We Were Promised: How an Appalachian Grandmother Fought a Corporate Giant

by Julia Flint, Elizabeth Catte (Foreword)

Karen "Momma K" Gorrell did not consider herself to be an activist. But when those she cared about were wronged, she refused to remain silent. With the economy still reeling from the Great Recession in 2011, Karen's husband and other retirees of the Ravenswood Century Aluminum plant—a pillar of industry in their rural community—had their healthcare benefits terminated. The United Steelworkers had negotiated that these union members would have a portion of their wages deducted to fund future benefits, and employees worked for decades with the promise of health insurance once they retired. Now that Century idled the plant and reneged on its agreement, retirees were left without affordable care when they needed it most.

Knowing lives were on the line, Karen vowed to do whatever she could to pressure Century to reinstate retirees' promised benefits. Within months, she became the lead organizer and spokesperson for a grassroots campaign that would capture the attention of lawmakers and Century's CEO. The campaign would also test her resolve, her relationships, and her faith in the systems that promised to protect working-class people.

We Were Promised follows Karen and a group of determined retirees on their long journey to seek justice—from staging an Occupy-inspired camp at the Ravenswood plant in West Virginia to confronting Century's corporate executives in Illinois and California. In highlighting Appalachia's role in the modern labor movement and the impact of women activists in the region, their story serves as a powerful example of everyday folks, as Karen said, "having the courage to stand up and raise hell and fight back."

Genres: Nonfiction

272 pages, Hardcover

Published October 14, 2025

Reviews

[Dona's Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐.5

Pre-Read Notes:

History of unions in the US always interests me. This history is pretty recent and that increases my interest.

Final Review

(thoughts & recs) The topic here is important. Unions face more pressure than ever from politicians and political opponents. On a local level, the laborers whose livelihoods Karen Gorrell fought for were individually important. I think that's what makes this a great story-- it is both personal and universal. Labor matters. Laborers matter. Flint did a nice job showing both in this story.

I sensed how invested Flint was in this story, though I didn't pick up on her inspirations anywhere in the book. I think her unbridled passion for the subject affected the style at times. Flint repeats herself often and, rarely, she contradicts herself, like on p27 where she writes that a certain figure filed for retirement, and on the very next page she describes him as laid off.

My favorite thing about this book was how ferociously that community-- Century retirees-- fought for each other. I think Flint really opened up that part of the story for the readers, to show us who these folks are when they're changing their socks and feeding their families and fighting back against a bad employer.

All said, this is a solid read. If you like reading about union history and activism, this is a good one. Also a wonderful description of an interesting place.

Content Notes: financial instability, job loss, public shaming, group punishment, corruption, bankruptcy, lay offs/job loss, bad employers, dehumanization of labor

Thank you to Julia Flint, University Press of Kentucky, and NetGalley for a digital arc of WE WERE PROMISED. Thanks to Libby for an accessible digital copy. Review delayed for accessibility. All views are mine.

[Ashleigh Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good read on a topic I had never heard of before. I always appreciate learning about social issues I missed and especially, people standing up against corporate greed, or industrial greed in this case. The woman this book is about is fierce and she was thrust into this issue by empathy. Recommended if you are sick of greedy millionaires/billionaires, sick of high healthcare costs, and want something to inspire your own inner fire.

[Morgan Milton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not often moved to tears while reading. This is an incredibly inspiring story. Thank you for telling it, Julia Flint.