Ignorant hillbillies?

Rachel has a good post about the contempt with which the dead miners are treated in some quarters.

I happen to have met lots of people from West Virginia who were clients of my mother, the lawyer. My uncle claimed they had a pipeline directly from West Virginia to her office. They had left West Virginia and its mines for the attractions of factory work in Columbus, Ohio. They often had troubles which required a lawyer, and that's where my mother came in.

They were mainly unlettered people but they were friendly and generous. We often visited their homes and were treated with great hospitality. When my mother's car was in the shop for an extended period, one of these "hillbillies" would drive her in his truck wherever she wanted to go. They visited her when she was ill and brought home-baked cakes. Some were jerks, but some of every group are jerks, not omitting the editorial writers of the Amsterdam News. All of Fred Phelps' group are jerks.

I really resent it when they are considered "unpersons," ignorant rubes unworthy of respect. Black people and Jews like myself who have suffered prejudice know better. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Note: West Virginia became a state when it seceded from Virginia during the Civil War.

Another note: If it weren't for coal miners, some of us would be mighty cold.