On November 18th, 1978, Jim Jones conducted a mass suicide ritual for his Peoples Temple cult in Jonestown, Guyana, killing over 900 people. Shortly before that, his members massacred a congressman and TV crew trying to leave.
But how did a supposedly well-intentioned individual utilize the backbone of religion and socialism to result in such a tragedy?
Show Notes
Trigger Warning: Talk of death, mass suicide, violence, religion.
Join us in part one of our two part deep dive into Jonestown, Jim Jones and his Peoples Temple, where we divulge the details and nuances that allowed Jim Jones to be who he was, impacting hundreds of people with the guise of social justice and ultimate goal of control.
References
Mark Joyella (Aug. 1, 2021). Congresswoman Shot At Jonestown Compares Donald Trump To Cult Leader Jim Jones, Forbes, retrieved from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/markjoyella/2021/08/01/congresswoman-shot-at-jonestown-compares-donald-trump-to-cult-leader-jim-jones/?sh=23cf2c6e4974
Melissa Dittmann (November 2003). Lessons from Jonestown, American Psychological Association, retrieved from: https://www.apa.org/monitor/nov03/jonestown
Rebecca Moore (Nov. 18, 2021). Frequently Asked Questions, Alternative Considerations of Jonestown & Peoples Temple – San Diego State University, retrieved from: https://jonestown.sdsu.edu/?page_id=35361
Jeff Guin (November 2018). Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle, TV documentary mini-series, Appian Way and Stephen David Entertainment, AMC.
Jeff Guinn (April 11, 2017). “The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple.” Simon & Schuster, New York