Roasted Mar 23, 202699 views99 pts
We're sorry. Actually, no we're not.
In 1916, a circus elephant named Mary killed her handler in Kingsport, and the region promptly demanded her execution. She was publicly hanged by railroad crane in nearby Erwin. Nothing says "sophisticated small-town values" like mob justice against a traumatized animal. The fact that this is their most famous historical event says everything about their priorities.
Kingsport is home to Eastman Chemical, which has racked up air-permit violations and EPA enforcement actions, and has treated neighborhoods to asbestos and debris incidents. Riverview, the city's historically Black neighborhood, now lives with contamination concerns from the industry next door. When your main employer's business model is "controlled poisoning," maybe reconsider the economic development strategy.
With a whopping 88% white population, Kingsport makes Wonder Bread look ethnically diverse. They're so homogeneous that finding someone who isn't related to the founding families is considered exotic. The most diversity they see is choosing between regular and diet Mountain Dew at the gas station.
Kingsport is the second-biggest of the Tri-Cities, which is like being the second-tallest kid in kindergarten. While Bristol has NASCAR and Johnson City has the main ETSU campus, Kingsport has... a chemical plant with a rap sheet of fires and explosions. Nothing screams "we matter too" like constantly reminding everyone you're technically bigger than Bristol.
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