An aerial view of the mass murder 45 years ago, November 18, 1978, in Jonestown, Guyana. Photograph: Bettmann/Bettmann Archive
There is a similar scene 45 years ago from the Jonestown massacre in Guyana, South America, and the Kilifi cult. Church massacre in Kenya recently. For example, in both cases, there is a culture in which leaders have great power over their followers, resulting in mass murders and suicides. So what happened in the Jonestown massacre?
Before September 11, the Jonestown massacre of November 1978 was one of the deadliest civilian casualties in American history. Jim Jones, the charismatic leader of the American cult in the jungle of Guyana, ordered his followers to kill a US ambassador and several journalists and commit suicide by drinking cyanide-containing berry fruits.
More than
900 people died, including children, and it turned into a cultural disaster. The history in Jonestown's ironic phrase "Drink Kool-Aid." Born to a poor family in Indiana, Jim Jones' blend of evangelical Christianity, New Age and social justice gained cultural attention.
He named his new church the People's Temple. The People's Temple promoted culture and social life, and racial discrimination reached an unprecedented level of efficiency. In the 1970s, the People's Temple gained significant influence in San Francisco.
Jones' strong support for the oppressed earned him the support of left-wing icons such as Angela Davis and Harvey Milk, and groups such as the Black Panther Party. But something suspicious is going on in the People's Temple.
Members must devote themselves entirely to the utopian mission of the church, give up personal belongings, work long hours without paying the church, and often cut expenses to get along with their families. They hope to raise their children in the community.
People's Temple is very useful for politics: Jones can be trusted to send his obedient, well-dressed disciples to protests, counter-revolutions, and political elections. Having long believed that the United States would be in danger of a nuclear holocaust, Jones sought to "safe" his church from an apocalyptic event.
In 1977, Human Temple moved its headquarters to a remote location in the Guyana wilderness. Here, Jones claimed that they could create a utopian society without government or media interference. They began to convert the dense jungle into a working agricultural commune, soon known as “Jonestown”.
Jones’s writ was enforced by armed guards who kept the population in check. People were denied communication with the outside world and were punished severely for breaking any rules. The Jonestown massacre has
been the subject of several documentaries, books, and movies, but it remains one of the darkest moments in American history.
There is a similar scene 45 years ago from the Jonestown massacre in Guyana, South America, and the Kilifi cult. Church massacre in Kenya recently. For example, in both cases, there is a culture in which leaders have great power over their followers, resulting in mass murders and suicides. So what happened in the Jonestown massacre?
Before September 11, the Jonestown massacre of November 1978 was one of the deadliest civilian casualties in American history. Jim Jones, the charismatic leader of the American cult in the jungle of Guyana, ordered his followers to kill a US ambassador and several journalists and commit suicide by drinking cyanide-containing berry fruits.
 |
| A photograph showing number of people died Guyana USA 45 years ago following the same cult |
More than
He named his new church the People's Temple. The People's Temple promoted culture and social life, and racial discrimination reached an unprecedented level of efficiency. In the 1970s, the People's Temple gained significant influence in San Francisco.
Jones' strong support for the oppressed earned him the support of left-wing icons such as Angela Davis and Harvey Milk, and groups such as the Black Panther Party. But something suspicious is going on in the People's Temple.
Members must devote themselves entirely to the utopian mission of the church, give up personal belongings, work long hours without paying the church, and often cut expenses to get along with their families. They hope to raise their children in the community.
People's Temple is very useful for politics: Jones can be trusted to send his obedient, well-dressed disciples to protests, counter-revolutions, and political elections. Having long believed that the United States would be in danger of a nuclear holocaust, Jones sought to "safe" his church from an apocalyptic event.
In 1977, Human Temple moved its headquarters to a remote location in the Guyana wilderness. Here, Jones claimed that they could create a utopian society without government or media interference. They began to convert the dense jungle into a working agricultural commune, soon known as “Jonestown”.
Jones’s writ was enforced by armed guards who kept the population in check. People were denied communication with the outside world and were punished severely for breaking any rules. The Jonestown massacre has
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