19 of 21: Interview with Paul Lamar Hunter
By Jeffrey Moore
W
hat happens
when you have 20
brothers and sisters
and a mentally ill mother?
According to Paul Lamar
Hunter, you fly or you fall.
Paul is the 19th child of 21
natural children, born to a
schizophrenic mother who
treated her children with utter
condescension. Hunter grew
up with as many as 17 in the
home at one time, in what
he describes as poverty and
chaos, along with physical and
mental abuse. His mother
was frequently dismissive and
often made downgrading
and derogatory comments
to her children. She told
them that they would never
be successful, and would
amount to nothing in life.
She discouraged school and
offered no encouragement.
She would sometimes call
the girls prostitutes, ugly and
drug addicts. She told her boys
that they were lazy and would
likely spend their respective
lives in jail. Hunter’s mother
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