3 Day Hunger Strike in WV
by Mountain Justice Summer
Sunday, Jun. 26, 2005 at 5:11 PM
mountainjusticesummer@gmail.com
One woman takes on Beaver Coal to save the cemetery in which her family is buried.
A Raleigh County, West Virginia woman has just completed a three day hunger-strike to protect a century-and-a-half old cemetery where most of her family is buried. Ronda Watson says she will not back down until plans to develop atop the Raleigh Cemetery are scrapped. Shotgun Tower Mountain, where the cemetery is located, is situated South of the town of Beckley, off of Beaver Creek. It is owned by the land-speculating firm, Beaver Coal.
Amidst the blooming tiger lilies and vinca vines lie the graves of coal miners and their families, as well as unmarked graves of African and European immigrants. Houses have already been built atop many of the unmarked graves, which were simply ignored. Watson's hunger-strike has raised awareness of the pending deal between Beaver Coal and private land developers.
