William Turner
King University’s Institute for Faith & Culture welcomes two speakers during February for its speaker series, “Listen to Your Life:” Bill Turner, Ph.D. and Becky Buller Band.
Turner is a prominent scholar on the African-American experience in Appalachia. Born in 1946 in the coal town of Lynch, Kentucky, he is the fifth of 10 children. His grandfathers, father, four uncles and older brother were all coal miners, and he is the author of “The Harlan Renaissance: Stories of Black Life in Appalachian Coal Towns,” which offers deeply personal reminiscences of his youth.
He presents two lectures Monday, Feb. 7. The first, “The Central Appalachian Origins of the Modern Civil Rights Movement,” isw held at 9:15 a.m. at the Memorial Chapel on the campus of King University.
Turner’s second presentation, “The Harlan Renaissance: An Appalachian case study of the diverse Black experience in America,” is held at 7 p.m. at Central Presbyterian Church in Bristol, Virginia.
Turner has spent his professional career studying and working on behalf of marginalized communities, helping them create opportunities in the larger world while not abandoning important cultural ties. Although his work applies to communities across the country, he is best known for his groundbreaking research on African-American communities in Appalachia.
“As the late author Alex Haley stated, Dr. Turner knows more about Black life and culture in the mountains of the American South than anybody in the world,” said Martin Dotterweich, Ph.D., director of the IFC. “His most recent book demonstrates how Black Appalachians were able to create sustainable communities despite the racism and discrimination that were prevalent during the boom years following World War II and the civil rights era. He has spent more than a half-century working to help the citizens of marginalized communities achieve greater prosperity, understanding, and respect, which is what each of us strives to attain, no matter our economic, cultural or religious roots and beliefs.”
Buller is the recipient of eight International Bluegrass Music Association awards, including the 2016 Fiddler and Female Vocalist, and the 2018 Gospel Recorded Performance for the song, “Speakin’ to That Mountain.” She was a 2020 nominee for SPBGMA’s Fiddle Player of the Year and served as a musician and songwriter on three additional Grammy-nominated albums in 2020. She tours extensively with The Becky Buller Band and recently released her third album, “Distance and Time.”
The band performs at 9:15 a.m. at Memorial Chapel on the campus of King University, and at 7 p.m. at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, Virginia.
A multi-instrumentalist performer, singer, songwriter, and producer from St. James, Minnesota, Buller’s compositions can be heard on numerous records by other artists, including Ricky Skaggs, Rhonda Vincent, and Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. She has also written and co-written songs for Grammy award-winning albums, including “Freedom,” the lead-off track for The Infamous Stringdusters’ “Laws of Gravity,” and “The Shaker” on The Travelin’ McCourys’ self-titled release, which brought home the Grammy for best bluegrass album in 2019.
“Music is an integral language of our lives, one that helps diverse peoples find common ground,” said Dotterweich. “Music also speaks to each of us throughout the journey of our lives, evoking strong emotion, reminding us of long-forgotten memories, and providing us with more insight into ourselves. Becky’s passion for music and music education, along with the incredible skill she and her band bring to the stage, reminds us of the central role music often plays in faith and the identity of the places we call home, and we eagerly welcome her back to Bristol.”
All events are free and open to the public. Guests are requested to observe masking and social distancing guidelines.
For more information about the Institute, including the full schedule for the speaker series, visit king.edu/faithandculture.
