Five Decades Later, the Mountains Still Need What They Never Got

James Branscome: Five decades later, the mountains still need what they never got

When I published “Annihilating the Hillbilly” in 1971, the manifesto argued that the stereotyping of Appalachian people was not folklore but a tool.

Five decades later, the mountains still need what they never got

James Branscome's new book, "Annihilating the Hillbilly Redux," will be published on June 6, 2026.When I published “Annihilating the Hillbilly” in 1971, the manifesto argued that the stereotyping of Appalachian people was not folklore but a tool. Coal operators, federal agencies, national media, and political elites used the hillbilly caricature to blame mountain people for conditions created by absentee ownership and extractive industries. The …