King Talk: I'm in Matewan, WV watching the historical re-enactment of the Matewan Massacre. The performance was interrupted when a train filled with coal passed by. I stepped in and took this picture. These three men are playing "red necks". The miners used red handkerchiefs to detect each other during the fight against the Baldwin-Feltz defective agency hired by the company to evict striking miners in 1920. These battles were an incredibly important part of our labor history and mark a transition towards union rights and an end to child labor. One of the men in the photograph asked me to send this picture to Obama with a caption that says something like "you want em, come and get em" I can't read my own writing if the quote so I'm a little confused about the exact wording. But he did explain that he wants Obama to know the rednecks have guns and will put up a fight. He is referring to the decline of coal in the region. For many years miners have been told this is the fault of the Obama administrations strict environmental regulations on the industry. It is only now becoming evident that the decline in coal is a more complicated issue. Still many blame Obama for the loss of jobs. Photograph by @stacykranitz #redneck #obama #coal #appalachia #re-enactment #labor by everydayusa