The alarming behavior of one of America’s most inbred families, based in West Virginia, has been exposed after a filmmaker visited them in their squalid home.
Producer Mark Laita has put the spotlight on The Whittakers – who he remembered barking at people, communicating through grunts and often running away when people tried to talk to them.
Laita released a 12-minute short describing his encounters, saying the inbred family was something out of the 1972 thriller Deliverance.
He was first introduced to the West Virginia family in 2004 when he took pictures of them and decided to come back years later to get to know them better in 2020.
In a podcast interview with the Koncrete podcast, Laita recalled the most bizarre moments with the family.
“It got out of hand,” he said. “People are walking around and their eyes are going in different directions and they are barking at us. And [this] one man, you’d look him in the eye or say something and he’d just scream and run and his pants would fall around his ankles.’
The Whittakers are America’s most inbred family brought to light by filmmaker Mark Laita in his 12 minute short film ‘Inbred Family-The Whittakers’. Pictured: The Whittakers
Mark Laita was first introduced to the Odd, West Virginia family in 2004 when he took pictures of them and came back years later to get to know them better in 2020 – when he started filming.
Laita remembered the build up of his relationship with the inbred family, especially relatives named Ray, Betty, Kenneth, Ray, Timmy, and Lorraine.
The first time he approached them was in the early 2000s when he initially encountered “protective” neighbors with a shotgun.
“They don’t like people making fun of these people,” Laita said on the podcast.
At the time, Laita wanted to take pictures of the Whittakers for his book ‘Created Equal’. The book told stories about diverse cultures in the US.
Although initially unwelcome, he was eventually allowed to take a few photos and even donate some to the family.
One of the filmmaker’s latest videos from 2021 showed the family’s squalid conditions in a small and overcrowded house with several animals.
Laita said he returned to the house on a whim to check on the family. He then decided to grab his iPhone and take pictures of their ‘level of poverty’ and living conditions.
The family turned out to spend a lot of time on their veranda, where they have a sofa, armchair and other household items.
He noted that Whittaker’s had several health issues and some could only communicate with grunts.
In one scene, Laita asked Betty why she thought her family had so many anomalies. She didn’t know.
He pushed the question further, with Kenneth specifically asking why their eyes weren’t facing forward. He replied, “Maybe coal mining.”
Laita previously told podcaster Joe Rogan that the inbred family lineage started with cousins.
The family lives in squalid conditions in Odd, West Virginia. Several share a house with several dogs and wear threadbare clothing
Laita said he returned to the house on a whim to check on the family. He then decided to grab his iPhone and take pictures of their ‘level of poverty’ and living conditions. Pictured from left to right: Betty, Ray and Lorraine
Laita’s video revealed that the family was unaware that their genetic problems were a result of inbreeding. They also could not remember much about their parents or other relatives
The Whittakers’ videos showed Laita asking them about their education and training. Only one turned out to have completed high school, Timmy.
Lorraine and Ray seemed unable to speak and just growled. Other family members had to speak on their behalf.
According to Discover Magazineinbreeding can lead to several side effects, including “impaired cognitive abilities and muscle function, decreased height and lung function, and are at greater risk for disease in general.”
The family was unaware that their genetic problems were a result of inbreeding, according to what they told the filmmaker. They also could not remember much about their parents or other relatives.
To help improve the Whittaker’s living conditions and make improvements to the home, Laita previously had a GoFundMe in 2022 that has since raised $46,433.