Cover photo from Antrim Caskey's photo essay on mountaintop removal mining. Used with permission.
Photographer Antrim Caskey has devoted years of her life documenting the impacts of mountaintop removal coal mining on the people and land of West Virginia.
On April 20 Antrim was honored by the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice & Human Rights for her enduring work to shine a light on the devastation that results from our society's unyielding thirst for always more inexpensive electric power. Mountains, people, nature, and culture are all swept away in the quest to get at coal cheaply and quickly using a technique called mountaintop removal mining.
Antrim was cited for her work in domestic photography from the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards for "Dragline," her in-depth photo essay. The international photography award went to David Gilkey of NPR for his photographic reporting on the human effects of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
April 20, 2011: Winners of 43rd Annnual Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards Announced
"...The awards were established by journalists who covered Robert Kennedy's historic presidential campaign in 1968. They recognize journalists whose work has focused on human rights, social justice, and the power of individuals to make a difference - issues that defined the life and work of Robert F. Kennedy. Award recipients identify cases of injustice, and examine its causes, conditions, and remedies. ...."
Antrim Caskey at Appalachia Watch
High Cost of Cheap Coal: "Mountaintop Mining Consequences," a Science Magazine Policy Forum (via @sciencemagazine)
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