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Jones: (Conversational tone) I would like to make you aware of something that appeared in a very conservative newspaper today, in the Berkeley Gazette, that has applications, in every sense of the word, to us, in terms of the way people divide and conquer. (Pause) To think that we’ll have any support outside of ourselves is very foolish indeed. The only support we have is one another. Never think otherwise, or you’re going to be in for a great disillusionment. All we have is you and I, and when you and I look bad, you better look outside at the world, and you’ll find out that you and I look pretty good.
Congregation: Applause.
Jones: Now we do not in any way endorse political action groups. We are a Pentecostal socialist group, non-violent. But there are interesting parallels that should be brought to our awareness. Now the Berkeley Gazette is a very right-wing newspaper, very much against brotherhood, very much against anything socialistic, so you’ll get an idea, even in this paper, of some dangerous signs that you should be able to pick up on, and I’m going to see if you can as I read it. (Pause) When the head of the— (Quieter) Well, let’s see, I’ll start at the top. (Conversational) “When the minister of defense is out, you’re going to see us move, a youthful Black Panther said, after Huey P. Newton was freed of charges after being held in prison 36 months awaiting trial, and then found innocent.” Notice all kinds of things that are pertinent to a people who are concerned about justice and liberation in this day. Thirty-six months waiting trial. Thirty-six months before he was found innocent of the charge that he had killed someone in Oakland. “Huey is the baddest” — that means in youthful terms, of course, the best. Uh, that’s a faddish word for meaning, very good. “Huey is the best person. He’ll be in the streets. You haven’t heard it yet. Today, three years later, a 17-year-old prostitute clings to life with a bullet in her head. Two other women have been beaten. An Oakland tailor — white tailor, 57 years of age — struggles to recover from skull fractures, and Newton is a wanted man. The co-founder of the Black Panther Party has been missing since August 23, when he forfeited $42,000 of bail, his relatives’ and loved ones’ property, ’cause now, to get bail, you have to put up the money and also forfeit the property.”
So what’s this have to do with me? It has this to do with you, because Jesus said, if you were in prison, you are to do something about people who are in prison. You are to do something about those that are captive, those that are in bondage. Release the captives. Proclaim liberty to all those that are bound. So, this may be you, and you may sometime have your son [or] your grandson facing a jail sentence, and you may be able to get bail, but you also have to furnish the bail, plus your property to— as a surety or guarantor to that bail, and you’ll lose both of them if the person doesn’t appear in the trial. You lose everything you have, both your money and your property, ’cause bailbondsmen take no risk whatsoever anymore. They will not give you bail money without somebody guaranteeing them property, valuable at least for the amount of the money or more. (Pause) Anyway, “the co-founder of the Black Panther Party that has its free breakfast programs and transportation for the poor in Oakland, so that they won’t be mugged and robbed, has been missing, and his bail has been lost. He was picked up on charges in the supposed (unintelligible word— sounds like “violent”) incidents which occurred over a two-month period. Huey Newton’s brother, his lawyer and friends say, the twenty— the 32-year-old revolutionary has been the target of police harassment, plotting and possible assassination.” (Aside) Someone hold this out here. It’s too close to me. (Pause) Thank you. The eyes— That’s why I have to have eyes like this, the better to see you with. (Pause) It’s more comfortable there, now, (stumbles over words), put your finger away from it. I can’t read through fingers yet. I may be able to do that if I work on it. Anything close to me, I can’t read (Pause) as well. Now you’ve got it uh— the light’s behind it, so, if— maybe if you double the back part up— (Pause) Now, just relax the paper a little bit. (Pause) (Addresses congregation) Now where were we? “Authorities say Huey Newton may have fled the San Fran— oh his— Huey Newton’s brother, his lawyer and friends say, the 32-year-old revolutionary has been the target of police harassment, plotting and possibility of an assassination. The authorities say Newton may have fled the San Francisco Bay Area, and perhaps the country, or could even be dead. (Pause) Huey has”— (Aside) Put it down a little bit, so I can see the whites of people’s eyes now and then. (Addresses congregation) Huey— (Aside) Little back. Little back. That’s it. Little back there. And remember, I’m reading through sunglasses. My sunglasses don’t give to be— able to see anything. (Addresses congregation) “Huey has never missed a court date, said Charles Garry, Newton’s attorney, since the Black Panthers (tape edit)— his murders trials began in 1967. That’s why I say he is either the victim of foul play, or he has just said the hell with it, I’ve had it, and left town, because no human being can take this kind of pressure.” Now, as I’ve said— (Addresses someone in crowd) Where are we going? (Pause) (Casual) I always know where people are going, why and so forth. (Aside) Pull it out more. Pull it out more. Pull the paper, uh, you know, right there. Thank you. (Addresses congregation) Now think— I want you to catch some of these things about how your enemy works against you. Put you up on charge, and he just got freed of that. Thirty-six months he waits to get found innocent, ’cause they didn’t have a bit of evidence against the man. By the way, remind me, Geraldine, to ans— answer the question you had that’s never been answered that you were concerned about with me, and I never have gotten— I’ve been running night and day, so uh— if you don’t believe that, ask anybody. We had a meeting here all night Wednesday night, we let you out before midnight, and we were— we let out at 8:30 here.
One voice: Right.
Jones: 8:30 in the morning, that’s when I finished uh, my Wednesday night service. (Pause) Anyway, Charles Garry thinks that there’s just too much for a human being to take this kind of pressure, and he’s either left from that or he’s been murdered. You know Charles Garry. He’s a fine, white-haired white man, uh, eminent attorney, dedicated— sharp attorney dedicated to helping black liberationists. “The state owes Huey P. Newton months of hard time he spent, the 36 months of hard time he spent in jail during the murder trial. You’ve got to”— (Aside) Uh, don’t move it. (Addresses congregation) “You got to the point— You get to the point (stumbles over words) when you’re harassed, worked over and pushed around, you may not want to spend another 33 months in prison, to prove you’re innocent again. Newton was convicted in the policeman’s death, but that verdict was overturned on appeal. Two more trials ended— they tried him three times for the same crime. They all ended up in a hung j— a hung jury,” even when they had many white jurors on the jur— on the jury, and the charges were dropped. Some of this I’m having to change to— to get um, across to you, because it’s not— all newspapers make so many mistakes. “He now is charged with”— (Addresses person) Where’re you going, son? (Addresses congregation) “He now is charged with three counts of assault with a deadly weapon” — now listen to this — “two of battery, and one of holding people in false imprisonment. His brother Melvin and uh, a professor at Oakland Merritt College and— said the disappearance took us all by surprise. We were completely unprepared for it. And this is not like Huey to do this. Huey lived with police surveillance night and day, bugging and harassment every day since he’s been out of jail. And Mel Newton said he didn’t make a special issue of it. He wouldn’t have kept— It wouldn’t have kept him from making his court appearance that day,” but of course, killing him by the police or the CIA or the FBI might have.
“There was a running battle between Huey,” says this newspaper, “and the police. If he has been killed, my guess is that they— they’re behind it, he said to the— the interviewer said. Captain Robert Bernard, chief investigator for the Alameda Country District Attorner’s— Attorney’s said, he believes Newton either skipped bail or was killed by dissident Panthers. You’ve gotta remember that Newton wasn’t very popular with h— his own people anymore.” See, they’re— the police are trying to say that he was killed by his own. Gotta l— Gotta watch all these techniques, I want you to notice all these techniques very closely, ’cause these techniques, I see them every time these situations arise, they’re the same way. (Aside) Is that getting too long for you to hold it in that position, someone else can switch with you. Back up a little bit. (Clears throat) Very well. Thank you. (Addresses congregation) Now— What point did we stop? “Captain Robert Bernard, chief investigator for the Alameda Country Sher— District Attorney’s said he believed Newton either skipped bail or was killed by some of his own Panthers.” Bull-crap. “You’ve gotta remember, Newton wasn’t very popular with his own black people anymore, and Bernard, who has investigated Newton and other Panthers since the mid-40’s— the mid-60’s, rather— rather, he had”— Well, that’s wrong. That must be mid-60’s. “He had a big cocaine habit.” See how they dirty him, he’s not even there to defend himself. “He had a big”— No one— I never heard anything about cocaine till now, now it’s— now he’s got a cocaine habit. He’s all of a sudden gone, they don’t even let a person, after they’re dead or disappeared, they don’t let them have uh, a decent image. (Clears throat) “He said everybody knows that he had”— (Aside) (stumbles over words) Where are we at? That’s all wrinkled down there, now. (Pause) It’s all— all— I mean it’s all just wrinkled up so you can’t see anything. (Pause) That’s it. (Pause) Still awfully crumpled, but it’s— all right— (stumbles over words) As long as I can yo— put it halfway across this room, I can see it, if it is uh, not bent so it can’t be seen through. And I’m working on seeing through stuff. (Addresses congregation) “From November 1970 until his disappearance, Newton lived in a twenty-sixth floor penthouse in— by— above Oakland’s Lake Merritt.” (Aside) That’s all crumpled there, folks, I don’t know, (Stumbles over words) you’ll have to tell me those last two lines, ’cause it’s a— it’s— I’m reading now crumpled, can you see how crumpled that is? You have to struggle to read it yourself.
Soft voices.
Jones: (Addresses congregation) “Paid by the local Panthers at” uh— (Aside) Turn it over, t— turn it back now, I can see it, I can see it well now, if you get it up at the top. (Addresses congregation) “It was said.” (Pause) Hmm? (Pause)
Tape edit
Jones: (unintelligible phrase) —”assassination (Pause) (Deliberate tone) by vengeful police, or by members of the more militant international wing of the party, led by fugitive founder Panther Eldridge Cleaver, Newton’s”— (Aside) Newton’s what? That’s right. (Stumbles over words) It doesn’t make any sense. Newton’s luxuries? Oh— (Addresses congregation) “Newton’s luxurious $650-a-month apartment (Pause) that became his prison.” And you see, that’s the way newspapers— I— I have to make some sense out of something, and the— it’s just not clear. Newton lived in a $650-a-month penthouse that was provided by the Panthers. Next door— next door to it, uh, the FBI had one too. (Pause) They— They got it, so they could spy on him. In essence— Now let me see if I’ve gotten everything out of it that I want to get out of it, uh— “Huey had tremendous energy, said Ne— Mel Newton, that’s why it was so tough on him to be cooped in a apartment night and day. He would uh, love to have been on the streets, to help the people, but he could never leave his apartment. But every time he went out, he was in trouble, he was shot out three— shot at three times, the police were never there. Yet the police were always there, accusing him of this, that or the other.” This is funny. If the police followed him all the time, why they couldna stopped him before he did all the things here that he was accused of doing. Beating up on a 57-year-old tailor, shooting a 17-year-old prostitute. Now this don’t make any sense at all. All this stuff don’t make any sense. (Pause)
“Garry said Newton’s problems was made”— If people would not move during the— during the meeting unless you just (stumbles over words), I mean a serious mo— moment like this, I have to look up then and find out what’s your reason. Both of you going to work at the same time? Okay. (Pause) “Garry said Newton’s penthouse was under constant observation. He has copies”— Now, here’s what uh, important. He has— Garry’s such a good attorney. “He has gotten copies of the FBI file where it shows that authorities had rented the penthouse next door to Newton’s, and the use and the” (stumbles over words) bad sentence again. And the use of bugs and wiretaps. But what it’s trying to say, and they had put bugs and wiretaps in this place so they could uh, check on him. “He also ha— uh, had copies— Garry has copies of FBI directives to agents” — this is the thing I want you to note — “FBI directives to agents (tape edit), stating”— (Aside) Where are we at now again? The columns— (Addresses congregation) —”stating— (Pause) Cause dissension among all such parties and their officials. This will lead to the destruction of such movements. Put plants in the movements to stir up trouble, or pay bad members to cause trouble— and this is a directive from the FBI office in Washington, D.C. John Kelley (phonetic), Deputy Special Agent in charge of the San Francisco”, uh— I suppose, it’s supposed to be again, that’s a typogra— I’m not having trouble reading it, child, I’m trying to make sense out of these— Rich newspapers don’t even have to give you good newspapers anymore, because there’s only one newspaper in every town. I presume it’s saying that he’s— he was in charge of the San Francisco detail of the FBI, “said that there was no special interest in Huey Newton, but he did not deny that there was an ongoing investigation and internal ref— revenue, the tax department had been investigating Mr. Newton for six months running. I can tell you, he said, we do watch any organization with anybody, any member that wishes to cause trouble for the establishment.” (Pause) That’s a direct quote. Quote, end quote.
“Alameda County District Attorney Lowell Jensen said he knew of the organized effort to break up the Panthers (Pause) and to harass Newton.” Now isn’t that interesting. You all know about it. However, (aside) You— You’re bending it very slightly, just (unintelligible word) light now. (Addresses congregation) “However, there are individual Panthers who commit crimes, and that’s another matter, Ja— Jensen said. Huey Newton certainly has a bad”— (Aside) (stumbles over words) something different, but— (Addresses congregation) “He has a history of criminal behavior.” Isn’t that nice. (Pause) “Garry and Newton— Garry said Newton allegedly shot at three”— Uh, that wouldn’t be right, ’cause Garry wouldn’t say that. His attorney wouldn’t say that. (Pause) That’s another lie that the newspaper— I’m just stopping for lies. New— An attorney never going to say that. He never gonna say it. If he had done it, he wouldn’t say it. “Garry said Newton allegedly shot at”— Oh, now— “shot at three times in the last three years— in the last year, is— three years, is wanted by police in the”— (Pause) (Aside) Every time you move it, honey, I get focused on that. You want a— you want some relief? It gets tough there. (Pause) That’s better. Now I want to get my place again. (Addresses congregation) “Garry said Newton allegedly had— was shot at three times in the last three years. An attempt to kill him is believed by the police to be the keystone of the Oakland Panther uh— organization, and thus slated for assassination. They think if they break Huey”— and that’s exactly what they think about any organization, whoever’s the leader— “the party will fold, said Garry. There’s a cop following Huey every minute he leaves the apartment. It’s (Pause) interesting that when he gets shot at, three times, there’s no cop around or in sight. Police refuse to refute or even to comment on Garry’s accusation.
“The young woman when New— who New— who Newton allegedly shot is unnamed,” so we don’t even know if she been— who she is. Who is she? Nobody even knows her. She’s never even been named. He’s accused of murder, and they don’t even tell who he’s supposed to have sho— I mean, accused of someone being critically injured, and they don’t even tell who it is that he has— he has critically injured. She’s a 17-year-old nameless prostitute, laying with a bullet in her brain. They say. The young woman whom Newton supposedly shot is— wi— is unnamed. “She and the 57-year-old tailor Newton allegedly assaulted, also unnamed, in his apartment, while being fol— uh, while being fitted for a tailored suit, are in unnamed hospitals. Police also”— (Aside) Bring it on down a little now. (Pause) You got it almost— I’d have to be up there to read it. I mean, angle it towards me. That’s it. Thank you. Now back up. I was having to read that way and then down. That’s— that’s good, that’s good new training. (Pause) Where’re we at now? What— what— what point of this mess are we in? (stumbles over words) My memory— I’m forgetting. (Addresses congregation) — unnamed hospitals— brought— police— So they’re all in unnamed plo— hospitals, he’s charged with shooting unnamed people and beating up on unnamed people, and they— nobody can interview them because they’re in unnamed hospitals. Now that’s most indeed strange. (Pause) “It was his report, the tailor’s report, in the unnamed hospital that brought police into— break into Newton’s apartment. Professor Mel Newton, Huey’s brother, said police uh, pla— plants— planted evidence of different kinds that they wanted in his apartment.” In other words, they planted things in the apartment. That’s what Professor Mel— what’s his name? Mel Newton, the brother of Huey, says, who’s a professor of what? Merritt College. “It strikes me as a little strange that Huey and his 400-pound bodyguard would beat up a 57-year-old man”— (Pause) That’s what this newspaper says. I don’t know whether it strikes anybody else strange or not, but it— it might strike somebody strange. (Pause) —”for no apparent reason. The only thing we can figure is that police set the thing up in order to get into the apartment.” That’s makes good reason.
“He and Garry, the famous Bay [Area] attorney, view the charges as a part of a police — both local and federal — conspiracy to destroy such movements. What could they have found in that apartment to pin a 11-day-old shooting on Huey of an unnamed girl? What did they find in the apartment? Would he have kept his gun there, if he had done it? No.” This a— The suggestion is, a gun maybe was planted. “I don’t think Huey Newton would be so dumb enough to hold onto a weapon he had used on somebody.” That’s the—- what the uh, paper says. “Articles taken from the apartment included a .357 Magnum that no one can remember him ever owning, and a .45 caliber automatic that he’d never was seen with. Police also confiscated Newton’s passport” — some things I want you to dwell on, I’m about finished — “that attorney James Jensen wouldn’t tell— District Attorney Jensen wouldn’t talk about specifics in the case, because they are, uh, evidentiary matters.” Now, whatever that means. Man’s supposed to b— be innocent until found guilty, proven guilty, and they won’t even give you the evidence to prove him one way or the other. “Captain Bernard, who says he broke down and cried when Newton”— uh, Captain Bernard, by the way, is black. (Pause) “Captain Bernard, who says he broke down and cried when Newton’s murder conviction was overturned, said this time, we’ve got him cold. And he knows it. With Newton gone, there’s not much left of the old party, said the captain. They started out as a bunch of gun-toting blacks who hated whites”— That’s not true. They never did. That was never their slogan. “Even if they— if— Even if the guns are hidden now, that kind of program isn’t going to be able to sustain itself.”
Well, that’s it. And I wanted you to hear it. And fortunately, a third of the congregation stayed awake to hear it. (Pause) ‘Cause a third of the congregation is about the best you can ever count on to hear anything, whether they’re asleep or awake, it doesn’t make much difference. But at least tonight, a lot of folk were honest and just went to sleep, and still sleeping over there. Boy, I— you got a good snooze, they got three in one row.
Congregation: Laughter.
Jones: What do you notice? Anything you notice from that— that? We don’t have the kind of service often. Never have had this kind of service. What do you notice in there that’s dangerous signs, interesting signs? (Pause) Hmm?
Woman: (unintelligible) —movement’s stop. But we have news for them.
Jones: You better— That’s true. And they better— They better let it be known they have news for them. Obviously, they’re not as sure. You see, they kept whittling away. They got traitors in the Panthers. That’s why the enemies of the people that we’ve named before, like Swaneys and Cobbs that do these ugly things, even meeting tonight with some people. (Short laugh) I know their comings and goings. If they knew as much about themselves as I know about them, they’d be in good shape. (Pause) The difference is, Panthers were whittled away— ‘Course, we’re not on that kind of a course of violence or guns in the first place. But they were whittled away, little by little, by treason inside.
Scattered: Right.
Jones: Declension. Disinterest. Probably started as disinterest. Probably started as carelessness. (Pause) Indifference to their leader. Taking him for granted. Then, that built into outright disagreements and breakaways, and other movements, like Cleaver’s, claiming to be the true Panther movement. (Pause) Now— and sometimes maybe both Cleaver uh— maybe Cleaver was innocent, but he was being used. If you’ve got any ego, the fascists can use you. Anytime you break off from a movement that is good, like this movement, or any movement like this, and start another movement in its name, you are a traitor. Don’t make any difference what you think you’re doing, or why you’re doing it. You’re giving service to the enemy. I wouldn’t go far as to say Cleaver is a traitor, although it’s mighty strange that Cleaver is collecting royalties, setting in an all-white nation in France, that’s practically gone fascist, because James Baldwin had to get out of there. He was black. It is mighty strange that Cleaver comes and goes, and nobody’s after him tonight. And yet Newton is in all this trouble. And Newton got into trouble, started getting into more trouble, the day after he got back from China. (Pause) Took a trip to China, and came back and said it was heaven on earth. (Pause) Remember? And they tried to take his passport away from him at that time. And ever since then, he’s been in one serious incident after another. They set him up as trying to beat up on a policeman in a restaurant in July. They didn’t get by with that. They arrested several Panthers and said they had weapons, and the attorney got in and proved that was a lie, and they let ’em go the next day. (small burp) Excuse me. You remember that? They let ’em all out, the next day. Showed pictures of their weapons, and yet, they— all the charges were dismissed. If it’d been their weapons, the charges wouldn’t be dismissed, ’cause you don’t dismiss people when they’re keeping these uh, semi-automatic weapons. (Pause) Then that didn’t work, so they accused him of beating up a policeman— vice squad policeman, they were trying to set him up on a morals thing in an Oakland restaurant. (Pause) And that was temporarily taken care of, proven to be wrong. One of those policemen since, the Chronicle said, the one that arrested him, the vice squad, they were trying to prove something against him, made various assertions about his morals or (stumbles over words) him being a homosexual, and that kind of thing, that man was just last week arrested in uh, I think Montgomery Ward, for taking a five dollar tape. I always read the newspapers, instead of these stupid things that some of you people read about the Skygod.
Congregation: Murmurs.
Jones: That— and that— the arresting officer was black, too, an Uncle Tom, but he got picked up on a five dollar— ’cause the man [who] pick him up didn’t know who he was, and s— the process had already been started and he was in San Francisco instead of Oakland, if he’d been in Oakland, probably they’da covered for him, ’cause everybody covers for everybody, if you’re in the right place, but if you get out of your bailiwick, then you get in some trouble. So the security guard — wasn’t a member of the police department anyway — and he caught the officer. How many read it? It was in the newspaper. (Pause) I’m glad some others saw it besides me, ’cause I— That makes me feel better. How many hands again across the audience saw that the one that tried to set up him in July was arrested on stealing a five dollar tape measure? One thing I’ll never forget is anything pertaining to money, because I know how much it costs to try to get the Promised Land built. Horrible. So I— Somehow the money problems stick in my mind. But, what kind of a character is he? Stealing off of a little uh— a little tape measure, what— what kind of a person is he to be telling— accepting anything that he had to say about Mr. Newton? (Pause) I would presume that we would already be facing this, but that there are more of us than the Panthers, ’cause they whittled away the Panthers until there’s only about 900 of them. (Pause) But 900, or 800, some— (tape edit, silence for few seconds) to go after their leader. They found that safe range. (Pause) So our sister makes a good point. Any other points you see?
Woman: Ah, Father, uh, if Huey Newt— Newton wanted to uh, leave this country, I know that he wouldn’t leave his passport, because that would be one thing that he uh, would have to have.
Jones: Obviously. They do kind of trip themselves up, because his passport— they admitted they have taken his passport. If you’re going to run out of this country, you’re sure going to need a passport to get around. It’s not easy to get somebody to make a false passport, I’m sure.
Woman: And another thing, Father, uh, finally when a person, uh, when they arrest a person and they have paid their debt to society, why do they dig up all this trash, you know, and try to make them make them look worse, after they paid their debt to society?
Jones: We never pay a debt to society. The society manipulates the concentration camp members, all people who served in the concentration camps are always going to be manipulated by anything they have ever done or even imagined that they did. There’s no such thing as paying debt. You people ask me these questions why— why do they do something, after they paid a debt to society? There is no debt to society, in the first place. Society is evil. We have an evil society, and we have people who are done evil by society. The society is evil, so what are we talking about, a debt to society? What kind of a society is this that we pay a debt to? The only kind of society you can pay a debt to, is a family society, where everyone is treated fairly and justly. If everyone belonged to a society of a nation, where every member in that family is received and treated properly and given the same equal treatment, then you could talk about a debt to a society, a debt to a family. But in a society where Mr. Agnew’s [former Vice president Spiro Agnew] anniversary is yesterday, nothing’s been done to him, he’s making millions as a consultant, and he robbed the people blind in Maryland and in Washington, and got off, just by nolo contendre, not— not contesting, he got off, and he’s free, and Nixon’s [former President Richard Nixon] off, and he’s free. Now they’re talking about making him a roving ambassador and giving him all these special allowances, and I see that he has uh, the— the jury— the Justice Department today, it says, is defending him in several civil court matters, so he doesn’t have to pay for any legal fees. The United States Department of Justice is defending Mr. Nixon free of charge. And he’s got all these police protections free of charge. Two million and a half dollars worth of property, one property alone, free of charge. Four million dollars (unintelligible word— sounds like “over”) property, given to him by taxpayer’s money. Since he’s been in office, he’s got it all free, plus, a hundred— $860,000 annual income that has been whittled down somewhat, but still, it’s $300,000. (Pause) Now you can’t talk about a debt to a society when the leaders of the society can do anything they want to— (Pause) If the head of the house— If I’m the head of this house, I can do anything I want to, and you’re expected to do what’s right, there’s no debt to this house. You don’t owe this house anything. You don’t owe this family anything. If I don’t give more — and I certainly do — but at least, the leaders should give exactly what the rest of the people give in devotion and character and commitment, and if it’s not so, then that leader does not have— there’s no responsibility to that family, or to that organization or to that society. So there is no such debt to the society. The debt is to the poor people who are made victims of the society, who are not given jobs, who are deprived of opportunities, who are forced to be victims of the drug traffic.
That is again— today, I saw something on the news, to clear up the Mafia that’s got the control totally of all the drug traffic in America. So the debt is to those who are the victims of this society, not the society. But they’re not going to forget anything after you’ve once been in trouble with the law. They’re not going to forget anything, they’re going to use it constantly. And they’ll make up things if you don’t get in trouble. They set you up to be arrested if you haven’t been arrested. I know. Our people have been in more trouble getting our people out of trouble. And then they put me in there, trying to get our people out of trouble. So I know how it operates. But uh, I don’t know the latter part of your question, but let’s quit talking in terms of— I’ve heard that phrase meant— mentioned by others, a debt to society. Or they’ll ask me, is that fair? You know the society is not fair. No need to ask us if the society is fair. It’s a rotten, filthy, sick society. No use to talk about it being fair. It is not fair. All these Watergate crooks are walking the streets free, or playing down in Lompoc golf or tennis or with each other, whatever they’re doing. They’re down there, uh, doing their own thing, while people who take a loaf of bread are facing five-year sentences.
Scattered: Right.
Jones: (More forceful) So there is no justice in this society, so nobody can owe a debt to society, and that’s a brainwashed thing that the rich have poured into your heads, that we owe something to society. The only thing we owe to society is if it is a just, socialistic society. Then you owe something to it. If it’s not, you don’t owe anything to it.
Congregation: Applause.
Woman: Well, the reason I asked the question, Father, because I know they refer to that all the time, you know, you owe— you paying your debt to society. That’s the reason why I— I said—
Jones: I know, that— and that’s why you got to question all these phrases. My— my flag, my country, my God. You know, all these phrases they throw out, you got to question all of them, because they using them. Say, my country, right or wrong, you know. I love my flag. God and country. All those things need to be questioned. Just like the debt to society. That needs to be questioned. You don’t owe the society anything. The society owes something to you.
Congregation: Right. Scattered applause
Jones: Robbed you and all of your beautiful ancestors, and took you over from Africa against your will, and have you been in false imprisonment. They’re charging Huey Newton with false imprisonment. Now who in the world he’s supposed to have held in false imprisonment. I don’t know. He doesn’t have a prison, so I don’t know how he’d held anybody in prison. So they get him on that charge, too. Now, my friend, it would seem to me, that it [was] really we who have been brought here against our will should be given some pay for false imprison. Sometimes when they find someone’s been mistaken and accused and kept in— in for a crime that they didn’t commit, they’ll give them— the state will reimburse them. Well, then, it’s about time that the black people of America got reimbursed for 300 to 400 years of wages.
Congregation: Applause.
Woman: Well, if that would be the case, Father, they really should reimburse my son, because he spent time, and he wasn’t guilty.
Jones: Yeah, sure.
Woman: Thank you very much.
Jones: Your son and so many other precious sons are not guilty. (Pause) Any other observation? (Pause) Any other observation about oh, applications, I— I’d like to see applications that you can see parallels in our planning that you better be looking to. (Pause) (Warning tone) Some of you don’t have enough enthusiasm. The enemy’s going to come in like a flood. (Pause) And they’ll try something. They’ll try to kidnap your leader, think you won’t do anything about it. (Pause)
Woman 2: The planning—
Jones: And they’ll have to kill me, if they try to kidnap me, too, because bless their hearts, they’ll be some of them be gal— balded and galded before they get through with me.
Congregation: Applause and cheers
Jones: Now I— I get (draws out word) mighty nervous. I’m settin’ here, looking at a whole lot of folk again tonight, that I don’t know from nobody. And they’re settin’ here looking quiet. And they got some white ones. They look white, they obviously look white, and I got some black ones that are acting white, and— Either relax, honey, clap, or get yourself on the move, ’cause I’m not— I’m not interested in this mess tonight.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: I said it, I’m gonna say it one more time. Get— Get in here with us, and clap when we clap. You in Rome, you do as Romans do, or move out of here. I (unintelligible word) one more time, one more time. Or let’s just move up and down, move up and down the aisles. Move ’em out of here.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: I sure should not let this be. (Pause) (unintelligible word) right there, where they at, and tell ’em to move. (Pause) Who are you, sitting back there, black brother, even though you were with somebody buddy white, you’re still black. You clap too? I say, everybody clap again.
Congregation: Applause.
Jones: And there’s one back there not clapping. (Pause) Clapping down there underneath your pants. Get your hands up there and clap it like it ought to be clapped.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: (unintelligible word off mike) (Pause) Peace. Do really need to watch these people, they clap down there, they don’t want to be seen.
Woman 3: Uh-huh, that’s right. Shamed—
Jones: Talkin’ about a brother who’s done more in the East Bay to feed black people, get them jobs, job placement. Certainly, he doesn’t have the program to take care of the people that we do, the membership that we do, but he’s been conscientious, and nobody doing anything about it, he’s— (Pause) My inquiry was made this week to offer our assistance. Nobody had offered their assistance to his attorney, but Jones again. It’s pitiful, friend. That shows you. That shows you exactly where it’s going to be when we face any kind of problem. So we better get on with our program, and the best way to get on with our program, is to get gone from this bunch of idiots.
Congregation: Applause and cheers
Jones: Now they wouldna done that to us, you see. They’d like to’ve done it. We were preaching things long before these people ever come along. And they didn’t hold us no 36 months. They’ve let our people out, one by one. Charged them with one thing after another, let ’em out. Not got one in jail, hadn’t been let out. (Pause) ‘Course, some of these people like to go around fighting with police. That’s not where the argument is. The police are— I’ve tried talking to policemen outside tonight. (Pause) And when Professor [Edith] Roller had her purse shop— her purse, uh, snatched, and again it’s back, like it was the last time. She had it snatched at Hunter Point, I said, well, I, I— there’s something— there’s a charm runs around this place. I said, we’ll get it back. Wasn’t ten minutes till we had it back. And (stumbles over words) it was snatched, gone— long gone, but man brought it back to us, give us his name and address, brought it back to us. He was that kind. That’s twice it happened to her, and twice they brought her purse back to her.
Congregation: Applause.
Jones: Peace. (Pause) Like these boys got in the car one night when we were just opened our Temple, and they found out that my picture was on the ignition, and they came out (Gust of laughter)— came walking in here and brought the keys, and said, uh— they said uh— who was that? That was our brother back there, wasn’t it? Yeah. (Pause) And they brought— they wouldn’t take the car, because my picture was on the ignition.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: That’s why you should have these new plastic englazed membership cards with your picture. They’re very, very durable, and th— you need to turn the old ones in and get new ones. These are very fine. They’ll be good for your identification, they’d be good to get you out of some troubles if you were in— because we have work to get to know people. We’re not fighting with local police. And I know that there’ve been people who made that mistake in these various liberation movements. They’ll fight with local police. That’s stupid. You don’t start anything. People want to start it, then you work around to build the kind of ties so you can finish it, but you work on every level, avoiding even defensive violence. ‘Cause when you start it, it has a way of ending up in a great combustion. Well, I was talking to that policeman out there, I said, (stumbles over words) you know, we appreciate your helping our sister, and he took her over to the house to see that no one had even used the keys to get into her house. And I was talking to him about various things, and I got around to him, and I said you don’t have one of those vests, do you? I said, uh, chief up there in— a good friend of mine up in Ukiah, we got uh— we have uh, good friendship with him, and uh, he’s provided these vests for his people. I said, we gave a donation to it, it was a very small donation, but we gave a donation, to help get them their vests. He said the police don’t care nothing about us. He said, the establishment— city fathers don’t care anything about us. So he was getting the message. No use— no use to fight with him. You can quarrel with the local policeman, he— he getting the message. He’s getting understanding of what— what’s going on. He said, they don’t care anything about the little man. I had a little conversation out there, and he realized, he was a nigger, just like me. He was white.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Well, we got too many would-be revolutionaries who want to go around just lookin’ tough, and they make it hard for us who are really trying to win one.
Congregation: That’s right.
Jones: They make it really tough for us. These people want to look cocky, and swagger down the street, and smart off to “pigs” and that sort of thing, using those languages, which we never use. I don’t believe in labeling anybody, including policemen. We don’t like to be called niggers, except when we do it to each other friendly, so we should not call anybody a— a name. We should not be name-callers. But if you’re gonna win a revolution— we’d already been in messes like this, if we hadn’t built some ground contacts that have swelled up to pretty high places. And we’ve made some great sacrifices to get them. Some great sacrifices, that some of you have no idea, the sacrifices that some have had to me— Not— People first, I made them first. And then we’ve had others that have made great sacrifices, to give their body to save you, to give their body to open doors for you, to give their body to protect you. You don’t know the half of it. The half can never be told, unfortunately. So we have never had anyone— When they tried to railroad our people, all the powerful figures tried to do it, we got ’em out, just like I said I would. When they charged brother [Chris] Lewis with murder, and had him up with no hope, it didn’t look like, and the attorney said there’d no hope— told our attorney, said, there’s no hope. And everybody that came in and witness for him was arrested by the district attorney, this district attorney. But I got him out, just like I said I would. And I got everyone out that was arrested.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Just like I said I would. One man that showed brother Lewis some friendship, they arrested him, was going to take him to Texas, and I even got it stopped in Texas. That’s right. Got it stopped. Got the young man freed, and took care of him. While there was a contract out to kill him, he was staying in our property for months. Something to consider.
But we’re going to have to develop much more dedication, much more commitment, and it’s showing that we’re not giving of our resources, the offerings are dropping. Of course, there’s an economic problem. But we’re letting things drop. We let our in— we’re indifferent about getting into the church. We should always show our numbers, because our enemies judge the numbers that come in this door. [You] Say, I don’t like to go to church. Well, you won’t like to go to jail.
Congregation: That’s right.
Jones: ‘Cause you don’t get out of jail.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: At least when you come here, you know about the time you’re gonna go home. And you do get to go home. And we’ll even give you some food, usually afterwards. If you don’t have anything to eat, you can eat free here after any one of our big services. At least you can walk in here, and you can walk out of here, but honey, if they take you to jail, you won’t ever get out of there, so I expect you like church better than you do jail.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Not to mention such wonderful healing that they— they bring in things like this. (Pause) (Reading) Millie Ter— Millie uh, Holthouse turned on— on— off the TV in the hospital. Father’s face appeared, and your hand reached out in comfort to her through the TV. Your image was so bright, that the lady behind the TV asked her to turn the TV off again. In the morning when the tests that the doctors had taken were returned again, it was found that her diabetes was gone, no trace of surgery for the first time— no trace of sugar for the first time in decades. That’s tens of years. Heart nermal— heart normal for the first time in years. Thyroid normal for the first time in years. And she lost twelve pounds overnight.
One voice: Hey! Thank you.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Before— before this healing of me coming to her, holding my hand out to her, she was spending over a hundred dollars a month on drugs. No more. That’s Millie Holthouse, and this is the other attributes— the other attributes of being in this consciousness. Those attributes alone would make it worthwhile being here. But we should be here, because we are called to serve, that we are here to eliminate injustice, and to fight oppression. But all those blessings every night — and there’re more blessings turned in — but every night, those kind of blessings turned in. (Curious) Can you fathom that? Not by chance. Not by coincidence. (Voice rises) No way, honey. You could say, well, she didn’t see Father. Even the lady next to her did see the brightness in the TV, and asked her to turn it off. Even the lady next to her. But in the morning— here’s where the tale comes, here’s where the truth or lie is found out— In the morning, the diabetes was gone, for the first time in years. In the morning, her heart was normal, for the first time in years. In the morning, her thyroid was normal for the first time in years. In the morning, she found she’d lost twelve pounds after the nurse had weighed her.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: So we’ve got something better than Brylcreem. A little dab will do you, and it’ll do you (draws out word) all through your body, from head to foot, it’ll take care of your need. (Pause) So no nurses were joking with her in the morning. They might not have been believing her that night, even though she had testimony of th— someone in the very room, but by the morning, when the twelve pounds were gone, and the thyroid condition that she’d had for years was gone, and the sugar diabetes was gone, and the heart trouble was gone, by the morning, people believed her.
Congregation: Light applause
Jones: Well, we have not done that before. I wanted you to weigh this very seriously. (Ministerial cadence) You can keep it from happening only by being radically committed to the Christ that you have said is in your midst. There’s only one way you can stop this kind of thing from happening. That’s having an eternal devotion to your leader, an eternal devotion to the Christ that is your leader, eternal devotion to the family that gives you your strength and your health, to every one of the apostolic college and council, by giving your eternal devotion. Putting your whole strength on the altar of this holy temple, and giving your faith beyond any question, your resources beyond any reservation, giving your whole and undivided attention to this ideal. If you do that, then your enemies will not come near you. They will not risk it.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: But if you bicker and fight and quarrel amongst yourselves, and say unkind things to one another, and disrespect the office when it’s speaking, or move around and go to sleep, when your Savior is talking, or your Liberator is trying to give you the truth. When you don’t show that proper kind of attention, believe me, they’re observing. I just read to you that all these agencies are observing every organization. They’re observing them through photo lenses, they’re observing them through bugging, through electronic ear devices, they’re ob— they’re listening every moment of every day, they’re watching you, and they will wait to see just when they can break in and steal this Truth. If they can, they will break it and steal this Truth. But if you will stand fast, united together as one people, not at Jerusalem but in San Francisco, and on this whole West Coast of California.
Congregation: Applause.
Jones: Peace enough. When you are asked to bring food to serve this family as it builds here, and gets ready to build— so we can get finished here so they can go quickly to the Promised Land, when you’re asked to go visit some of our people that are in distress in the courts, or that they might be having some problem of health in some hospital, and you don’t go, as some of you have not gone, (Pause) when you do that, you’re inviting the enemy. You’re inviting the kind of opposition that will come, because they move against a m— an organization when they think that it is weak. But if they know that organization is strong — I’m telling you this is the truth — if they know that organization is strong, they’ll leave you alone.
Congregation: Applause and cheers.
Jones: You have to be fierce in your tenacity. You certainly have to be moderate in your undertakings in life and humble about your beliefs outside in the world and your work, you can’t impose your beliefs upon your job, but you’ve got to have a fanaticism that rings in your conversations to one another, a radical c— commitment and dedication that rings so loud, that people will know that if they deal with one, they have to deal with all.
Congregation: Applause and cheers.
Jones: Thank you. (Pause) It’s beautiful how we have been able to preach more, do more, ’cause we’ve done more than the Panthers to save this nation, ’cause you don’t know the half of it. We’ve put money to save Miss Davis [Angela Davis, University of California at Berkeley professor, member of Communist Party] and prophesied the moment she’d be saved. We’ve been the backbone of freedom in this land. We just stopped three from being executed in Carolina. We’ve done all sorts of things, from one part of this nation to another, to free the oppressed, and not one of us in jail tonight. It’s a miracle you better be thankful for.
Congregation: Applause and cheers.
Jones: (Quietens) Because when you lose your gratitude, and you lose your devotion, that could change from not one being in jail — for this cause, I’m speaking — to a hundred being in jail in five minutes. (Pause) Just when they think they can move. You’ve got to get devoted. And they judge it in a myriad— thousand ways. They see you so heavy that you can’t wobble, they’ll know you’ll not fight. You can’t push yoursail— yourself away from a table, they’ll know you’ll not stand up and resist the enemy, when it comes after your loved ones. (Voice rises, self-evident tone) They know all these things. They watched you, honey. (Quietens) The other day, when I spoke from the depths of my heart, it was pathetic, on Sunday, when there was such an anointing that healed so many lives. Oh, there were so many people that got really wonderful things done for them. Two of our people had loved ones taken out of prison by private revelations through this wonderful atmosphere. But people couldn’t get downstairs quick enough to push food in their face. And I think it’s a crime that’s allowed to be during service time, folk’ll be down there, settin’ there just— just simply— what do I want? What’s the word I want? There’s only one word that applies. Gorging themselves. Gorging themselves. I saw a man gorging himself earlier, you honestly put a hog to shame. (Pause) A hog wouldn’t have acted like you were, and the— here, up— upstairs, our sister was singing and trying to get the people inspired and a lovely chorus was going on, sitting down there gorging themselves. (Voice quickens, rises) Sure, it’s quiet. But the enemy notices all of that. Who is the enemy? The rich. The love of money is the root of all evil. Capitalism, the oppressive racism, that is your enemy, and they know your every move.
Congregation: Applause and scattered cheers.
Jones: And I know what it is. I don’t take a ride that I don’t see someone following me, (Pause) hoping they can find the moment they can do something. (Pause) But I’m pretty careful about my comings and goings. They won’t be able to get me in a restaurant to start a fight. That’s a cinch. Mr. Newton was in a restaurant. That’s why we need to do our eating together, and stay together more, so that they can’t say what you’re doing. You need to always have witnesses around wherever possible, so that they can— you can’t be accused of something. But in my work, that’s sometimes not possible, because I have other sheep which are not of this fold, and I have things to do which I’m going to make certain are done in case that you fail, I will have made a record, because when they read about me in the newspapers, they’re going to be hard-pressed, my friend, not to mention some other things that you don’t know anything about. (Pause)
Congregation: Scattered applause
Jones: In other words, I’ve done something for liberation, and I’m doing something every day for liberation. I’m standing up for America every moment, for the people that make up America, and it’s the poor. It’s the poor and the oppressed that make up America. And I’m doing something for them. And I take risks for what I do. [You] Say, why do you talk about it so publicly? They all know about it now. And you don’t know what I’m talking about. Only a few of you. And so it’s good that I can feel that whatever happens, I am ready. I am ready to be offered up, or I am ready to go on and serve you, but I am ready to be offered up, because I have gotten a few things done for freedom, before there was any Panthers, or before there were any other of these so-called groups working for justice and liberation, I have been fastly at work. So anything you read in the newspaper, if you read some things you don’t understand, you can believe that it might be an element of truth in it. (Pause) If you hear anything about me being a cocaine user, or like they’re trying to make on Mr. Newton, a sexual deviate, you don’t want to believe that, ’cause that’ll be a lie. But if you read some other things that have been done for justice and freedom, where no one’s ever been endangered, no life or person has ever been endangered by violence, you may well believe it, ’cause they mix a little bit of truth in these newspapers, just enough to try to convince people that they’re telling the truth. Just enough. But most of the things that I’ve read to you tonight silently, quietly from my heart, there’s an air of distress going out every moment as I even discuss other things. The terror that a man can be done away with like this, removed a great soul potentially, removed, and nobody does anything about it. (Pause) That’s why we have to look after each other. That’s why we must be first taking care of the household of the faith. Whatever we do, first, the household of the faith. Shift yourself, please. (Long pause) Now will you please, from the depths of my heart to yours (tape edit)
—two presidents of university. Day before that, it was a general. Blown up— it showed his picture in the streets. These are white people killing white people. They all speak the same language in Argentina. They call themselves anti-Communist that [are] doing all this murder. They’re murdering university professors also run up to our area. Ran into Venezuela for refuge. (Distracted) Folksinger ran into refuge— I can tell who’s with me back there. Don’t think I don’t know who’s with me. And who’s with me is who’s with socialism, and who’s against me is against socialism. That’s the way I judge it.
Congregation: Applause.
Jones: So I guess I haven’t been too wrong about the area of our direction, and whether we’re Venezuelan or what we are, uh, Guyanese, won’t make any difference, because all those that are seeking sanctuary— (Aside) Thank you, that’s very good and wise, elevation when I turned to the side, it’s very thoughtful of those in the speech control room— (Addresses congregation) Seems that we’ve made a very good selection to be in that part of the world, because that’s where all those that are in danger are running. ‘Cause they’re happy to get out of Argentina. Two professors had to get out of Argentina, and two more university presidents had to get out, and a folksinger, and two actresses and an actor ran, and they all went to that area of the world, right where we are at, where Jonestown is, just a few miles from there. (Pause) They know they can’t be safe in Argentina. [You] Say, oh, there no trouble here, no trouble. You haven’t even begun to see trouble. When blacks and Chinese are so stupid— it’s the stupid Chinese that have started it— the stupid Chinese over here think they’re superior, and start an argument with black people, and get a war going between Chinese and black— This is insane. I mean, this is insane. Galileo High School having to be patrolled and policed, and the white people, the rich white, just sit back and laugh. Just laugh at us fools. Chinese— what was it, Chinese that get up and shot the black person, and vice versa? Not— but a few months ago, just come right up, point blank, shot somebody right in the face. Three Chinese youth that shot a black man — you remember — setting in a filling station. Pow, blew his face open. This country with all of its racial minorities is going to make Argentina look like a Sunday school afternoon restful outing, because when you get people who are the same color killing each other— the same thing in Ireland, same freckled people killing each other, over nothing more than the Catholic religion, one of them wants Catholic, and the other wants Baptist and Presbyterianism. But they’re whites killing whites. And now, Scotland, wanting to withdraw from England— Everybody’s growing into themselves. In a socialist world, everyone’s going together, and it seems in the capitalist world, everybody’s pulling apart. Fast. Scotland’s been a part of Great Britain for a thousand years, hundreds of years. And now they’re dividing, and bombs going off every day in England. They don’t know whi— which England— Englander’s killing the other Englander. Today, they thought the Scots were doing it, but Scottish, British, Irish, English, they all look alike. They all look alike. All talk alike. Jews and Arabs, as I said, they all look alike. Came out of the same religion, same nutty religion, Abraham, they all call Abraham their father. Jews and Arabs ready to murder each other. Any moment, they say, the war will break out again. And they’ve tortured some of the people there in the Palestine area till it’s ridiculous, the things that’ve been done. People the same color.
So why don’t they do it here? Because we are the imperial giant. We have had— ro— we have robbed all these others countries more than anybody else, and we still have a little reserve left. There’s not as much deprivation or hunger that’s hit us yet. But wait’ll joblessness hits us. Wait’ll it hits us like it is in England, where you can’t get any toilet paper, you pay four dollars and eighty cents a pound for beef, and you make $35 a week. Wait! And when it does, then there’ll be so much hell in this country— Anybody doesn’t have to know anything about economics. Just study what I just said. Just study. Argentina, all whites killing whites. (Pause) So-called anti-Communist killing these people that are speaking out for a better government that wants more socialism, that wants more justice. And they’re all white. But every day, somebody’s getting murdered. And it’ll happen here before long. [Nixon National Security Advisor Henry] Kissinger has had plenty people murdered in Chile. He almost got it today, by an accident. (Pause) His own machine gun fell off, and almost shot him. Shot his bodyguard. Looks like the elements even crying out occasionally. So many times they seem to be crying out in favor of the oppressor. But you read in the paper today, in Damascus— (Aside) Thank you— (Addresses congregation) the uh, the Damascan situation which, as you read, he nearly got shot. He was only 20 foot away from his machine gun. I do not wish to see him shot, but I do know that justice one day will come to people like him, who have sent all that millions of dollars down to Chile to murder and torture those people. And every day, they’re being tortured more and more. So we better get with it, friends. We better get with it. And you can show me whether you’re with it now at this moment, by taking— (tape edit)
Like a father to mother. You’re lucky.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Who else will give 100— (tape edit)
And I don’t appreciate it a little bit. You want me to get you out of jail or to save you, you ought to put down your income. You won’t do it. Only half of this people at best will put down what— how much money they make each month, or what their pension is. (Pause) You want my time when you’re in trouble. So I ought to know what your income is, so I can make plans on what we should do with this project or that project. And you there, getting a fixed income, you should put it down, every time, I told you, so we can reappraise how much money we’ll have that will be stable when we get to the Promised Land, ’cause we’re getting food there, we’re getting housing, but we need to have a stable fixed income, so if we had to move quickly, we could move at the snap of the finger. You don’t know how quick you’ve come to moving with a snap of the finger Wednesday night. (Clears throat) (Pause) So you be ready. (Pause) Put down on the envelope what you make. But another woman, another person in this building, got stole this week, they wanted me to do something about it, you got conned out of seventeen hundred dollars on your person. Ripped off. Your family came in, their relatives come in and ripped ’em off right there, one— one of their children– ripped ’em off, had somebody else working with him, got seventeen hundred ripped off, and they think I ought to do something about it? I’m not even interested.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Anybody settin’ in here with $1700 on their body, and didn’t give it to this cause, you ought to take a look at Professor Roller and some others who have not gone through that. And that ought to be a good warning, because if I hadn’t loved you, they might have ripped your throat. It’s a miracle they didn’t rip your throat.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Because you knew who they were. All the secretaries know about it, all the callers here know about this situation, the main callers of how— the situation, uh— Don’t put that on me. If you got $1700 when we’re trying to save this house, and you got it all over your person, naturally you’re taking a chance it’s gonna be cut off. You deserve it. (Pause) That’s terrible to keep $1700 back, and with them knowing who you were, and you knowing that they knew you knew who they were, you can only thank your father that your throat didn’t get slit.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: (Aside) Hmm? What’s that? (Addresses congregation) Yeah, sure. (Pause) (unintelligible word) —ten. I need several of you to give ten, friends. (Tape edit, silence for five seconds)
—supposed to be in the new culture, beaten that man. He’da been beat to death, if the police hadn’t got there. (Pause) So the police are not our enemies. They were the only thing that defended him in that instance. Lot of them don’t know who they’re working for, they don’t realize that they’re representative of the people, but you shouldn’t be antagonizing police or anyone else. We should stay on the defensive. (Pause) You understand what I mean by the defensive? But if the police hadn’t got through to that black man— Blood was rolling out of his eyes, his ears, and his nose and his mouth, they’d beaten him so badly. Thirty-two year old man, picking up his little daughter. And I saw it on the TV— I just happened to turn the TV on, ’cause I get little time to watch it, and I wasn’t even in my home, but I turned it on to see that horrible scene. And then it was on the front page of the— your newspaper, the Chronicle, the front page all over the newspaper. (Pause) So how many’ll help us? You s— You heard me say we’re under what we need to be, so how many will give a dollar to get us out of our troubles, to— (tape edit) (unintelligible word) give three tonight, if you can possibly afford it, give it tonight. ‘Cause I can’t get it out of my mind, that little phrase. (Pause) All right, that’s fine. Now give your change in the— (tape edit)
A log fell on him, rolling, it would have crushed him, they called on me, no harm came to him in the Promised Land.
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Anthony Simon walked over a twelve-inch hole and was literally kept up by me, as there was nothing under him to support him from going down in—
Congregation: Applause
Jones: — to a hole that would have caused him to fall to his death. Hmm? You hear what I said?
Congregation: Applause and cheers
Jones: “We got all that going for us, besides the things we need to do to save people’s lives. (Pause) The boat will soon be ready to leave, please help Father,” says Sister [Paula] Adams, “for your offerings, because the expenses are getting so great, it’s so costly to get everything that we have to get outside the country.” (Pause) “Due to Father, we have been accepted by all we have met, from the top governmental officials to the farmers and workers, and it’s only because of the character and principle that Jim Jones lives alone, every day of his life, that such a remarkable feat was accomplished. I see government officials frequently, and believe me, this is no common courtesy offered just to anyone. It took Father alone, or there would be no Promised Land. No land of hope. Jim Jones is the Land of Hope, and without his guidance, I hesitate to think at what state our lives would be in today.”
Congregation: Applause
Jones: “I would be dead. And yet worse, if I had my life to live without him. The housing in J— site at Jonestown is moving along, it’s surrounded by tall trees, beautiful green w— vegetation and wild flowers of every variety, exotic, colorful birds, sweet, trickling freshwater streams, the gentle native inhabitants and best of all, the spirit and protection of Jim Jones is with us every day. Every day, we’re protected from every kind of harm. We have had countless miracles happen to us. I would not be able to tell them all. Brother Frost.”
Congregation: Applause
Jones: Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
Scattered: Amen.
Jones: The rest of them are self-analysis, they— they tell me their faults. And I think that’s beautiful. They do that from the Promised Land. Every week, they send me their faults, and where they needed to be stronger. I think we all ought to do that, even here.
Scattered: That’s right.
Jones: (Pause) Shift, please. (Pause) Here’s a quote I’ve been telling you about, foundations for years. There are now estimated 25,000 so-called foundations operating in the United States, non-profit foundations. The 33 largest foundations, each of which has its— assets exceeding a hundred million, account for the bulk of the twenty billion dollars of total assets of all 25,000 foundations. In theory, foundations are created to do good deeds, like Reverend Ike and Reverend [Oral] Roberts, and Reverend Kathryn Kuhlman, by making grants and helping to raise money to fight disease or to missionorize the world, and so forth. In actual practice, says the Teamsters International magazine, however in actual practice, it has long been recognized that the foundations are operated more or less as private banks for the rich in a system which saves them money at tax time.
Congregation: Murmurs, then applause
Jones: Bless you. It’s a quarter of 12. We have some counseling to do just before bus time. I presume everyone has been told that are due to be seen by me. (Pause) Will you hold the hand of your neighbor as I write down emergency matters? (Hums)
(Organs starts to play softly) (Tape edit)
—the secretaries can do this (tape edit)
—even of cancer in this room. By me. How many have been— (tape edit)
Whose name is Sue Ellen? Step over to my right, please. (Pause) (Hums) (tape edit)
—(unintelligible word) Is your mother’s name Sally?
Woman: Yes.
Jones: Hands clasped. (Pause) Keep her hands clasped, please. (Pause) You’ve told me nothing about your life, is that correct?
Woman: That’s right.
Jones: Did you lose someone dear to you in a fire?
Woman: Yes.
Jones: Same— Same name as my— one of my sons? Stephan.
Woman: Yes.
Jones: Hands clasped.
End of tape
Tape originally posted January 2002