Mode of Program Participation
Academic Scholarship
Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
Place-Making, Cultural Politics, and Heritage Tourism in Southwest Virginia
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
As residents of Appalachia continue to search for economic alternatives to replace once-booming industries such as coal and tobacco, many communities tout tourism, specifically heritage tourism, as the “silver bullet” to solve their economic woes. This paper explores the oft messy and contradictory representations of place that are created within communities, as well as by those who visit to “consume” local culture, at two meandering tourism sites in southwest Virginia-- the Crooked Road and the Virginia Coal Heritage Trail. While tourism brings some economic development to the region, it also creates spaces for residents to explore their own identities—past, present, and future-- through the narratives, spaces, and experiences that display local heritage. Following the work of anthropologists Akhil Gupta and James Ferguson (1997), Arturo Escobar (2002), and others, we assert that heritage tourism is not simply a reckoning of the past for outsiders (and locals) to consume, but is rather part of the larger complex social and political process of place-making in the region. Further, place-making, as anthropologist Gina M. Perez (2004) notes, is a process where local identities are formed not just within communities, but also at larger scales and through power hierarchies. In this paper we seek to understand the ways in which heritage tourism- in the form of traditional music performances or celebrations of coal history- blurs the lines between impermanence and finality in community life and complicates the narratives of tradition and heritage both for Appalachian populations and in the larger national and global imagination.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Please note: this is a co-authored paper by Presenter #1 and Presenter #2 as filled in above.
Julie Shepherd-Powell is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Kentucky. She is currently finishing her dissertation entitled, "Beyond the Coal Divide: The Cultural Politics of Natural Resource Extraction in Central Appalachia."
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Ryan Chaney is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology in the Department of Behavioral Sciences, Kingsborough Community College, City University of New York. His research focuses on the relationships among southern Appalachian folk music, tourism, representations of rural culture, and the political and economic landscapes of Southwest Virginia.
Place-Making, Cultural Politics, and Heritage Tourism in Southwest Virginia
As residents of Appalachia continue to search for economic alternatives to replace once-booming industries such as coal and tobacco, many communities tout tourism, specifically heritage tourism, as the “silver bullet” to solve their economic woes. This paper explores the oft messy and contradictory representations of place that are created within communities, as well as by those who visit to “consume” local culture, at two meandering tourism sites in southwest Virginia-- the Crooked Road and the Virginia Coal Heritage Trail. While tourism brings some economic development to the region, it also creates spaces for residents to explore their own identities—past, present, and future-- through the narratives, spaces, and experiences that display local heritage. Following the work of anthropologists Akhil Gupta and James Ferguson (1997), Arturo Escobar (2002), and others, we assert that heritage tourism is not simply a reckoning of the past for outsiders (and locals) to consume, but is rather part of the larger complex social and political process of place-making in the region. Further, place-making, as anthropologist Gina M. Perez (2004) notes, is a process where local identities are formed not just within communities, but also at larger scales and through power hierarchies. In this paper we seek to understand the ways in which heritage tourism- in the form of traditional music performances or celebrations of coal history- blurs the lines between impermanence and finality in community life and complicates the narratives of tradition and heritage both for Appalachian populations and in the larger national and global imagination.
