FOR the 3,000 coal miners who assembled last week in Charleston, W. Va., it was an occasion for passing collection plates, singing protest songs and heaping scorn on mine operators. The miners, some of whom wore black arm bands inscribed with skull and crossbones, were demonstrating for protection against "black lung," a disease caused by inhaling coal dust that can lead to illness or death. A form of pneumoconiosis estimated to affect three-fourths of the nation's 135,000 coal workers, black lung has become an increasingly serious problem because modern power-operated mining machines churn...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
