If you are fascinated by the stories of people who live on the fringes of society, you might want to check out this documentary by Mark Laita, who visited the Whittaker family, which is the most inbred family in America. The Whittakers live in a remote town called Odd, in West Virginia, where they have been isolated from the rest of the world for generations.
Their ancestors were cousins who married each other, resulting in severe genetic defects that affect their physical and mental health. Some of them can only communicate through grunts and barks, while others have eyes that go in different directions or limbs that don’t function properly. They live in a dilapidated shack with no electricity or running water, surrounded by dogs and trash. They work on their father’s farm and barely make enough money to survive.
Laita first met the Whittakers in 2004, when he photographed them for his book “Created Equal”, which showcases the diversity of human life in America. He returned to Odd in 2020 to film a video of his reunion with the family, which he uploaded on his YouTube channel “Soft White Underbelly”. The video, titled “Inbred Family – The Whittakers”, has gone viral with tens of millions of views and has sparked a lot of curiosity and controversy among viewers. Some people are fascinated by the Whittakers’ lifestyle, while others are disgusted or outraged by their condition. Some people have even donated money to a GoFundMe campaign that Laita started to help the family improve their living situation.
The documentary is a rare glimpse into a hidden world that most of us will never see or understand. It raises questions about ethics, genetics, culture, and compassion. It also challenges us to think about what it means to be human and how we treat those who are different from us.
You’ll have to go to YouTube directly to watch them. You can find them here.
