We are black, we are white, we are brown , we are red, and we are yellow .
We are tall and short, strong and weak, and both wealthy and poor.
We are a minority people from the United States, called Appalachian Americans .
We have been scattered across the country in the name of progress; displaced for electric dams to power the future, had entire communities shut down when factories or mines closed, and farmers and musicians were regularly cheated, for many years due to being left behind in education.
We have "funny accents and anecdotes " about how the world is, but are the strongest and most resilient people in the USA.
Yes we are a minority, yet we are not stupid,
our creative resourcefulness has helped us survive in harsh conditions and times of hunger through the years in early America.
The accents of our region come from Irish, Scottish, and African Cultures ; many of whom were Indentured Servants and paid for their passage to America with servitude for seven years for each family member who travelled to America. The others were brought here as sold property.
Even the indigenous women were sold or traded for someone's Cast Iron Skillet or bottles of Fire Water.
We are the Descendants of these people who built this country.
I am not White or Black or Brown or Red or Yellow,
I am Appalachian American.