Just Call Me "Inbred and Abnormal"

So, I was innocently watching my local news during their 11'o'clock broadcast this evening and a story caught my eye, to say the least.

It seems that the geniuses at Donna Belajac Casting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania are (no, let me correct, were) casting extras for the horror / thriller movie "Shelter". Seems a particular "type" of person was needed as an extra. Someone characterized as "inbred and abnormal-looking" to portray people from a West Virginia holler.

Yep, you read that right. "Inbred and abnormal-looking". Classic.

First off, this angers me greatly that in this day and age, the stereotype of West Virginians as being inbred, physically and mentally deficient and some sort of a state full of "freaks" is still being perpetuated. Had anyone at that agency cared enough to do any research at all, they would have found that West Virginians are nowhere near that. Never have been.

The irony? That agency is in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At best, it's an hour's drive south to take a look at the bona-fide original product you're looking for.

What? Still don't believe me that people could be so stupid? Take a look at this article from Fox News. If Fox isn't your favorite flavor, try the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Or maybe you prefer Forbes. They all say the same thing.

In the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review article, they site a gentleman from North Dakota who is speaking about the film "Fargo" and the representations of people from ND in that movie:

The good people of West Virginia might disagree, if North Dakota is any guide, said Mark Zimmerman, a promoter for the North Dakota Film Commission.

Zimmerman said the 1996 Cohen brothers movie "Fargo" -- with its desolate prairie-scapes and characters' exaggerated enunciation of vowels -- continues to inspire people at out-of-state conventions he attends to walk up to his booth and say something like, "You betcha."

"Just this week, I did a travel and sports show in Des Moines, Iowa," and gamely endured gentle ribbing, Zimmerman said.

"To be honest, I think (the caricatured speech) may have drawn people to the movie, to say 'Let's go see this thing and how they actually do portray the language,'" Zimmerman said. "There are folks who are truly offended by it, but it seems most people take it with a little bit of levity and say, 'Well, we do speak that way.' "

First, Mr. Zimmerman, let me say that speech and language patterns are VERY different than calling an entire state "inbred and abnormal". I've been to some pretty interesting places in my life, places I might not care to return to, places that horrified me or disgusted me, place that fascinated me, places that I couldn't fathom living in. Never, in my thirty-two years of life, would I categorize the people I have met in such a way that this casting agency has categorized ME. I don't find anything about what the casting call had to say "funny"; it's a slap in the face to a group of people who are just as important as the next guy in line, who have important things to say, important ideas to present, and who put on their pants one leg at a time, just the same as anyone else.

If you believe that West Virginians are "inbred and abnormal", quite frankly, I don't want you anywhere me or my state. Don't sully the beautiful mountains I live surrounded by every day with your uninformed, stupid opinions and stereotypes. Don't break down on my highway, because you certainly won't see my generous, kind and giving nature expressed to you.

I'm not blind to the fact that stereotypes, racism and other nasty stuff exists in this world and about other parts of the world. My point is this - where else is it considered okay to call a group of people "inbred and abnormal"? What other area of the country is it okay to characterize the people you might encounter there as "stupid", "crazy", "mentally deficient", or "retarded"? I'm not talking about a section of the population - I'm talking about all of us. Admit it - those of you who aren't from West Virginia - what's the first thing that comes into your mind when I say the name of my state? Is it the wildlife, the natural beauty, the kindness and generosity of my people? I sincerely and highly doubt it. What will first come into your mind is a toothless, malformed, slobbering and stupid "hillbilly". If it's a woman, she's probably dressed in some flower-print dress and pregnant with greasy hair and no shoes. If you picture a man, he's probably wearing overalls with only one strap buckled, a crooked and dirty ballcap with greasy hair, and maybe (more than likely not) wearing a ripped and dirty t-shirt. Do you honestly think that a population of over a million people living in this state wakes up every morning and has an exchange something like this:

"Well, Madge, reckon I ought to put on a shirt today or not?"
"I don' care, luv-bug, don' matter none to me."
"I reckon I'll put un on. Eh preacher's commin' by tahdey, he might 'preciate that."
"Yep, he mite. I jus' hope he don' turn over my spittune this time."
"Me neither. That was a terble mess, wern't it, Madge?"

Just think before you make a judgment about any group of people, especially those you've never encountered. Don't perpetuate what you can't confirm, and don't confirm what you haven't personally experienced, that's all I ask. Obviously Donna Belajac Casting did, and it's not pretty. They got fired over it - the movie's producers have "let them go" for what they've done, and I applaud them. I'm a real, living person just like the rest of you, and so are the rest of the residents of West Virginia. We have feelings, and we don't like them trampled on any more than the rest of you do.

That's all I've got to say tonight.