The Opinions - What the World Gets Wrong About Jimmy Carter’s Legacy

Episode Date: December 29, 2024

President Jimmy Carter had a rich legacy, often marred by misunderstandings. Despite lasting only one term, his work post-presidency stands tall in its influence around the world. In this audio obituary, the Opinion columnist Nicholas Kristof reminisces on his interactions with the former president, Carter’s social work across countries in Africa and his influence on Kristof’s worldview.Thoughts? Email us at [e-mail]. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This is The Opinions, a show that brings you a mix of voices from New York Times opinion. You've heard the news. Here's what to make of it. I'm Nick Christoph. I'm a columnist for The New York Times. I think a lot of Americans just misunderstand how much President Carter did for the country and for the world. Here's a guy who was regarded by so many as a failure. And yet, I would say that he, affected more lives over a longer period of time worldwide than any other president. President Carter had such an amazing life. You know, here's this person who grew up without

electricity or running water until it was 11 years old, ran around barefoot in the rural south, and yet he became president and influenced the world and, I think, elevated the position of hundreds and hundreds of millions of people. The first time I met President Carter was before he was president. I was a high school journalist and covering an event that he spoke at. And I was just completely awed. And he had this very down-to-earth manner to him that didn't feel very presidential. It just felt, you know, very human.

But then after that, I didn't, you know, interact with him for years. And it was only after he was president. When I joined him on a trip to Ethiopia in 2007, he was, he was. He was visiting an area where river blindness was endemic, and he had started a campaign to eliminate river blindness. On that trip, he gave me a great interview. In America, if you ask somebody on the street, what do you mean by human rights?

They'll say freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of worship, followed by jury, you know, a democratic government. But those are not the human rights that afflict people in this village. They have some of those things, but I think there's a human right to live a decent life, to have a home in which to sleep at night, to be free of preventable diseases, to have a modicum of education, to have some human self-respect, some hope that the future will be better than the past has been. Those are also human rights.

I loved him for that just determination to use his platform and his president, not to enrich himself, but to help Ethiopian villagers avoid going blind. When he left the White House, he had nothing going for him. But he started tackling some really obscure diseases. Guinea worm affected over 3 million people around the world. Just one of the worst diseases you can imagine, incredibly painful. And he told me he had hoped to eradicate it. He didn't quite manage to eradicate it, but there were just 13 cases last year, down from

3 million. It will be eradicated soon. And that would not have happened without Jimmy Carter. And so I guess, you know, when he dies at this ripe old age, it's really a moment not for sadness, but for a celebration of an extraordinary life, so well lived. that has so much for all of us to learn from. If you like this show, follow it on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts. This show is produced by Derek Arthur, Sophia Alvarez Boyd, Veshaka, Fibuilett, Christina Samuoski, and Jillian Weinberger.

It's edited by Kari Pitkin, Alison Bruzek, and Annie Rose Strasser. Engineering, mixing, and original music by Isaac Jones, Sonia Herrero, Pat McCusker, Carol Saburo, and Afim Shapiro. Additional music by Amin Sahota. The fact check team is Kate Sinclair, Mary Marge Locker, and Michelle Harris. Audience Strategy by Shannon Busta, Christina Samuelski, and Adrian Rivera. The executive producer of Times Opinion Audio is Annie Rose Dresser.