Don Carter Interview Analysis

My interviewee was 56 year old Don Carter who was born and raised in Bentonia Mississippi. Bentonia is a rural are in Yazoo County off highway 49. This small town was once the place where drug dealers lived, gangs fought, and prostitutes made a living. But Don Carter brought about a total change and brought this community peace and safety. During the interview the question was asked “What was Bentonia like when you were coming up or what one of your best memories is?” Don started to go into a daze and smile slowly formed on his face as he responded. “Everyone was technically family. When someone didn’t have any food at their house they would just go to the neighbor’s house and know they would get a well cooked meal. Us kids would stay out
all night long and play a game of football while the girls stood on the side line and cheered us on every single day.” He made it sound like such a fun time to come up and everyone seemed friendly. Don and his wife Angela come up with all the different activities for the community. Whether it be a horse show, food drive, car show, soft ball games, or the annual “Get to Know Your Neighbor” gathering he enjoys them all. His favorite is the “Get to Know your Neighbor” gathering. He loves that day because everyone gets involved. The young and old come out and set up tents and barbeque grills on the softball field and prepare for a fun filled day. Each family from the community gets the chance to tell their neighbors some new news that’s going on in their lives. Good or bad. Everyone cooks food to share with one another and they even have live performances by local talents. The interview got a little emotional when I asked the question “What made you decide to become a “community leader”.
Don started talking about how lovely his childhood was and once he started getting older how Bentonia slowly started to change and he had to get things back to normal. Drug dealers, gangs, and prostitutes started to pop up out of nowhere. No one felt safe and secure anymore some of the town’s people even considered moving to get away from all the crime. Don didn’t want to see his community go down and become another statistic. He knew he had to step in and make a change. My interviewee knew this would not be an easy task but with the help of other elders from the community he knew it could be done. Don and the elders willing to help all got on one accord. They found jobs in surrounding areas for their troubled neighbors and even offered the ones without vehicles ride to and from work. One of the biggest hardships Don faced was when he felt like he was gaining the community but losing his family. He seemed to be spending more and more time outside of his home and focusing more on his neighbors than wife and family. That was a time period when he wanted to pack up and move as far away from Bentonia as possible for the sake of his
family. Don Carter feels like he has impacted the lives of many. His getting the crime off the streets has kept a host on young people from being in jail or maybe even dead. He believes he has shown people how to love one another and have a given heart and brought back peace and safety. Don loves his community family just as much as his own.