Norah Block ‘26
Managing News Editor On Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, former President Jimmy Carter passed away at his home in Plains, Georgia, surrounded by his family. He was 100 and lived the longest out of any president in U.S. history.
Jimmy Carter was the 39th President of the United States, serving from 1977 to 1981. Carter grew up as a peanut farmer on his parent's farm in Georgia. He became a naval officer and later the governor of Georgia before being elected and entering the White House. His presidency was significant and well-known for its humanitarian, environmental, educational, and diplomatic achievements.
Carter’s administration had human rights as the core principles of his government. Chip Carter, Jimmy Carter's son, stated, “My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love. My brothers, sister and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honoring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.”
Carter faced the challenges of taking office during The Vietnam War, an extremely dark time for the US. Carter sought to infuse morality and values into the US foreign policy. He did this most notably with the Camp David Accords which was a historic peace treaty between Egypt and Israel.
He also mandated Congress to instate State Department human rights reports every year. Carter made this cause clear in his 1977 inaugural address, “Because we are free, we can never be indifferent to the fate of freedom elsewhere. Our moral sense dictates a clear-cut preference for those societies which share with us an abiding respect for individual human rights.”
Cape US History teacher, Matt Lindell, has an interesting take on Carter’s Presidency, “I think that Carter did as good as any other outsider in Washington. However, I think the highlight of his career came after his presidency. Just look at the habitat for humanity… I mean the man was 93 still hammering nails into houses.”
Carter advocated for lots of other groups. His administration established the Superfund Program to clean up toxic waste sites and expand the protection of national parks. During the 1970s oil crisis Carter wanted to nationalize energy and stop the relevance of forge in countries, so he created the Department of Energy.
Carter established the Department of Education, which created programs to give students in poverty and with disabilities the opportunity to receive an education.
For all his humanitarian efforts Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. Carter left behind a legacy that will be remembered by generations to come for its support of individuals in America. Executive Director at Human Rights Watch claims, “Jimmy Carter brought the human rights movement into the halls of power and worked to create a government guided by human dignity.”
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