Rednecks

Taylor Brown is the author of the historical fiction novel named Rednecks. Set in coal mining country in West Virginia during the 1920's, this is a true story about thousands of coal miners fighting for fair wages. The coal miners were Slavs, Greek, Irish, Italian and black workers who had unsafe working conditions and unfair wages. If they joined a union they were fired or killed and their families were evicted from company housing. They had no choice but to go on strike. Part of the story is told from the perspective of a rural doctor, an immigrant from Lebanon, who treats people on both sides of the conflict. Even he is beaten by Union security forces. Mother Jones, an Irish labor organizer, comes to the conflict.  She sees the writing on the wall and encourages the miners to give up. The owners of the coal mines have the politicians on their payroll. One prominent union organizer is shot in cold blood as he stand on the court house steps ready to go to trial. His death galvanizes the miners and even members of other unions such as train workers come to West Virginia to help out. This enrages the coal mine owners who proceed to use the U. S. Air Force to drop bombs loaded with screws and shrapnel on the miners. I had never heard of this conflict before. It reads like another civil war. Americans dropping bombs on other Americans? It is only when FDR makes it illegal to prevent unions that the tide turned for the minors. This was an incredible story.