Small town America battles downturn - 20 Dec 09

Small towns in the US have struggled during the recession, as plants close their doors and jobs were cut.

Earlier this year, one such town - Danville, Virginia - was struggling to cope with soaring unemployment rates near 15 percent.

The local food bank was overwhelmed, and small businesses were barely surviving.

And though the unemployment rate is dropping, its still in the double digits.

Al Jazeera's Cath Turner reports