The Whittakers, from Odd, West Virginia, have been documented by filmmaker Mark Laita for over two decades.
The family communicates uniquely—they are recognized for grunting, barking, and using gestures rather than conventional words or sign language.
In a recent update on the Whittakers, Laita has offered valuable advice for anyone interested in meeting them.
Laita initially met the Whittakers in 2004, encountering family members Ray, Betty, Kenneth, Timmy, and Lorene.
His first visit was marked by hostility from protective neighbors armed with shotguns, wary of outsiders potentially mocking the family.
Despite this difficult beginning, Laita persisted and eventually earned the family’s trust.
He photographed the Whittakers for his book ‘Created Equal,’ which delves into various American cultures and backgrounds.
In 2020, Laita returned to further explore and understand their lives.
During an interview on the Koncrete KLIPS Podcast, Laita recounted his experiences with the Whittakers vividly.
He described scenes of family members, noting misaligned eyes and instances of erratic behavior.
“It was like that little scene from Deliverance that everyone knows. We came around to this road, which turns into a country road, which turns into a dirt road,” the filmmaker recalled.
“Then we come to this trailer and then a little shack on the other side of the road. And there’s these people walking around and their eyes are going in different directions and they are barking at us.”
“And then one guy, you would look him in the eye or say anything and he would just scream and go running away, and his pants would fall around his ankles, and he would go running off and go and kick a garbage can. And this would happen over and over. It was out of control – the craziest thing I have ever seen.”
The filmmaker also recognized how hard it is to figure out how much inbreeding has happened within the family.
“There is no way I would be able to confirm that the Whittaker parents were related, but given that this does happen in this part of the country and the Whittakers are the most extreme case I’ve seen so far,” Laita said.
“I would bet that inbreeding was at least partly responsible for the mental and physical abnormalities seen in [siblings] Lorraine, Freddie, Ray, and [cousin] Timmy.”
The Whittakers received support from two fundraising efforts coordinated via Laita’s YouTube channel Soft White Underbelly.
However, recent events have strained the relationship between Laita and the family.
A notable controversy emerged when YouTuber Tyler Oliveira posted a video investigating the ‘poorest region of America,’ featuring an interview with the Whittakers.
Betty Whittaker claimed she didn’t know where the funds raised for her family were located in the video.
This statement deeply upset Laita, who felt it portrayed him as someone only concerned with money.
In a vigorous defense, the filmmaker declared: “Consider the Whittakers; their lives have significantly improved since I began assisting them, which is because I’ve consistently supported them.”
Laita asserts that the family has often asked for substantial sums of money, but the exact reasons for these funds remain unknown.
Laita published a Soft White Underbelly video addressing the accusations head-on.
The filmmaker displayed screenshots of money transfers and declared his choice to halt fundraising efforts for the Whittakers.
Prior to severing connections, Laita reached out to Betty to clarify that he hadn’t withheld any funds. Her seemingly bewildered reaction added to his frustration.
Earlier this year, another controversy involving the Whittakers arose when Larry Whittaker was mistakenly reported as deceased.
Laita publicly announced Larry’s alleged death on his YouTube channel, referencing relatives who stated he had passed away from a heart attack.
Later, it was disclosed that Larry was alive and unaware of the death rumors circulating about him.
In a subsequent video, he appeared with his daughter, who confessed to fabricating his death to receive money—she received $1,000 for his ‘funeral.’
While smoking a cigarette, she expressed regret for the deception, saying: “I shouldn’t have done it.”
“I’m trying to get help for my drug addiction.”
The situation intensified when the filmmaker provided Larry with $700, intending for him to use it to relocate with his daughter to North Carolina for a fresh start.
Laita emphasized that his continued involvement with the Whittakers depended on this arrangement.
However, accusations later arose claiming that Larry had kept the money without fulfilling the agreement.
Expressing his frustration during a conversation with Larry’s cousin, documented on Soft White Underbelly, Laita remarked: “I don’t know what to do with them other than just walk away.”
Laita is now advising others against attempting to replicate his documentary work with the Whittakers.
He warns that the family is unlikely to welcome visitors warmly, noting: “They are kind of protected by the neighbors and the relatives [who] don’t like these people coming to ridicule them.”
Meanwhile, Pastor William Plumley shared with the Daily Mail: “I think the documentary about them is good and bad, good because it has helped them. But also it’s brought a lot of people to the area who just want to mess with them.”
If you enjoyed this story or article, make sure to share it with your beloved friends and follow Cat's Voice for more heartwarming content & Videos!
