Former first lady Rosalynn Carter remembered as a humanitarian, mental health advocate and compassionate leader

November 21st, 2023

FILE - Former President Jimmy Carter twirls his wife, first lady Rosalynn Carter, to the music of a country band at a rally in their honor, Jan. 20, 1981, in Plains. Ga. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/Joe Holloway, Jr., File)

Rosalynn Carter’s legacy expands beyond being the former first lady of the United States. The wife of former President Jimmy Carter, often described as a pioneer, a compassionate leader and mental health advocate, died on Sunday at 96.

She was married to former President Carter for 77 years – a record-setting time span for a presidential couple. She also used her platform in the East Wing to advocate for elder care, mental health care, and the Equal Rights Amendment.

On Monday’s edition of “Closer Look,” Rose Scott talks with several guests about Mrs. Carter’s life and legacy. Guests include:

Dr. Eve Byrd, the director of the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program

Atlanta City Council President Doug Shipman

Cynthia Wainscott, a former member of the National Council on Disability

Georgia House of Representative Mary Margaret Oliver, who represents House District 82

Dr. Kortni Alston Lemon, a happiness scholar and the chair of the Department of Communication, Art, and Design at Gardner-Webb University, who serves on the United States Advisory Board for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism

WABE politics reporter Rahul Bali