Where Jesus Lives

by Chris Arnade

tuskeegee

The Black Belt is a string of counties weaving through the South, in particular the centers of Alabama and Mississippi. It was originally named by Booker T. Washington for its dark soil, which was used for growing cotton on plantations where enslaved blacks had toiled. In more recent decades, the name has become associated with the high percentage of African-Americans living there. Today, the surrounding area is one of the poorest in the U.S., physically dominated by a poverty exposed and isolated: Trailers abutting county roads, shotgun shacks in small towns, and low-income ranch-style houses in the bigger towns. It is also one of the most religious regions in the country; scattered amongst the homes are churches, which, other than Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings, are quiet and still, devoid of any presence but the divine.

andalusia

Andalusia, Alabama

cleveland

Near Cleveland, Alabama

cleveland2

Near Cleveland, Alabama

filter

Fitler, Mississippi

jackson

Jackson, Mississippi

jackson2

Jackson, Mississippi

lowndesboro

Lowndesboro, Alabama

lowndesboro2

Lowndesboro, Alabama

montgomery

Montgomery, Alabama

montgomery2

Montgomery, Alabama

montgomery3

Montgomery, Alabama

mortan

Morton, Mississippi

mortan2

Morton, Mississippi

newton

Near Newton, Mississippi

petrey

Near Petrey, Alabama

rollingfork

Near Rolling Fork, Mississippi

selma

Selma, Alabama

selma2

Selma, Alabama

selma3

Selma, Alabama

verona

Verona, Mississippi

white hall

White Hall, Alabama

Correction: This piece originally misspelled two cities: They are Morton and Fitler, Mississippi, not Mortan and Filter, Mississippi.