MovieChat Forums > Harlan County U.S.A. (1977) Discussion > Are There Any American Coal Mining Citie...

Are There Any American Coal Mining Cities/Towns That're Doing Well?

posted 13 years ago by clogan8307
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I just finished watching Harlan County USA and I thought it was a very good movie/documentary. But it made me wonder: Are there any American coal mining cities or towns that're thriving in 2010? I'm asking because every time I hear about coal mining towns in places like Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania they're usually mentioned with words like poverty, unemployment, ghost towns, etc. It's like coal mining is a relic of the past. I'm not trying to be a smart a$$ or anything like that, but I really want to know if there are any places in America where the coal mining industry is thriving and jobs are available? The documentary is good but watching it was like going back in time.

[–] Flanged 11 years ago

Coal mining communities seem to be in decline all over the western world, since the labour is cheaper overseas. I know that all the old mining towns in Scotland are pretty much dead now, just full of drugs and people who know they have no real chance at a future. It's sad. Towns built around coal have nothing left when the work is moved elsewhere. The UK mine workers unions were decimated after the miner's strike of 1984, the government decided to break the back of the working classes, and that meant going after the mine workers. Most of the mines were closed even while they were still productive and profitable, to remove the backbone of the labour movement in this country.
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