THE WHITE GHETTO“In Appalachia the country is beautiful and the society is destroyed.” Williamson supports many aspects ranging from misery to poverty, from criminal activity to "collecting" welfare checks to survive. Although poverty is not directly linked to the document, it is the basis from which crime begins. Williamson is not from the Appalachian region, but he does a good job providing the information in a way that many can visualize what he is talking about without feeling like he is trying to make you feel one way or another about Appalachian poverty and crime (Williamson, 2014) According to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service, the crime rate in Appalachia is approximately 2/3 of the national average and the violent crime rate is half the national average. The article is set in Booneville, Kentucky, which claims the unfortunate title of the poorest county in the United States. While there is not much violent crime, crimes that do occur include, but are not limited to, drug use, petty crimes, and welfare fraud (Williamson, 2014). In Appalachia, a typical day includes taking pills and doing drugs, drinking morning beers, doing endless amounts of lotto scratch cards, attending hilltop healing meetings, trading cases of Pepsi for food stamps for packs of the best cigarettes in the world. Kentucky, occasionally making methamphetamine and surgically making and unmaking teenage mothers recreationally (Williamson, 2014). What puzzles many researchers is that some families earn nearly $3,000 a month and yet choose to live “by the draw.” The attraction is the monthly welfare checks that supplement the earnings of dependents in Pepsi's black market economy. And this is where welfare fraud comes in. Many families use the EBT they receive and purchase rou...... middle of paper ...... lachia." American Journal Of Health Behavior 29.4 (2005): 331-341. PsycINFO. Web. October 26, 2014 .Shannon, Lisa M., et al. “Examining Gender Differences in Substance Use and Age of First Use Among Rural Appalachian Drug Users in Kentucky.” American Journal of Drug & Alcohol Abuse 37.2 (2011): 98-104 with Full Text. Web. October 26, 2014 Thornton, Gwendolyn. “Substance Abuse, Unemployment Problems, and Mental Health Services Disparities in the Southwestern Appalachian Region.” .Tunnell, Kenneth D. “The Oxycontin Epidemic and the Panic in Rural Kentucky” 32.2 (2005): 225-258 with full text. Williamson, Kevin. “The White Ghetto.” Online Review 9 January 2014. Web 05 October 2014.