James Burton III, November 17, 2025
Item
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Title
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James Burton III, November 17, 2025
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interviewee
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James Burton III
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interviewer
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Thomas Truckenmiller
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Date
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2025-11-17
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Subject
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Adirondacks
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African American History
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Crack Epidemic
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Education
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Law
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Navy
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Opioid Epidemic
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Outdoor Activities
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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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Politics
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Race
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Saranac Lake, New York
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Description
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James Burton III is a Job Coach for Citizen Advocates in the town of Saranac Lake. James was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1958. After graduating from Millersville State University and a stint in the Navy, he visited a cousin in the Adirondacks in 1996 and fell in love with it. He worked several jobs over the years while facing discrimination from law enforcement and some residents. Eventually he found a job at Citizen Advocates where he gives back to his community by helping people with intellectual disabilities find jobs.
The Adirondacks have historically been predominantly White and conservative, meaning that many communities there are resistant to change and see what they believe to be outsiders as a threat. James also moved there on the tail end of the Crack Epidemic, which was when crack cocaine usage was destroying Black and other minority communities in inner cities. This led to the negative stereotype of Black people being violent criminals and drug addicts being widespread. James and many other African Americans experienced discrimination based on these false assumptions.
This interview was conducted at James’ home in Saranac Lake. The interview was done for an upcoming exhibit at the Adirondack Experience so much of the conversation tended to focus on his life in the Adirondacks. He discusses many of the outdoor activities that he likes to do as well as how the community has changed over time.
This conversation was edited very lightly, with false starts, run-on sentences, and filler words being edited out. There are also a few occasions on which the interviewee’s phone rings which are denoted in the text for clarity. The goal was to make the transcription as close to the tone of the actual interview as possible.
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Time Summary
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Track 1, 0:00 - Philadelphia and Navy
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Track 1, 3:00 - Adirondacks
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Track 1, 9:46 - Racial Discrimination
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Track 1, 22:09 - Race and Law
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Track 2, 5:27 - Opioid Epidemic
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Track 2, 11:40 - Adirondacks and Race
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Track 2, 16:37 - Education
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Creator
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Thomas Truckenmiller
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Publisher
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Cooperstown Graduate
Program, State University of
New York at Oneonta
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Rights
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Cooperstown Graduate
Association, Cooperstown, NY
Adirondack Experience, Blue
Mountain Lake, NY
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Language
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en-US
