On this West Virginia Morning, most outdoor sporting gear gets thrown away when it wears out. But in western North Carolina, one climber-turned-crafter is giving old equipment a new purpose.
‘WV Can’t Wait’ Candidates Against Corporate Campaign Contributions File For Office
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The area outside the West Virginia House of Delegates chamber was filled Saturday morning with t-shirts and buttons from various election campaigns throughout the state. Several people wore red bandanas, symbolic of the West Virginia miner strikes and the state’s rich labor history.
At the front of the room, behind the House doors, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stephen Smith and several others running for office this year shared their movement’s progressive platform.
Smith is at the forefront of WV Can’t Wait, a political movement that features more than 70 candidates poised to race in elections all over the state. Those in the group have signed a pledge, promising not to accept corporate donations in their campaigns.
Not all of the candidates who have signed the pledge have also signed the platform Smith shared Saturday.
Many of those candidates were in Charleston Saturday morning to officially file with the Secretary of State’s office for office.
“We know that politicians don’t write history. Movements do,” Smith told rally attendees. “Politicians didn’t lead the mine wars. Politicians did not leave the teachers and school service personnel strike that happened, right here!”
Smith delivered his speech with several other candidates from the movement Saturday morning.
Brittney Barlett, a Buckhannon-area teacher running for the House of Delegates, promised to support teachers by raising their wages to match that of other states, and establishing curriculum that avoids too many standardized tests and “lets teachers teach.”
Rosemary Ketchum from Wheeling is running for City Council. She told rally attendees she wants to “expose sweetheart deals” that support large, out-of-state corporations over small, local businesses.
Tina Russell, who’s running for the House of Delegates in Mercer County, said she’ll establish a worker’s bill of rights, including paid family leave and collective bargaining for all state employees.
The entire presentation bounced around issues that have been in established politicians’ and Gov. Jim Justice’s recent addresses — economic development, population loss and substance use.
Smith himself elaborated on working class issues.
“Our workers are producing more than ever. West Virginians have never generated so much wealth, but that wealth does not stay here,” Smith said in his address. “The profits of our people working overtime heads out state and into the populous of executives.”
This week the U.S. Department of Education is launching a multimillion-dollar program to help boost the completion of FAFSA nationwide. We’ll also learn more about the state’s largest methamphetamine seizure in history. And we’ll hear about a rupture in the Mountain Valley Pipeline during a pressure test.
Across the nation, there are more and more local news deserts; communities with no local newspaper, television or radio station to cover what’s going on. When a small town paper like The Welch News in McDowell County, WV, can’t compete and shuts down, losing those local eyes and ears can affect accountability. No one is there to watch over things. Local news also provides a sense of cohesion and identity for a community. What happens when it’s gone? This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center.
Winners of the 2023 Virginias Associated Press Broadcasters Awards were announced March 23 at the Awards Luncheon and Annual Membership Meeting at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. WVPB brought home five first place awards and seven second place awards in eight different categories.
On this West Virginia Morning, the West Virginia Legislature wrapped up its 60-day regular session Saturday night with a flurry of activity in the House of Delegates. The Senate, on the other hand, spent the last hour recognizing staff and shutting down 15 minutes early. Eric Douglas has this lookback.