Jimmy Carter, the 100-year-old former US president and Nobel peace laureate who rose from humble beginnings in rural Georgia to guide the nation from 1977 to 1981, has died, his nonprofit basis mentioned Sunday.
Carter had been in hospice care since mid-February 2023 at his dwelling in Plains, Georgia — the identical small city the place he was born and as soon as ran a peanut farm earlier than turning into governor of the Peach State and operating for the White Home.
Carter died “peacefully” at his dwelling in Plains, “surrounded by his household,” The Carter Middle mentioned in a press release.
“My father was a hero, not solely to me however to everybody who believes in peace, human rights and unselfish love,” Chip Carter, the previous president’s son, mentioned within the assertion.
Carter was the oldest residing ex-US chief and the nation’s longest-lived president — an end result that appeared unlikely again in 2015 when the Southern Democrat revealed he had mind most cancers.
However the US Navy veteran and fervent Christian repeatedly defied the chances to get pleasure from an extended and fruitful post-presidency, after 4 years within the Oval Workplace typically seen as disappointing.
Throughout his single time period, Carter positioned a dedication on human rights and social justice, having fun with a robust first two years that included brokering a peace deal between Israel and Egypt dubbed the Camp David Accords.
However his administration hit quite a few snags — probably the most severe being the taking of US hostages in Iran and the disastrous failed try to rescue the 52 captive Individuals in 1980. He additionally got here in for criticism for his dealing with of an oil disaster.
In November of that yr, Republican challenger Ronald Reagan clobbered Carter on the polls, relegating the Democrat to only one time period. Reagan, a former actor and governor of California, swept into workplace on a wave of staunch conservatism.
– Lively post-presidency –
Because the years handed, a extra nuanced picture of Carter emerged — one which took into consideration his important post-presidential actions and reassessed his achievements.
He based the Carter Middle in 1982 to pursue his imaginative and prescient of world diplomacy, and he was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize for his tireless efforts to advertise social and financial justice.
He noticed quite a few elections around the globe and emerged as a distinguished worldwide mediator, tackling world issues from North Korea to Bosnia.
Carter, identified for his toothy smile, mentioned primary Christian tenets akin to justice and love served because the bedrock of his presidency. He taught Sunday faculty at Maranatha Baptist, his church in Plains, properly into his 90s.
Lately, he had acquired numerous hospital therapies, together with when he revealed in August 2015 that he had mind most cancers and was present process radiation.
US Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia, who’s the pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church the place Martin Luther King Jr preached, wished the Carter household consolation as the previous president entered hospice final yr.
“Throughout life’s seasons, President Jimmy Carter, a person of nice religion, has walked with God,” Warnock wrote on X, then Twitter.
“On this tender time of transitioning, God is definitely strolling with him.”
In April 2021, President Joe Biden and his spouse, Jill, met with the Carters at their dwelling in Plains.
The White Home later launched a photograph exhibiting the {couples} smiling collectively, though solely Rosalynn was seen by the press exterior, bidding the Bidens farewell whereas utilizing a walker.
Rosalynn, Carter’s spouse of 77 years, died on November 19, 2023 at age 96.
The previous president, who appeared frail, poignantly appeared at her memorial service in a wheelchair, with a blanket on his lap bearing their likenesses.
Carter is survived by the couple’s 4 kids, three sons and a daughter.
AFP
