The thought and idea of incest has been a topic of taboo for so many years. It’s not just a reference to Game of Thrones because this happened in real life. If you haven’t heard about the Whitaker family inbred story, then you’re in for an interesting treat.
The Whitaker family lives in a town called Odd that is located in rural West Virginia. Some members of the said family suffer from physical and mental anomalies. Some of them are mute and can only communicate via grunting. Most of the people in the family didn’t go to school.
The Whitaker family was photographed by Mark Laita for his book Created Equally with the intention of drawing attention to them on a worldwide scale (2004). Yes, his shotgun-owning neighbors did make threats against him.
He went back to the Whitaker house in 2020 to film a video, which got more disapproval than approval but nevertheless garnered more than 25 million views. In the documentary, the evils of inbreeding are revealed.
Mark Laita had to pay them four visits and give them gifts of cash, food, and clothing to persuade them to open up. He declared: “The individuals in this video are brothers and sisters, except for Timmy who is a cousin. There is no way I would be able to confirm that the Whitaker parents were related, but given that this does happen in this part of the country and the Whitakers are the most extreme case I’ve seen so far, I would bet that inbreeding was at least partly responsible for the mental and physical abnormalities seen in Lorraine, Freddie, Ray, and Timmy.”
Numerous studies demonstrate that inbred offspring are less cognitively capable, have lung and heart disorders, and are more prone to various ailments. Children that are inbred are more likely to experience recessive genetic disorders.
What then is the situation with the Whitaker family? Inbreeding is likely common in some parts of West Virginia, and their neighbors' protection of them may be a contributing cause. They provide evidence of significant effects of inbreeding.
The breeding of organisms with intimate genetic ties is known as inbreeding. It contradicts the biological purpose of mating, which is the DNA shuffle. The 23 pairs of chromosomes that make up human DNA contain hundreds of thousands of genes, and each gene contains two copies known as alleles. Your hair and eye colors, as well as biological traits like your blood type, are all influenced by your genes. These genes can be divided into dominant and recessive types. You will acquire the trait of the dominant gene if one of the two genes in the pair is dominant. However, you need both genes to be recessive in order to have qualities that are caused by the recessive gene.
The Whitaker family is the most famous family in the United States because of their secrecy of making their own family tree through inbreeding. The Whitaker family is being safeguarded by their armed neighbors, the Raleigh County deputies, and Mark Latia himself has personally issued a warning to the public to keep away from them. He said, 'I strongly caution against anyone trying to reach the Whitakers, since both their armed neighbors and the Raleigh County police have made it obvious that enquiring strangers are not welcome.
The Whitaker family maintains a high level of secrecy, so no one is aware of their history or the names of their parents. Also maintained a secret from the outside world were the parents' identities. However, it's clear that they are an inbred group.
Stereotypes about West Virginia's inbreeding practices have long been linked to the state's poverty. In the 1930s, the state acquired the reputation of being a backwater when photographs of decaying shacks and children wearing rags were featured in national media.
First cousin marriages are still permitted in some parts of West Virginia despite the state's new anti-incest law. Incest was utilized as a crude, 'scientific,' rationale for the depressed socioeconomic position of West Virginians, who were made to resemble the classic 'hillbillies.'
According to some reports, great poverty in some areas of West Virginia was brought on by inbreeding practices. The aged images convey the children's shoddy state and awful circumstances.
In most of West Virginia today, the anti-incest statute is in effect. However, inbreeding continues to this day despite this. The practice of inbreeding is still practiced in some areas where people can legally wed their first cousins.
Similar situations exist for the British Royal Family or the Cold Clan, just like the Whitakers. However, it is clear from both situations how detrimental inbreeding can be for people. Because it violates biological laws, it causes genetic problems. The British Royal Family made an effort to preserve their reputation by keeping the members' true backgrounds a secret. Similar circumstances existed when Colt Clan coerced his daughter into having children with him; the results were terrible.
There are still a number of unanswered inquiries regarding the Whitaker family. Mark was also unable to determine their background or genuine age. There is a good chance they are close friends with some influential people. But then, why do they lead such a carefree lifestyle? That will always remain a mystery.