Jonestown Cults

A cult is defined as “a psychological manipulation [people] describe as brainwashing, thought reform. or coercive persuasion, which is exercised by leaders who are so powerful as to be literally irresistible” ( Cults). A cult is a group of people who intend to do good in society but shown by Jonestown and Heaven’s gate are detrimental to society by systematically stripping people of their ability to think critically. Jonestown was a cult consisting of more than 900 member and leader Jim Jones. On November 18 1978 all members were forced into a mass suicide called a “ White night.” During the “White Night” all members except those who escaped drank a lethal beverage of drugs, and were forced to drink the concoction if they did not willingly
Foot in the door phenomenon is when a specific group or person asks for a small request in order to test the waters and then later to ask for larger requests. Both groups ask for money at first. In Jonestown Jim Jones at first used parents with little children to sign custody over to Jones in order to trap the parents, so they do not leave the cult. Another interpretation is if they give in to the sign over of custody that in the future they will commit mass suicide at Jones’s order. At Heaven’s gate “ their followers had to give up human attachments, such as jobs, family, friends, possessions and sex”( Heaven’s gate). Heaven’s Gate is starting the foot in the door phenomenon by asking small demands in order to get bigger ones down the road. The member of Heaven’s gate used foot in the door as well because of the religion because it was a focus in the cult and a request that you were in the religion to join the cult. Also because the suicide was simple because it was a religious act (Anatomy) Jonestown has the similar regulations when someone joined the cult . For foot in the door in Jonestown, Jones plea was to end World Hunger to join. In Heaven’s gate their plea was to in order to an alien space craft that was believed to be following to follow a comet. Jonestown had a bigger group of people because world hunger appealed to a mass of people while, Heaven’s gate appealed to a small confined mass. Both cults use the Foot in the Door to get new members for good cause then goes