{"id":81159,"date":"2018-10-17T09:53:18","date_gmt":"2018-10-17T16:53:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/?page_id=81159"},"modified":"2026-02-27T16:24:06","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T00:24:06","slug":"peoples-temple-news-and-updates","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/?page_id=81159","title":{"rendered":"Peoples Temple in the News 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forty years after the deaths in Guyana, Peoples Temple and Jonestown continue to make the news on a regular basis.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Florida University Gives Funds to Communist Revolutionary Speaker<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Cliff Kincaid, The Epoch Times<\/em>, February 12, 2018<\/p>\n

Angela Davis, the \u201ccommunist revolutionary speaker\u201d who spoke before a packed house at Florida State University in February, \u00a0was the subject of protests by College Republicans, who \u2013 among other criticisms \u2013 attacked her for her support of Jim Jones and Peoples Temple during its final years in Guyana.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Church of Cannabis seeks sanctuary in RFRA; Hill asks court to rule for state<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Rob Burgess, The Indiana Lawyer<\/em>, January 10, 2018<\/p>\n

Lawsuits and countersuits between the state of Indiana and an Indianapolis group calling itself the First Church of Cannabis \u2013 first filed three years earlier \u2013 continue to battle over the definition of a church and how (or whether) \u00a0it is covered under state law. The case came to local attention when Indianapolis police chief Rick Hite compared the leader of the local group to Jim Jones<\/a>, who began his Peoples Temple ministry in that city 60 years earlier.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs Jim Jones once did in our state, he led a group of people into a place of no return,\u201d Hite said on June 26, 2015. \u201cWe don\u2019t want that to happen ever again in our history. And we want to send a message: This is not the way to challenge a law. And you certainly can\u2019t expect the police to stand by and watch it happen and not do something about it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Last Word: A Jonestown memorial at last<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Marshall Kilduff, San Francisco Chronicle<\/em>, November 17, 2017<\/p>\n

Thirty-nine years after his death, Leo Ryan was honored in Congress with the dedication of a congressional cloakroom. Rep. Jackie Speier \u2013 then Ryan\u2019s legislative assistant, now a representative \u2013 led the efforts to rename the cloakroom.
\nA longer story, including the comments of Rep. Speier, appeared two days earlier in the article 2 House members who were gunned down get congressional honor<\/a>, by Carolyn Lochhead for SFGate, the online presence of the Chronicle<\/em>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Interviews with survivors and relatives of Jonestown tragedy<\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>In June 2018, Port Kaituma survivor Tracy Parks was featured both in People<\/em> Magazine and on its television station. Other media organizations picked up the story as well. The coverage is listed below.<\/p>\n

Childhood Jonestown Survivor Recounts Desperate Escape into the Jungle as Cult’s Mass Suicide Killed Over 900<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Johnny Dodd, People<\/em>, June 6, 2018
\n\u201cNearly four decades have passed since that afternoon Tracy Parks knelt on the rain-soaked, muddy airstrip in Guyana, cradling her mother\u2019s lifeless body in her hands, shaking her in a desperate attempt to wake her up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jonestown Cult Victim\u2019s Daughter Was Haunted Until Her Death: ‘I Wish that Bullet that Got Mom Had Killed Me\u2019<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Johnny Dodd, People<\/em>, June 7, 2018, also here<\/a>
\n\u201c\u2019[Brenda Parks] was the sweetest soul, but she hated this life and all the cruelty she saw in Jonestown. It just tore her apart and really ruined her.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Jonestown survivor recalls cult’s mass suicide: ‘This was murder’<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Kathleen Joyce, Fox News, June 7, 2018,
\n\u201cTracy Parks, who was just 12 years old, recalled holding her mother\u2019s body, trying to wake her up after she drank cyanide-laced grape punch alongside hundreds more in Jonestown, Guyana.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Survivor of the Jonestown Massacre Opens up About Her Experiences 40 Years Later: “Time Does Not Heal All Wounds”<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Melissa Copelton, InTouch<\/em>, June 14, 2018
\n\u201cIt\u2019s been 40 years since\u00a0The Jonestown Massacre\u00a0took the lives of 909 men, women, and children in the isolated jungle of north Guyana. Now, Tracy Parks, a survivor of Jim Jones and The Peoples Temple evil reign is sharing her story. Be warned: Her experience with mass suicide is graphic in nature and may be upsetting to some readers.\u201d<\/p>\n

From Beloved Preacher to Madman and Mass Suicide: the Dark Descent of Jim Jones and Jonestown<\/a><\/strong>
\nPhoto gallery, Johnny Dodd & Greg Hanlon, People<\/em>, June 13, 2018<\/p>\n

Mock Suicide Drills, Child Labor and Armed Guards: Inside Jonestown in the Days Before Mass Poisoning (Pt II)<\/a>
\nJohnny Dodd & Greg Hanlon, People<\/em>, June 13, 2018
\n\u201cTracy tells PEOPLE in this week\u2019s issue, \u201cEven as a child, sitting in these meetings, I\u2019d look at all the adults around me and think, \u2018What\u2019s wrong with these people? How can you think this is okay?\u201d\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The Moment Jim Jones Revealed Poisoned Punch Before Mass Suicide: ‘It’s Not Going to Taste Bad’ (Pt. 3)<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Adam Carlson, People<\/em>, June 14, 2018
\n\u201c\u2019When I was a little girl, I used to stare at this sign [Jones] had nailed up over his chair in church that read, \u2018Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it,\u2019 \u201d Tracy says. \u201cI didn\u2019t understand what that meant back then, but I do now. And that\u2019s why I keep talking. If I keep quiet, Jim Jones wins.\u2019\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Two articles and a video focus on the survival of Leslie-Wagner Wilson as part of their coverage of the A&E documentary, Jonestown: The Women Behind the Massacre<\/em>.<\/p>\n

40 Years Later, Jonestown Survivor Speaks Out on Massacre That Nearly Killed 1,000<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Angela Helm, The Root<\/em>, February 26, 2018<\/p>\n

Jonestown cult survivor recalls horrifying massacre in new documentary: I thought I would die at 22<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Stephanie Nolasco, Fox News, February 26, 2018<\/p>\n

Jonestown cult survivor recalls horrifying massacre<\/a><\/strong>
\nFox Video, February 26, 2018<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Other retrospective coverage of people involved includes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jonestown cult ended in mass suicide of 909 as Jim Jones’ devoted followers drank cyanide-laced “Kool Aid”<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Steve Myall, June 12, 2018, Mirror<\/em><\/p>\n

Interviews with Laura Johnston Kohl and Jim Jones Jr.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Looking Back: Spokane family shares connection to massacre at Jonestown<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Melissa Luck, KXLY-TV, Spokane, Washington, July 13, 2018.<\/p>\n

The family of NBC reporter Don Harris \u2013 including Harris\u2019 son and KXLY reporter Jeff Humphrey \u2013 are featured in this reprise of 30th<\/sup>anniversary coverage.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/a>She woke up in Jonestown \u2014 everyone was dead<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Will Higgins, Indianapolis Star<\/em>, July 13, 2018<\/p>\n

Hyacinth Thrash, a resident of Indianapolis both before and after her time with Peoples Temple, is featured in this retrospective published in conjunction with the NBC documentary.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Beyond the ranch: Rajneesh revisited<\/strong>\u00a0<\/a>
\nby Cory Frye, Albany\u00a0<\/em>(OR) Democrat-Herald<\/em>, July 8, 2018<\/p>\n

This article about the Oregon settlement of Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh includes a profile of local resident Graham Kislingbury and of his sister Sharon, who died in Jonestown.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A Jonestown Survivor and King Woman’s Kristina Esfandiari Discuss Healing from Trauma<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Khristina Esfandiari, vice.com, November 17, 2017<\/p>\n

This article feature and interview with Deborah Layton, who left Guyana in May 1978.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

General media coverage of the 40th anniversary<\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Jonestown: Anniversary of a massacre and why 918 people died in the jungle<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Candace Sutton, news.com.au, October 15, 2018 (also published as \u201cWhy 918 people died in the Jungle\u201d at the Tweed Daily News<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0The Gladstone Observer<\/a><\/em>)<\/p>\n

Visiting Jonestown: Site of the Largest Murder-Suicide in Modern History<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Julie Fenwick, vice.com, September 7, 2018<\/p>\n

\u2018Drink the Kool-Aid\u2019: Remembering the tragic Jonestown massacre<\/a><\/strong>
\nStartsat60.com, August 24, 2018<\/p>\n

Jonestown Massacre: How 918 people followed a cult leader to Guyana, ‘drank the Kool-Aid’… and died in a single day<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Adam Lusher, The Independent\u00a0<\/em>(United Kingdom), February 28, 2018<\/p>\n

In the Valley of the Shadow of Death: Guyana After the Jonestown Massacre<\/strong><\/a>
\nby Tim Cahill, Rolling Stone<\/em>, January 25, 1979, Reprinted January 2018<\/p>\n

Opinion and Commentary<\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Follow the leader? I don\u2019t think so<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Bob Stannard, Commentary, VTDigger<\/em>, August 10, 2018<\/p>\n

After describing the events leading up to the deaths in Jonestown, the writer continues: \u201cNow you may be thinking that this was a one-off and could never happen again, but you\u2019d be wrong. It\u2019s happened many times before and it\u2019s happening right now.\u201d His two examples for 2018 are Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2018Jonestown\u2019 40 Years Later: Was Peoples Temple an Intel Op Gone Bad?<\/a><\/strong>
\nby S.T. Patrick, American Free Press<\/em>, June 19, 2018<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the 40th anniversary of \u201cThe Jonestown Massacre\u201d approaching, on November 18th, AFP offers a three-part series on the Rev. Jim Jones, the Peoples Temple, and the massacre\/mass suicide that took over 900 lives in the jungles of Guyana.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a mainstream version of the Jonestown story that is easy to understand. Its mythology reviles new religions and turns Jones\u2019s church members into weak-minded devotees. To believe that Jonestown is understood only within these confining terms is a mistake.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What Doomsday Cults Can Teach Us About ISIS Today<\/a><\/strong>
\nby Clyde Haberman, New York Times<\/em>, November 5, 2017<\/p>\n

This examination of groups that preceded ISIS includes interview with Leslie Wagner Wilson on its film series, Retro Reports<\/em>, then concludes.\u00a0 \u201cJonestown was not the last cult twisted by visions of apocalypse. Aum Shinrikyo in Japan, the Branch Davidians in Texas, Heaven\u2019s Gate in California, the nonreligious Manson Family \u2014 all had faithful disciples. All embraced death. Now, groups like the brutal Islamic State and the Shabab in East Africa are magnets for several thousand readily duped Westerners, including scores of Americans.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Forty years after the deaths in Guyana, Peoples Temple and Jonestown continue to make the news on a regular basis. Florida University Gives Funds to Communist Revolutionary Speaker by Cliff Kincaid, The Epoch Times, February 12, 2018 Angela Davis, the \u201ccommunist revolutionary speaker\u201d who spoke before a packed house at Florida State University in February, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":81806,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-81159","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81159","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\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=81159"}],"version-history":[{"count":32,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81159\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":134414,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81159\/revisions\/134414"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81806"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=81159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}