Jimmy Carter's Grandson Reveals How Bond with 'Second Mother' Miss Rachel Had a Ripple Effect on Women's Rights (Exclusive)
Jimmy's grandson, Jason Carter, reflects on the early influences that fueled his grandfather's tireless fight for women's rights in a letter shared exclusively with PEOPLE.
Jason, a former Georgia state senator who now serves as chair of The Carter Center, honors the late president's legacy of advocating for women as part of "Letters to the Daughters of the World by the Leaders of the World," a project founded by activist, journalist and author Supriya Vani.
Related: Jimmy Carter's Life in Photos
Jason is one of many public figures who contributed inspiring stories to Vani's project at her request, including the Dalai Lama, Ireland's first woman president Mary Robinson, and business magnate Richard Branson. The initiative is a call to action aimed to inspire leadership and compassion in future generations of women across the globe, and it will provide a foundation for Vani's upcoming book.
In his contribution to Vani's "moral archive," Jason tells the story of how Jimmy's early life as a child in the Deep South influenced his work on equal rights initiatives — and how women made an indelible impact on the future president's worldview.
Read Jason Carter's full letter about the late President Jimmy Carter below, from "Letters to the Daughters of the World."
Related: All About Jimmy Carter's Humble Life Before Politics, Which Set the Stage for His Decades of Public Service
Imagine growing up in the Deep South of the United States at a time when racial apartheid was the law of the land and the edict of most Christian churches. This was the world that my great-grandmother Lillian Carter knew as a child and young adult.
Despite her husband's seeming acceptance of racist attitudes, Miss Lillian, as she was known, believed and behaved as if all people were equal in God's eyes. As a nurse, she treated all her patients with the same high level of care. She interacted with Black neighbors and Black workers on the family farm with kindness and generosity. Later in life, she became a Peace Corps volunteer in India, serving as a nurse to some of the most disadvantaged people in that country.
This defiance of racist social norms planted in the heart and mind of my grandfather Jimmy Carter, Miss Lillian's eldest son, a love for justice and equality toward all. He adopted his mother's belief that every person is a noble child of God.
Growing up, he spent more time in the home of Rachel Clark, a Black woman who worked and lived on the family farm, than with his own mother who worked long hours tending to the sick. He cherished Miss Rachel as a second mother and took her instruction on many life lessons.
Miss Julia Coleman, his high school superintendent, also influenced his worldview, impressing upon him the idea that, even in changing times, we must hold fast to the principles of truthfulness and justice.
He went on to marry Rosalynn Smith, a fiercely independent woman who also carried these values, later becoming one of the world's great advocates for mental health care. All these women shaped the man who would become the 39th President of the United States. During those years, he championed women's rights and appointed more women to the federal judiciary and to top-level positions than any previous President.
Related: In One of His Final Interviews, Jimmy Carter Looked Back at His Life's Work and Having Rosalynn by His Side (Exclusive)
Throughout the following decades, my grandfather would use every opportunity through books and speeches to point out how the oppression of women, especially through the edicts of male religious authorities, continues to plague humanity. He called on his fellow men to change attitudes, conduct, and policies and encouraged women and girls to take leadership in the fight for equality.
I am the proud father of two wonderful boys, Henry and Thomas, the great-grandsons of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter. My wife Kate and I know that educating our boys to become the best men they can be is our most important responsibility. My grandfather taught us that our duty is to use our power and influence to work for equal rights and opportunities for all. We cannot be bystanders when violence against women persists in all societies or when women are excluded from the decision-making bodies that affect their lives.
Related: All About Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter's Children and Grandchildren
In recent years, we have seen a renewed movement led by women and girls to confront sexual violence and assert their rightful role as leaders in all fields of endeavor. This has been incredibly encouraging.
While there have been heartbreaking setbacks in women's rights, from Afghanistan to our own country, I know that my grandparents would urge us to not be discouraged but to keep advancing. They would remind us that every worthy fight for freedom experiences setbacks. No matter what, this movement will surely continue to grow until every girl born into this world can imagine and then achieve the future that she dreams for herself. All humanity will benefit from the realization of this great potential in human talent that has for too long gone suppressed.
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Chicago Tribune
7 hours ago
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