Lost Compassion

Appalachian Migrant children, Chicago (Uptown), 1942. Upon the closing of mines, thousands of unemployed workers left West Virginia and Kentucky for midwestern cities, in search of factory jobs. Many were unable to leave. Photo courtesy x.com

Why ER was revered and HRC reviled in Appalachia.

A tale of compassion squandered, and a generation mired in shame.

One (Eleanor Roosevelt, ‘ER’) spoke about the stresses and hard work in raising a family. She had six children. One (Hillary Rodham Clinton, ‘HRC’) spoke about opportunity, about bringing solar to West Virginia.

Two First Ladies, two visitors to West Virginia. Their reception speaks volumes to how America has failed its citizenry. And what each took away is a cautionary tale for our times.

Shortly after Franklin Delano Roosevelt was inaugurated President in 1933, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt embarked on a national tour to learn more about the effects of the Depression, a debacle she and President Roosevelt inherited from Herbert Hoover. Unlike Hoover, Roosevelt, who saw what would become the worst financial crisis in recent history, wanted to restore America’s faith in shouldering financial setback together.

Where to start?

Eleanor proposed to visit every state in the US and talk with the people, to learn from them the scale and extent of their suffering. She visited 48 out of the 50 states. She rode the rails. She flew in airplanes. She drove in cars to reach the people. What she didn’t do is carry along a flock of photographers, difficult to grasp in today’s…