25th Anniversary Reflections and Observations

The articles below offer a wide range of perspectives on the life of Peoples Temple, the deaths in Jonestown, and the 25 years that have passed. All were written by former members and relatives of the people who died. While each individual story brings a powerful voice to any consideration of the events of 18 November 1978, their totality contributes to an even more important – if sometimes cacophonous – body of work. For that reason, these stories represent the foundation for an online collection of perspectives which we hope will grow over the years.

We invite other members and families of Peoples Temple – whatever your views on the tragedy of Jonestown and the factors that led to its end – to join in this chorus. Contact us at remoore@sdsu.edu so that we may add your story.

1. Drinking the Kool-Aid by Mike Carter
2. The Big Grey by Tim Carter
3. Reflections by Gene and June Cordell
4. The Voice by Vern Gosney
5. Patti Chastain Haag – A Remembrance by Michael Haag
   1. Shade by Patti Chastain Haag (1992)
6. Linda Harris: A Remembrance by Virgil Miller
7. A Different Course by Laurie Efrein Kahalas
8. A Temple Member’s Odyssey by Laura Johnston Kohl
9. The Longest Twenty Years by Bryan Kravitz
10. Questions That Remain by Garrett Lambrev
11. Who Guided My Life? by Hattie Newell
12. Remembrances by Janet Shular
13. From Koolaid to Lemonade: Reflections on the Emperor Who Had No Clothes, by Andy Silver
14. Four Years of Utopia, Then Prison! by Neva Sly
15. To the Survivors of Peoples Temple by Tim Stoen
16. Reflections on Leaving the Temple by Vera Washington
17. 25 Years Hiding from a Dead Man by David Parker Wise
18. The Trauma of Marriage to a Temple Survivor
19. Larry Layton and Peoples Temple: Twenty-Five Years Later by Frank Bell
20. The Anniversary Syndrome by Jeff Brailey
21. Jonestown Tragedy Touches “Normal” Family by Roger Stacy