{"id":28112,"date":"2013-06-16T00:18:24","date_gmt":"2013-06-16T00:18:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alternativejonestown.com\/?page_id=28112"},"modified":"2023-08-01T15:49:32","modified_gmt":"2023-08-01T22:49:32","slug":"273-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/?page_id=28112","title":{"rendered":"Q273 Summary"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary prepared by Fielding M. McGehee III. If you use this material, please credit The Jonestown Institute. Thank you.<\/strong><\/i><\/p>\n

To read the Tape Transcript, click here<\/a>. Listen to MP3 (Pt. 1<\/a>, Pt. 2<\/a>).
\nTo return to the Tape Index, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

FBI Catalogue<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jones Speaking<\/p>\n

FBI preliminary tape identification note: <\/strong>Labeled in part \u201c7-1-78 Peoples Rally\u201d<\/p>\n

Date cues on tape:<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Tape contents consistent with note<\/p>\n

People named:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Public figures\/National and international names:<\/em>
\nVivian Davis, sympathetic relative<\/p>\n

Temple adversaries; members of Concerned Relatives:<\/em>
\nDebbie Layton Blakey
\nJim Cobb
\nWade and Mabel Medlock
\nKathy Hunter, reporter for Ukiah Daily Journal<\/em><\/p>\n

Jonestown residents, full name unknown:<\/em>
\nKaren, likely Karen Layton
\nMarcie, \u201cname of your mother\u201d (most likely Marcia Ann Simon)<\/p>\n

Jonestown residents:<\/em>
\nRheaviana Beam
\nJim Arthur Jones
\nMarceline Jones
\nLarry Schacht
\nJohn Victor Stoen
\nBobby Stroud<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Bible verses cited:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what Paul<\/em> said. You should give your body as what? That was a socialism remote to some of our present day communists<\/em>. He said you should present your whole<\/em> body as a living sacrifice, wholly and acceptable to your<\/em> God. And what is your God? Communism.\u201d (Romans 12:1, \u201cI beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.\u201d)<\/p>\n

“A proverb come to me, Oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how oft I\u2019da gathered you under my wings like a hen doth her brood, and you would not. How much I try to protect you, how much I try to build, but if you don\u2019t help yourself, there\u2019s nothing I can do. \u201c (Matthew 23:37, \u201cO Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!\u201d)<\/p>\n

Summary:<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are a few items of general business to attend to during this Peoples Rally in Jonestown in early July 1978 \u2013 the community needs to consider the criteria for choosing a general administrator for the settlement; and there are crop reports to review \u2013 but the majority of this tape is a Jim Jones monologue detailing a list of complaints he has. Seeking little engagement from the crowd assembled before him, Jones speaks in alternately weary, petulant, self-pitying, and angry tones about everything he has to endure as their leader. Among the things he has on his mind:<\/p>\n

\n

\u2022 He has special dietary needs for his work that requires him to eat a lot more protein than other people in Jonestown. He wishes he could eat the way that they do \u2013 \u201cI\u2019m so sick of flesh, that I don\u2019t even want to look at it\u201d \u2013 but all folks seem to want to do is complain about what they have. The problem really arises in the kitchen, though, that some of the people who prepare his special diet feel that gives them license to eat the same, but they can\u2019t.<\/p>\n

\u2022 There is a perception of racism in the kitchen, that whites are out front serving and the blacks are in the back, cooking and preparing the food. He orders an immediate change, and says he doesn\u2019t care if they like the change or not. \u201cI know you don\u2019t like me,\u201d he grouses. \u201cI don\u2019t give a shit, principle\u2019s<\/em> all that matters to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022 This complaint goes to deeper issues, though, in that people won\u2019t take responsibility for making decisions, \u201cbecause you don\u2019t want to be hated.\u201d He knows he\u2019s the one who has to make all the decisions, but everybody is flooding him with problems. People bring him reports that are too long and that arrive too late, even while he is fighting administrative battles stateside.<\/p>\n

\u2022 There are tangible results of the hatred being expressed towards him, and they are most apparent in Redwood Valley, where black people are no longer safe. \u201cTo suit their own vendetta of hate towards me, they will risk every black person\u2019s safety<\/em> in the whole of Sonoma, Northern California, Mendocino County, or anybody going through<\/em> there on their way to Washington.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

The source of his anger percolates to the top later in the meeting, when he laments the fact that he \u201cdied\u201d on his previous birthday, an image he brings up several times in rapid succession. Six weeks earlier, on May 13, Debbie Layton Blakey defected after he resisted her sexual advances. He had saved her from drugs and debauchery until it caused him physical pain, but she chose that day to betray him. \u201cAt that point I gave up that you could communicate goodness. I don\u2019t know whether any<\/em> of you are ever gonna understand me, and I don\u2019t know whether it\u2019ll ever be possible<\/em> for anybody to get the good that I have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now she\u2019s in the US telling lies about Jonestown and \u2013 more hurtfully \u2013 about him. Between the press coverage of her departure and the lawsuits that have been filed against the Temple, he has no peace.<\/p>\n

Under normal circumstances, he would be willing to turn himself over to their enemies, and let them do to him what they will. Despite the name of the group organized against them \u2013\u00a0Concerned Relatives \u2013 their attacks on Jonestown\u2019s communications and financial resources show they aren\u2019t concerned about the well-being of their relatives at all, and in fact, the real point of everything they\u2019re doing is to kill him.<\/p>\n

So why not save his people by letting their opponents have their way, and turn himself over to them in exchange for peace? \u201cI know that\u2019s not feasible<\/em> because the place won\u2019t function<\/em> now. But I sure wish it would.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, they all have to stand up to their opponents. Even in that battle, though, he is alone. To those Jonestown residents who point out that their own relatives are not part of the opposition, Jones points out that neither are those relatives among the handful who resist Concerned Relatives. \u201cHow many of your relatives have written you offering to stand up against them? How many of your relatives have written offering to write the press on our behalf?\u201d he asks rhetorically. \u201cIf you\u2019re not<\/em> of [the Concerned Relatives group], you should be against<\/em> it.\u201d<\/p>\n

And why do these relatives hate him so much in the first place? \u201cIt\u2019s Jim Jones that showed them themselves. It\u2019s Jim Jones that made them have to face themselves. It was Jim Jones that made them have to take a look<\/em> at themselves. That\u2019s<\/em> what killing them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The result is, he has to stay and take care of them. He\u2019s been a slave to the cause and to his people all his life. Even the slaves depicted in the TV miniseries Roots<\/em> had it better than he has it. \u201cThat may sound hard for you to deal with, but nothing I saw in that picture is as horrible as what I\u2019ve had to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moreover, he is the only one who can claim that kind of pain. The people of Jonestown are so selfish, they will never work as hard as he does. And when he himself takes a break, they think it\u2019s okay for them to take a break. His disdain for them is universal in scope. \u201cBillions have gone before you, suffered so far more than you, that you have no reason to complain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next to this litany, the other aspects of the tape are minor. The only other apparent agenda item for the evening is discussion of the qualifications for a new position of Chief Administrative Officer, who will be able to relieve him of some of his burden. The subject arises several times, as Jones reviews the qualifications necessary for the position. All of these criteria seem to reflect his own unique talents, as he defines them. \u201cI\u2019m saying you people better develop some leadership, but for 47 years, I\u2019ve sacrificed sacrificed sacrificed sacrificed.\u201d The tape ends before anyone offers a candidate who could rival Jones himself.<\/p>\n

The weariness, the sense of betrayal he feels, all head towards a climax towards the end of the tape. He is not going to make the decisions for what other people should do if their \u201ctrial ever came\u201d (although he leaves the word \u201ctrial\u201d undefined). He doesn\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen, or how they should respond as a group, but then says, \u201cI don\u2019t know anything but the fact that everybody dies\u2026 Everybody has to go through pain and suffering and death. So why not make it for a revolutionary purpose, a beautiful goal, something that makes us above the animals, \u2018cause there\u2019s no way around the suffering.\u201d A few moments later, as the tape comes to an end, he laments how much he has done for his thousand followers and adds, \u201cI\u2019ve gone a long way, and I\u2019m entitled to some peace.\u201d<\/p>\n

FBI Summary:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Date of transcription: 6\/11\/79<\/p>\n

In connection with the Federal Bureau of Investigation\u2019s investigation into the assassination of U.S. Congressman LEO J. RYAN at Port Kaituma, Guyana, South America, on November 18, 1978, a tape recording was obtained. This tape recording was located in Jonestown, Guyana, South America, and was turned over to U.S. Officials in Guyana and subsequently transported to the United States.<\/p>\n

On May 30, 1979, Special Agent (name deleted) reviewed the tape numbered 1B93-20. This tape was found to contain the following:<\/p>\n

Rev. JIM JONES\u2019 presentation to PT members in Jonestown, Guyana, about the problems of the community. JONES talks about revolutionary death and dying at 22 minutes into the tape. He continues to talk about \u201ccommitting suicide over his child as is his right to do.\u201d JONES admonishes the people \u201cto raise a lot of hell if anybody comes for him, JOHN or anybody else then raise a lot of hell\u201d. This was at 24 minutes into this tape. Tape ends with JONES in mid-sentence claiming that \u201cnone of them that they have come for were any of his relatives, other than his adopted\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

Differences with FBI Summary:<\/strong><\/p>\n

The summary is accurate and meets the FBI\u2019s purposes.<\/p>\n

Tape originally posted June 2012<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary prepared by Fielding M. McGehee III. If you use this material, please credit The Jonestown Institute. Thank you. To read the Tape Transcript, click here. Listen to MP3 (Pt. 1, Pt. 2). To return to the Tape Index, click here. FBI Catalogue\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jones Speaking FBI preliminary tape identification note: Labeled in part \u201c7-1-78 Peoples Rally\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"parent":27996,"menu_order":133,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-28112","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28112"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28112\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":123627,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28112\/revisions\/123627"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/27996"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}