Jimmy Carter, the only Governor from Georgia to serve as the president of the United States, died on Dec. 29, 2024. He was 100 years old. Throughout his lifetime, Carter had many successes both during his presidency and after.
Carter grew up with humble beginnings in Georgia; he was raised on his parents’ peanut farm, and he spent a lot of his early life making a living from farming peanuts. His mom was an illiterate farmhand, who had strong values of faith and hard work, later serving Carter as crucial motivation to advocate for proper education for low income students during his presidency. Carter’s dad, James E. Carter, Sr. was a businessman and member of the Georgia House of Representatives.
Carter started off his career by serving on the county school board in Georgia. In 1971, Carter was elected as Georgia’s governor. His accomplishments as governor were clearly evident and helped him during his run for presidency. While serving as a governor, Carter fought laws that discriminated against African Americans. He was dedicated to ensuring that all people were treated as equals. He also focused on changing wasteful government practices and championing social and economic development.
After his many accomplishments as governor, Carter decided to run for the presidency in 1974. Carter’s campaign emphasized the importance and promise of equality and freedom. He narrowly beat his Republican opponent, President Gerald Ford, in 1976. Carter conducted a complete reorganization of the executive branch of government during his presidency.
One of Carter’s most notable accomplishments was reorienting U.S. foreign policy towards human rights, as well as pursuing further Strategic Arms Limitation Talks with the Soviet Union as well as normalizing relations with China. Furthermore, Carter made major strides for rights of African American women by signing the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, a landmark civil rights legislation. However, though Carter did much good during his presidency, there was controversy surrounding his campaign.
Many were unsatisfied with Carter, claiming he did not follow through with many of his promises, was not able to make critical decisions, and implemented policies that contributed to another recession, accompanied by lots of job loss. All of these factors led to his landslide loss to California Gov. Ronald Reagan in 1980.
The end of Carter’s term did not stop his determination to implement peace and freedom in America. In 1982, he established the Carter Center, which focused on fighting the stigma associated with mental illness, as well as promoting democracy and healthcare.
To help accomplish these missions, the Carter Center oversaw and contributed to many efforts, a few of which focused on conducting fair elections in developing countries, eliminating Guinea Worm disease, and rebuilding thousands of homes destroyed in disasters. In 2002, Carter won the Nobel Prize for Peace for his tireless work on expanding human rights.
“Carter was a unique president, as he had a much larger impact after leaving office. Despite being a one-term president, Carter’s hands-on work and effort on charities around the world was a major contribution to his legacy and memory today,” World History teacher Frank Gonzales said.
Carter’s time spent on improving millions of lives serves as a special example to many today. His deep impact on both America and the world will carry on as an inspiration for generations to come.
