Appalachia produces less coal than it once did, but that coal is still desired around the world for making steel. The demand is now creating problems for people who live near the terminals where coal is moved from train to ship, to then be carried overseas. Residents of Norfolk and Newport News, Virginia, say airborne coal dust from export terminals is getting on their cars, on their houses, in their lungs. Residents have started to take matters into their own hands.
Us & Them: Who Gets Stuck Behind Bars In West Virginia?
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West Virginia’s state prisons and jails are overcrowded and understaffed.
Just over half of those who are incarcerated have not yet been found guilty of a crime, they’re in a cell because they can’t make their bail. Many of those people are poor and a disproportionate number are Black.
On this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay takes a look at what contributes to the racial disparities in our justice system. Black people make up about 3.5 percent of West Virginia’s population but 12 percent of the state’s incarcerated population. Why are people of color overrepresented in the criminal justice system?
Join Kay for a visit to arraignment court where the choices made early on play a critical role in how a case proceeds. Bail options are an important point where racial disparities can be on display and when a person’s freedom depends on their access to cash or property, some say Black West Virginians are disproportionately harmed.
This episode of Us & Them is presented with support from the West Virginia Humanities Council, the CRC Foundation and The Just Trust.
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Appalachia produces less coal than it once did, but that coal is still desired around the world for making steel. The demand is now creating problems for people who live near the terminals where coal is moved from train to ship, to then be carried overseas. Residents of Norfolk and Newport News, Virginia, say airborne coal dust from export terminals is getting on their cars, on their houses, in their lungs. Residents have started to take matters into their own hands.
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