image continues to be conflicted at best and embarrassing at worst, at least that part which is under public control/influence. Stories of environmental destruction, hate crimes, corruption and cronyism, etc just add to/seem to confirm the stereotype.
As for former residents returning, I never had leaving the state as an explicit goal, even though I was excited to get out to seek new opportunities. I chose to go on for a graduate degree and neither WVU nor Marshall offered advanced studies in the areas I was pursuing. After completing grad school, I had a degree that was geared towards working in higher ed/research and a hefty addition to my student loans. I have worked at various universities in different part of PA and even one in NC, but there is no way I could go back to WV. It would require that either WVU or Marshall create a position in my field (unlikely with the budget crunches that were hitting higher ed even prior to the current economic mess) and then I would have to compete with a couple hundred other superbly qualified individuals (such is the state of the job market in academia) to get it. I place the odds of all this happening at a million to one. Yes, I could use my experience and insights to do other jobs, but I am unaware of a growing industry anywhere, let alone in WV, looking for broadly educated intellectuals to apply their insights and skills to more generalized positions outside of the ivory tower (and paying a decent salary to boot). And getting $7/hr working at the local 7-11 can’t come close to covering my monthly overhead.
I am happy to see such efforts to rehabilitate the state’s image - emphasizing existing strengths and working to correct long-term weaknesses, making efforts to create new strengths, etc. I may never be able to return home in the sense of moving back, but I wish everyone working for better West Virginia success beyond your wildest, most wonderful dreams.
July 24th, 2009 at 1:22 am
My roots go deep here as well. I’am the 8th generation to live and farm this land, and except for a tour with the marine corps I have never left. The stigma of being a “redneck” doesn’t bother me, I’m proud of it.