Florence and Goliath, or,
Standing Up for What's Right

When the petite but powerful Florence Twu stood up at the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) hearing in July and affirmed that she would devote her life and her education to fighting the type of injustice she was witnessing in West Virginia, the coal execs must have been shivering in their boots. She spoke with confidence and passion about her childhood home in West Virginia, and with strength and fearlessness about ending its destruction.

This summer, Florence spent six weeks interning with OVEC in Huntington. So that our press releases would get to the right people, Florence worked on updating our comprehensive media list. Once or twice in that process, she talked with editors of coalfield newspapers who said they wouldn’t pay attention to anything sent from OVEC. Florence also created a student organizing manual for mountaintop removal, using much of her own experience in activism at Harvard University, working around HIV/AIDS issues. She saw many parallels between her own activism at Harvard and the struggle against MTR here in West Virginia. All this amidst taking her parents to Kayford Mountain and easily reading almost a dozen books in those six weeks she spent with us.

Our nation’s unjust distribution of wealth utterly angers Florence. She saw and pointed out many absurdities in the type of corporate philosophy that puts profit before people.

As an example of one such corporate absurdity, she noted how it is possible that anywhere in the world, even the most remote and desolate places, one is always able to find a bottle of Coke, yet access to medication can be a hopeless quest.

OVEC greatly appreciated Florence’s presence, and everyone who saw her in action at the EIS hearing got to see why. We should all be encouraged and inspired by her passion, courage and hope. Thanks so much for interning with OVEC, Florence!