{"id":31904,"date":"2013-07-25T16:46:25","date_gmt":"2013-07-25T16:46:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alternativejonestown.com\/?page_id=31904"},"modified":"2022-10-29T15:44:51","modified_gmt":"2022-10-29T22:44:51","slug":"barbour","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/?page_id=31904","title":{"rendered":"Were We Special? Are We Still?"},"content":{"rendered":"<style type=\"text\/css\"><!--\n\ntable, caption, tbody, tfoot, thead, tr, th, td {\n border: 1px solid #c8a873 !important;\n border-collapse: none !important;\n padding: 7px !important;\n vertical-align: middle;\n}\n\n--><\/style>\n<p><b>Were we special? <\/b>That is, were we in Peoples Temple more progressive, caring, humanistic and revolutionary than others? We were often told we were. I found it easy to believe. It seemed obvious, in fact, and was reinforced by the reactions of guests and visitors who all seemed inspired by our ardent integration, impassioned focus and seeming unanimity of purpose. It won us many friends and effectively steamrolled any potential doubters and detractors among the observers.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">Of course, what visitors saw was a well-rehearsed show, with various members posing both as the needy and those who were serving them. When the guests left, life resumed: the multi-layered, humming, monumental enterprise that was Peoples Temple. There were echelons, but they seemed unavoidable. Within the collective, the ardent integration and impassioned focus did not flag, but turned to the frenetic (and sometimes frantic) pace of being an integral part of a large family. (To give credit where it is due: It fell to Cecil Williams, whom Jim often derided, to actually deliver on the promise to feed, house, employ and minister to those who were really in desperate need, as he is still doing at Glide Memorial Methodist Church in San Francisco\u2019s Tenderloin.)<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">The assumption that we were special, chosen, called to activism, was without doubt another brick in the wall of insularity that we managed to build, even as we directed our concerted actions upon the world outside. This was especially so after 1974, when the membership jelled, and the visitors who came each Sunday were patiently \u201cgreeted\u201d for hours in the floor below the service until it was over or they gave up and left. Our specialness was only one of many secrets to be kept: that Jim was God (however you chose to interpret or rationalize that, it was not to be questioned); that we were communists posing as Christians; that \u201cthey\u201d (the CIA) were after us, and their infiltrators were in our midst&#8230;<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">On a personal level, there were many rewards in the day-to-day intensity of living in close quarters \u2014 by and large platonically \u2014 with this rich and varied group. Our urgent, ongoing labors to target and maximize our impacts transcended surface differences and made the outside world\u2019s attractions pale in comparison. We were obsessive about economy. Anyone reading this who remembers each communal member\u2019s monthly allowance of $8 will agree. Yet we were rich, not only because our immediate needs of food, housing, education and medical care were met, but because we were fully engaged in speeding toward a glorious future in which we would make the difference. We <i>would<\/i> change the world, we were sure of it. Talk about being empowered! We were sure that, together, we could do anything. And when Jim said, as he often did, that one day the members of his church would dwindle to the number that originally met in his garage in Indianapolis, it was my only desire (wasn\u2019t it everybody\u2019s?) to be one of them.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\"><b>Fast forward to 2006. <\/b>The outside world, at least, has not faltered in just one respect \u2014 remember, there were no homeless on the streets then \u2014 but rather, it has fulfilled every dire prediction that Jim ever made about the dangers of the capitalist system and the impending descent into fascism. With the fine irony that often attends reality, the airtight garage is now the US, and the slavish devotees of the current president are said to have \u201cdrunk the Kool-Aid.\u201d This against the background of a populace ostensibly benumbed or befuddled, but at least predictably distracted: the Divided States of America.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">I periodically wonder, when thinking of other survivors, where they have come to rest on their own power, in their own propensities. Where on the spectrum of political thought and\/or action are they? Have they eschewed all politics as suspect, attempting to blend seamlessly with the many who hasten to describe themselves unselfconsciously as \u201cnonpolitical\u201d?<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">As to any remaining illusion of specialness, it must have been jettisoned immediately after November 18, 1978, as condescending, if not ridiculous or even repugnant, as we scrambled for footing in the outside world we had once scorned. My informal tracking showed an almost uniform relaxation into previous habits, patterns, learning\/earning ability, and political involvement as was true prior to our Temple lives, with some notable exceptions. And since my own conversations with some have indicated their politics are now the polar opposite of mine, I ask your tolerance and theirs, to inquire once again, were we special? Were we <i>made<\/i> special in those years spent under Jim\u2019s teachings?<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">Let\u2019s consider just a couple of examples. Take 9\/11: can any of us forget the searing testimony of Chilean refugees who spoke to us of the torture they endured following that <i>other<\/i> 9\/11, the overthrow of Salvador Allende\u2019s government, single-handedly orchestrated by the CIA, as subsequent revelations have confirmed. Or Hurricane Katrina\u2019s laying waste not just a city, but national confidence in the government to deal with catastrophes. We knew, thanks to Jim \u2013 or should have known if we were listening \u2013 that FEMA, reinvented by Carter in the eighties as a disaster relief agency (to eclipse its sordid past), was all about building concentration camps for black people, not saving them.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">I\u2019d love to see a forum where we could share our current attitudes, opinions and takes on life today. One starting point could be the question: \u201cHas the effect of 11\/18\/78 affected your desire to participate in political advocacy?\u201d Offer the following multiple-choice responses, and a large field for comments:<\/p>\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\">\n<tbody>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" rowspan=\"3\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>Statement<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" colspan=\"5\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>+ Response &#8211;<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>Totally Agree<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>Agree Somewhat<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>Huh?<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>Disagree Somewhat<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><b>Totally Disagree<\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">1<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">2<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">3<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">4<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">5<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">Identify as progressive<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"center\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">Identify as conservative<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">More spiritually than politically inclined these days<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">Would not want to influence anyone<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">Try to stay abreast of news and current events<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">May have opinions, but keep them to myself<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"344\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">Once burned, twice shy. Plus, your categories suck.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"40\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"32\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" width=\"49\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr align=\"left\" valign=\"top\">\n<td style=\"padding-left: 7px; padding-right: 7px; border: 1px solid black;\" colspan=\"6\">\n<div style=\"text-indent: 0pt; margin-left: 0pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 0pt; line-height: 150%;\" align=\"left\"><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\">Comments: <\/span><span style=\"font-family: 'Times'; font-size: 12pt;\"><i> \u2026<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p align=\"left\">I invite you to let me know if you think this would be a worthwhile endeavor. If you do, this website has offered space for such a forum.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">I have had periodic encounters with former PT members, outside the Rainbow Coalition headquarters in 1983, for instance, or across the auditorium at another gathering for the same campaign. Laura, always a friend, has found welcoming and astute friends, and a new, loving husband and family, among the Quakers. I wonder if they miss \u2014 as I did in my intermittent attempts to become active in Amnesty International, in anti-apartheid committees, and most recently with the Gray Panthers \u2014 the tightness and discipline that made us sure we were such a force for change in the Temple. Do they miss the vital connection that ensured we could devote ourselves to actions without having to make room in busy lives and conflicting schedules? Do they remember when our lives <i>were<\/i> the actions. This is a far cry from the weak and oblique connection that is felt by participants at a rally or a vigil, who are either strangers, or casual acquaintances, there for the best of reasons, but living private lives to which they are anxious to return, whose participation may be requested, but cannot be required. It\u2019s then, and at all those moments demanding immediate, strategic action and decisive follow-up, that I miss Peoples Temple the most. I ponder how different it could have been if they had not been killed, leaving a vacuum that seemingly no one can fill.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\"><b>Disclaimer.<\/b> I must admit here, I am prone to delusions of grandeur in contemplating the possibilities that might result from my own involvement, the flip side of which is absolute horror at my own impertinence. My zealous advice got people killed once, I reason, so I flake more often than not, even as I am passionate in seeking the pulse of the moribund body politic, or finding out what is really happening and, when I can\u2019t help myself, joining the fray, mostly verbally.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">Last year, on the heels of Leigh Fondakowski\u2019s play about PT, some felt reborn. There was general celebration that the sympathetic portrayal of our long-lost family (the entire script was composed of letters from Jonestown and other pre-Jonestown writings of PT members, in addition to more recent interviews with survivors) constituted a validation of their lives. It <i>was<\/i> healing to see them portrayed with such care and their deaths mourned in light of their great character, uniqueness and individuality. The play struggled to create understanding and, for a moment, it felt like redemption. However, sitting there in the theatre, I realized that it was too much to ask of the play, that all of that honesty could as easily be used to support a scathing condemnation of our efforts, and that if we wanted to redeem the dead, it would have to happen through <i>our<\/i> redefining Peoples Temple, which could only be accomplished by <i>we<\/i>, the living, regrouping and mounting an effective opposition to the neoconservative Christian right. A decade after November 18, 1978, a headline in a local news magazine charged that \u201cJonestown was responsible for the death of the left in San Francisco.\u201d It was an awful indictment, but it seemed true then and seems even more so today. So by extension, we could let the mantle of the left lie there, or we could take it up and breathe into it new life.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">Of course, it is a blatant presumption on my part to write as if the left that existed before, during and after Peoples Temple, and which has continued to argue, teach, advocate and work for change, were immaterial or nonexistent. (Even as the mass media environment over the same elapsed time has progressed from disapproving, to inhospitable, to today\u2019s ritual scrubbing of anything remotely resembling social consciousness.) However, PT\u2019s strength was that we were <i>crossovers<\/i>, activists (seemingly) by enthusiastic volition, purporting to represent a random, vibrant slice of humanity, with all the potential that implies to spark a popular movement for change. Was all of that only Jim Jones\u2019 well-crafted projection??<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\"><b>Is it time to regroup? <\/b>In recent months, I\u2019ve heard that the Temple community is experiencing a thaw, and that there is a joy and a solidarity in reunions large and small that are thrilling to see. These are not activist cadres reforming, just reunions of people who once had a great deal in common, and are renewing their acquaintances and finding unexpected joy in that simple process.<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">It is a healthy and a healing step; will any of us want to take it further? Our cooperative skills may have slipped into latency, but they were once a vital tool, which can be reforged and honed to meet the challenges of today, or perhaps simply to survive in a communal, sustainable environment, as some are reportedly contemplating, because it is a fulfilling lifestyle in and of itself. Indeed, simple survival in years to come may be a stronger motivator than altruism. The depredations of the Gang of Three (Cheney\/Bush\/Rumsfeld) have taken the US from world power to world pariah. The US\u2019s current headlong rush into financial instability should be a sobering prospect for all of us, especially in the wake of Hurricane Katrina (i.e., worst-case scenarios that can develop when your government really doesn\u2019t give a rat\u2019s ass).<\/p>\n<p align=\"left\">Were we special? No. That is the beauty of it. Like grass sprouting after winter snows, the consciousness we embraced has manifested far and wide, and may be clearest beyond our nation\u2019s borders, as the UN Security Council\u2019s session just ended which was unlike any other has proved. It has grown, matured and been improved on, been updated and become current. The challenge was never more immediate or crucial. The battle rages on, fought by others, now; it is not won, and may, by the time you read these words post-election, be set back by electronically thrown elections and other desperate means of the government by and of deception to ensure its death-grip on power. On the other hand, we <i>were<\/i> made special, by our unique experience of communal living, cooperating to achieve results, and therein finding a measure of security and fulfillment that many still miss. If you, dear reader, are one of them, please let me know.<\/p>\n<p><i>(Kathy\u00a0[Tropp] Barbour joined Peoples Temple in 1970 with her companion, Richard\u00a0Tropp, and was living in the San Francisco Temple on November 18, 1978. Her complete collection of writings for <\/i>the jonestown report<i> can be found <\/i><a href=\"http:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/?page_id=17042\"><i>here<\/a><\/i>.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Were we special? That is, were we in Peoples Temple more progressive, caring, humanistic and revolutionary than others? We were often told we were. I found it easy to believe. It seemed obvious, in fact, and was reinforced by the reactions of guests and visitors who all seemed inspired by our ardent integration, impassioned focus [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"parent":32001,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-31904","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31904","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=31904"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31904\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":118455,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31904\/revisions\/118455"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/32001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}