But briefly, Jim Jones, the leader of the cult, The People's Temple and approximately 900 of his followers committed suicide in 1978 almost immediately after Congressman Leo Ryan visited Jonestown. Jim Jones' extreme paranoia led him to convince all of his followers that suicide was the only way after Leo Ryan's visit. He told his followers that if they didn't drink the drink (cyanide) the US would come and torture their children and kill all of them. So they all drank.
My first questions was 'how in the world did these people believe him? And why would they ever commit suicide and kill their children because of what this one man said?' Then as i thought about it I remembered fear. Fear is how Jones kept the his followers under control. He would stage false attacks on Jonestown to prove that indeed they were in danger if they didn't do everything he said. He successfully controlled the minds of almost 1,000 people for several years. Because of Jonestown's remote location away from the media and far away from concerned family members, it made it easier for Jones to control the people. Eventually the US intervened but it was too late. Jones' extreme paranoia led him to convince everyone that suicide was the only choice. Jonestown and other cults prove that fear is the ultimate communication tool and through inducing fear you can make almost anyone do almost anything.
No comments:
Post a Comment