Coming Out of the Holler

The Inherent Queerness of Appalachia

By Paige Griffith

Hol·ler
/ˈhälər/  Valley or hollow between hills and mountains 

I am Appalachian and I am queer. These two positionalities, that are expected to conflict, run deep within my identity structure. 

When I say I am Appalachian, I mean I originally resided within the Appalachian Mountains named after the Appalachee, located on native Cherokee land. It is my tie to the land that influences the way in which I interact with my surrounding environment.

When I say I am Appalachian, I mean I was raised to respect the native land I was on and the people that made up my community. I further identify with my Appalachian heritage on the basis of the complex revolutionary acts of coal miner and hillbilly rebellion: from the secession of West Virginia of 1861 (trans), to the Battle of Blair Mountain (defiant), to the Young Patriots joining forces with The Black Panther Party (radical).

When I say I am queer, I mean I identify as queer in both terms of sexuality and gender. It is my embodiment. I identify with being queer in ways that create my lifestyle and challenge binary structures that expect conformity. Living as queer means recognizing that love, desire, and identity are nuanced and diverse; fostering solidarity across communities and advocating for equality for all. 

To be queer is to reject constraints and heteronormative labels, while embracing fluidity, solidarity, and collective liberation. In queer theory, one engages reflexively with positions and structures of power to promote social change for all identities. A queer identity is a radical identity aimed at transforming systems of privilege. 

To be Appalachian in the modern day means to have a highly conservative political stance, to be uneducated, and to be expected to uphold traditional values which adhere to capitalistic expectations that harm its very own community and land. This is not the Appalachia I know. 

 

When I say I am Appalachian, I mean that I believe the original heritage of Appalachian identity, which has been lost overtime, is inherently queer.

 When I say I am Appalachian, I am saying I am queer. 

To understand the intersectionality and similarities between Appalachian heritage and queer identity, we must delve into how the history of Appalachia parallels and informs queer theory, and understand how our physical experiences and surrounding environments inform one another. To be connected to the land in which one is on is to be connected to the body one inhabits. To respect one is to respect the other, and to disrespect both is to do a great disservice and civil injustice. 

On June 20, 1863, what is now called West Virginia officially made its full transition from the previous confederacy identity to its own statehood; joining the Union in the Civil War. After the vote for secession in 1861, West Virginia began its transition from being a part of Virginia to its becoming its own separate identity.

In order for one to identify as transgender, one’s gender identity must align with something outside of their assigned sex at birth and/or categories of common gender binaries. To come from a group of individuals who transitioned out of a confederate state, namely, Virginia, in order to create their own identity (West Virginia) by dividing the land in terms of invisible boundaries, is that not trans liberation? If going off of the identity of transgenderism; the separation and formation of one identity to another based on one’s own terms of boundaries and identity in a way that challenges previous societal expectations and constraints is all one needs to identify as trans. In the context of transitioning from one state to another, the formation of West Virginia serves as a parallel to transgender liberation. West Virginia’s separation from Virginia serves as a metaphor for transitioning to a truer identity; mirroring transgender identities. 

The Battle of Blair Mountain in 1921, the largest union uprising in American history, is furthermore an example of the inherent queerness of Appalachia’s past. In this moment of history, 10,000 West Virginia coal miners marched in protest against the harmful working conditions and unfair labor practices they were facing. The battle consisted of gunfire from both the coal miners and the gunmen of the coal companies that they were fighting against, resulting in casualties from both sides. 

This battle remains as an important piece of not only Appalachian history, but labor history, for it highlights the working class Americans struggle against corporate power. Similarly, queer history involves struggles for visibility and recognition of the humanity and dignity of marginalized communities. Queer activism has sought to affirm the rights and humanity of LGBTQIA+ individuals in society.

In 1969, working class Appalachians journeyed to Chicago in order to join The Black Panther Party, formulating an inter-racial, anti-capitalistic organization called The Rainbow Coalition. White, poor, Appalachians joined forces with The Black Panther party and other marginalized communities to fight systemic injustices by creating solidarity across backgrounds, races, and experiences. This alliance symbolized the potential for transformation and change when marginalized communities unite in the face of oppression. This part of Appalachian history is extremely radical and contributes to the queerness of the buried heritage. 

This moment in history is extremely similar to queer individuals harnessing the collective power of community organizing to advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, challenge discriminatory policies, and create safer and more inclusive spaces for all (it was called the Rainbow Coalition for crying out loud).

Being raised in true Appalachian values instilled in me a profound respect for and understanding that the land and its people are sacred. Coming out as queer helped me honor and cherish my own body and sacred expression within it. My Appalachian and queer identities do not conflict as expected but are rather intertwined threads in the fabrication of my identity. 

The very parts of Appalachian heritage and history of being trans, radical, defiant, and resilient, are the same parts of me that happen to make up my queer identity of being trans, radical, defiant, and resilient. 

To be from West Virginia is to be Appalachian is to be queer. 

Both rooted in community, constructed in the sense of belonging that defies mainstream narratives, and declares a respect for the mountains that I call home and the body that takes me everywhere I go. 

I am not sure which identity borrows from the other, but I know that my intersecting mountain(qu)eer identities exists, and we are incredibly vibrant, resilient, and free individuals who challenge positions of power and oppression.

References 

All Access EKY. (2023, March 15). The story of the mountains- being queer in Appalachia. https://www.allaccesseky.org/blog/2020/9/28/the-story-of-the-mountains-being-queer-in-appalachia 

American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Answers to your questions about transgender people, gender identity, and gender expression. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/topics/lgbtq/transgender-people-gender-identity-gender-expression 

Jolie, R. A. (2022, June 15). Imagining queer appalachian futures – belt magazine. Belt Magazine – Dispatches From the Rust Belt and Greater Midwest. https://beltmag.com/imagining-queer-appalachian-futures-yall-means-all/ 

Knollinger, C. (2019, February 8). Wild, wondering west virginia: Exploring West Virginia’s Native American history. West Virginia Public Broadcasting. https://wvpublic.org/wild-wondering-west-virginia-exploring-west-virginias-native-american-history/ 

Magazine, S. (2021, August 25). What made the battle of blair mountain the largest labor uprising in American history. Smithsonian.com. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/battle-blair-mountain-largest-labor-uprising-american-history-180978520/ 

National Archives and Records Administration. (n.d.). West Virginia statehood, June 20, 1863. National Archives and Records Administration. https://www.archives.gov/legislative/features/west-virginia 

Rampant Magazine. (2021, October 13). Hillbilly Nationalists & Chicago’s rainbow coalition. https://rampantmag.com/2021/09/hillbilly-nationalists-chicagos-rainbow-coalition/ 

U.S. Department of the Interior. (n.d.). The battle of blair mountain (U.S. National Park Service). National Parks Service. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/the-battle-of-blair-mountain.htm 

​​Wilson, Emily Ann (2022) “Redneck Revolutionaries: The Young Patriots and the Rainbow Coalition (pp. 22-32),” Vulcan Historical Review: Vol. 26, Article 6. Available at: https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/vulcan/vol26/iss2022/6