Comments on: Twelve Angry White People: Jury Nullification in a Pennsylvania Coal Town

By: rosemarie jackowski

rosemarie jackowski — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:00:55 +0000

David…I agree. I now live in New England where outsiders are called “flatlanders” unless they have been here for generations.

By: David

David — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:51:35 +0000

Walter,

Thanks for the excellent piece. This is the price being paid for two plus generations of people being raised by television and, more recently, video games.

Rosemarie,

The fear of the outsider is not just an issue in many regions of the US. It exists in urban and suburban areas as well. Any place that has and continues to suffer economic and social stress puts up the walls in self defense, just the opposite of what should be done.

Stress and complexity drive people to make their world ever smaller so that it can be understood. Sad, isn’t it.

By: rosemarie jackowski

rosemarie jackowski — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:50:31 +0000

I lived my early life amidst the anthracite coal fields of Pennsylvania. My grandfathers had come to the region from Poland to work in the mines. I have great admiration for many who have worked so hard.

Sadly, it is true that it is an area that now has a deeply held and wide-spread prejudice against ‘outsiders’. Whenever I visit the area, I am saddened by some of the things I see. This is an issue in many regions of the US.