Politics
Who is Amy Carter, daughter of the late President Jimmy Carter? Career, family…
Amy Carter has mostly kept a low profile, but with the passing of her father, the late President Jimmy Carter, she has been pushed back into the spotlight.
Amy Carter is the youngest of the late President Jimmy Carter’s children, and is his only daughter. She has stayed out of the limelight for the past couple of decades, but was thrust back into it with the passing of her mother Rosalynn in 2023, and now again with her father’s death.
She first caught the public’s eye as a child when she moved into the White House during her father’s presidency from 1977 to 1981.
READ ALSO: All five living US presidents to attend Jimmy Carter’s funeral
Amy Carter: Growing up in politics
Amy was born to Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter on Oct. 19, 1967 in Plains, Georgia. Before she was born, the decision to have another child was made by the family, the three sons included.
She was only three when her father became Georgia governor; then when she was nine, Jimmy Carter became the 39th president of the United States and the family moved to the White House.
Carter was known for her down-to-earth presence, and her pet Siamese cat named Misty Malarky Ying Yang became famous as the last cat to live in the White House until the Clinton administration.
Amy attended public school during her time in Washington, D.C., which was an uncommon choice for presidential children. She later studied at Brown University, the Memphis College of Art, and Tulane University.
Carter was politically active as a young woman and joined many protests for various causes in the 1980s and 1990s, including apartheid and US foreign policies in Central America and South Africa.
She was arrested during a demonstration at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1986, but was acquitted after arguing that the protest was necessary to prevent greater harm.
READ ALSO: Business closures for Jimmy Carter’s funeral
Amy Carter’s low-key private life
Carter has largely stayed out of the public spotlight in recent years. She has not taken on a prominent professional or public-facing role. Her focus appears to have been on raising her family and engaging in personal passion projects.
She has occasionally supported her family’s philanthropic and humanitarian work through the Carter Center, founded by her parents.
Though not a formal staff member, she has participated in events and initiatives related to the Center’s work, including promoting peace, democracy, and global health.
She married James Gregory Wentzel in 1996, with whom she has a son named Hugo James Wentzel.
The marriage ended in divorce, and Amy married John Joseph “Jay” Kelly, with whom she shares one son, Errol Carter Kelly.
Amy Carter’s life reflects her commitment to social justice, as well as her efforts to keep her life private despite her high-profile family background.
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