When people think of Appalachia, too often they picture a land defined by deficit – poverty, addiction, “backwardness.” Rarely do they see a region that has been the backbone of American industry, or a people who have fought – and continue to fight – for dignity, equity, and justice. Appalachia is more than mountains and coal. It is a region overlooked not just by policymakers and investors, but by a broader narrative of who builds America.

The extraction of coal built cities far from these hills, fueled wars, and powered factories. But here, in the communities closest to the mines, coal extraction left behind stripped mountains, broken economies, and divided towns. And yet, even in this story of loss, there are stories of resilience and resistance that few outside the region know.

Take the Mine Wars of the early 20th century. In Matewan, West Virginia, Appalachians of European and African ancestry, banded together to confront the brutal inequities of the coal industry. They risked everything to demand fair pay, safe working conditions, and dignity.

The 1920 Matewan Massacre, where miners faced down private detectives sent by coal companies, became a flashpoint. Just a year later, the Battle of Blair Mountain erupted and remains the largest armed labor uprising in U.S. history.

These weren’t just skirmishes in a forgotten coalfield. They were defining moments in the American labor movement. The bravery of these multi-ethnic coalfield worker coalitions laid the groundwork for modern unions, inspired generations of organizers, and forced the nation to consider the idea that workers’ rights are civil rights. And yet, this history is rarely told. It is tucked away, like the coal itself, buried beneath layers of neglect. But it reverberates today.

The conditions of extraction are not relics of the past. Appalachia continues to feel the weight of economic disinvestment and environmental degradation. Communities have been written off, treated as places without potential. This overlooking is not accidental; it is the continuation of a narrative that has always placed profit over people, and extraction over investment.

And yet, a different story is emerging.

At Coalfield Development, we believe those most impacted by extraction must be at the forefront of designing new solutions. We see our work as an act of reclamation – not just of land or of jobs, but of dignity, solidarity, and future.

Through enterprises in construction, solar installation, agriculture, and more, we’re proving that Appalachia is not a geography to be pitied or exploited, but one to be partnered with and invested in. We hire people who have been locked out of opportunity – those recovering from addiction, returning from incarceration, or struggling in generational poverty – and we don’t just give jobs, we are co-creating a new economy from the ground up.

But this is more than economics. It is about weaving back together a social fabric decades of exploitation have frayed. Just as miners once defied the logic of division, we are seeing bonds grow across race, class, and background. People who were told their lives didn’t matter are now leading enterprises, building homes, and planting seeds – literally and figuratively – for a new Appalachia.

What happens in overlooked geographies matters for all of us. When regions are written off, so are the people in them. And yet, from Appalachia to the Mississippi Delta, to tribal nations, to Black Belt towns, the overlooked are often the ones carrying the deepest wisdom about how to build resilient, just, and connected communities.

Appalachia’s story is not one of despair, but of determination. It is a story of people who refused to be disposable, who fought for one another even when the world was content to turn away.

Today, that legacy continues. By placing power back into the hands of those most impacted, organizations like Coalfield Development are not only building a new economy – we are rebuilding trust, solidarity, and hope.

In the face of extractive histories, overlooked people and places can, and do, become home to innovation, strength, and renewal. The overlooked are rising, and in their rising, they offer us all a blueprint for justice.

A Charleston, WV native, Marilyn Wrenn joined Coalfield Development in 2016 as Chief Development and Strategy Officer. With 30 years in community and economic development across Appalachia, she’s worked in the public and nonprofit sectors, focusing on rural economic opportunity, microenterprise, and poverty alleviation. She holds a master’s in Communications and Environmental Systems, a B.S. in Communications, and Economic Development Institute accreditation. Off-duty, she enjoys travel, painting, gardening, birdwatching, and life on her mountain farm.