Over in Bledsoe, Kentucky there has been an incident that truly merits a bit of attention. It concerns a shutting down of an artistic conference by some fanatical Christians.
OK, I can hear your thoughts, you are thinking that nudity was involved, or something along those lines … right?
Nope, this was nothing like that at all.
OK, let’s start by laying out the details of the innocent people that were caught up within this sordid little saga.
The Players
There exists a non-profit group called Waymakers Collective. They are basically an Appalachian based Arts and Culture Assembly. Think ‘ artistic networking’, and also ‘ support via the distribution of grants to artists and communities ‘ and you have nailed what they are all about. Last August 18–20 they held their annual conference at the Pine Mountain Settlement School (PMSS) in Harlan County, Kentucky.
The Stage
The Pine Mountain Settlement School (PMSS) is a community facility that is available to be rented out to anybody for events exactly like this. The name relates to a bit of history. Back in 1913 it was indeed founded as a school and continued in that role until about the 1970s. Round about then it evolved into a space for environmental education but now it has simply become a community non-profit space that can be rented out.