Jim Jones

Jim Jones was the founder and leader of the cult “Peoples Temple” in Jonestown,

Guyana. He led more than nine hundred of his followers to take part in a mass suicide,

or "revolutionary suicide" as he called it. Until the events that took place on September 11, 2001

this was the worst non-natural disaster to take place for American civilian life. 

Jim Jones was born May 13, 1931, in Crete, Indiana, to James and Lynetta Jones. With

the economic difficulties during the Great Depression, the Jones' family had moved to

nearby Lynn, Indiana in 1934. As a child, Jim Jones had a difficult time making friends and

spent most of his time contemplating religion and spirituality. He developed a keen interest in

reading, and spent a lot of his time studying the works of many influential and powerful figures

including: Adolf Hitler, Mahatma Gandhi, Joseph Stalin and Karl Marx.[ CITATION Par08 \l

1033 ]

In 1952, his spiritual inclination made him a student pastor at the Sommerset Southside

Methodist Church, in Indiana. However after he could not meet the Methodist standards for a

minister, he made a decision and left the church. In 1954, he had found an independent church,

which he called the Peoples Temple Full Gospel Church, in Indianapolis to further his vision of a

church that could overcome racial barriers. In the mid-1960s he had a vision of a nuclear

holocaust and moved the congregation to Ukiah, California, which he believed would be a

relatively safe location.[ CITATION Par08 \l 1033 ]

In California, Jones became a social activist and was well known for his support of liberal

social and political causes. He extended his work to Los Angeles and San Francisco, where he

built predominantly African American congregations.

 In the summer of 1977, negative press reports began to surface about Jim Jones. In

response to such criticism he moved many of his followers to British Guyana. Eventually about

1,000 core supporters gathered at an isolated retreat there, which was later officially named

"Jonestown." In 1978, conditions had become so bad that half of Jonestown was ill with severe

diarrhea and high fevers." But despite this they were required to work in the fields from 7am to

6pm six days per.[ CITATION BAR07 \l 1033 ]

In November 1978, California Congressman Leo Ryan had made a visit to Guyana to

observe life at Jonestown, because he received many complaints from his constituents regarding

family members who were followers of Jim Jones. He subsequently responded through an

investigation. With permission from Jim Jones, Ryan came to visit the group's compound on

November 17, 1978. The congressman toured the settlement and met with Jim Jones. At an

isolated airstrip on the 18th, immediately after he left and was preparing to return to the United

States, under orders from Jim Jones, gunmen from Jonestown ambushed Congressman Ryan's

party. Leo J. Ryan and four others were killed immediately, some of the Ryan party escaped into

the jungle.[ CITATION Eli07 \l 1033 ]

Anticipating the end of his ministry and certain arrest, Jim Jones then ordered a "state of

emergency", and had ordered everyone to assemble at the pavilion. Once everyone was

assembled, he had aides had prepare a metal vat with Kool-Aid, poisoned with Valium, chloral

hydrate, and cyanide.[ CITATION Nea09 \l 1033 ] Jones then spoke to his congregation and

urged Temple members to commit "revolutionary suicide,” in which he told people "you can go

down in history, and saying “you chose your own way to go”, and “it is your commitment to

refuse capitalism and in support of socialism."  Babies and children were brought up first and

syringes were used to pour the poisoned juice into their mouths. Mothers then drank some of the
poisoned punch and families were told to lie down together. Next went other members. If anyone

wasn't cooperative, there were guards with guns and crossbows to encourage them[ CITATION

Eli07 \l 1033 ]. It took approximately five minutes for each person to die. Jones died from a

single gunshot wound to the head, but it is unclear whether or not he did this himself.

On that day, November 18, 1978, 912 people died from drinking the poison, 276 of

whom were children. Only a handful or so people survived, either by escaping into the jungle or

hiding somewhere in the compound.

Works Cited
Haney, Elissa. infoplease. 2007 . 10 21010 <http://www.infoplease.com/spot/jonestown1.html>.

Osherow, Neal. guyana.org. 2009. 10 2010 <http://www.guyana.org/features/jonestown.html>.

Pereira, Parun. buzzle.com. 2008. 10 2010 <http://www.buzzle.com/articles/biography-of-jim-

jones.html>.

Robinson, B.A. religioustolerance.org. 2007. 10 2010

<http://www.religioustolerance.org/dc_jones.htm>.
Jim Jones

Caroline Boucher

10/22/10