1
00:00:06,049 --> 00:00:08,426
I think what attracted India
to the group
2
00:00:08,509 --> 00:00:13,347
was... this sense of unified purpose.
3
00:00:13,431 --> 00:00:15,099
[Lakeith Stanfield] The group was NXIVM,
4
00:00:15,183 --> 00:00:18,311
and its unified purpose
was self-improvement
5
00:00:18,394 --> 00:00:20,980
using a patented method
of Rational Inquiry
6
00:00:21,064 --> 00:00:23,024
for Executive Success,
7
00:00:23,107 --> 00:00:25,902
led by a man named Keith Raniere.
8
00:00:26,736 --> 00:00:30,031
But the claim that Raniere
had one of the world's highest IQs,
9
00:00:30,114 --> 00:00:33,242
the way students had to bow
to a picture of him on the wall,
10
00:00:33,326 --> 00:00:36,829
and how they had to call him
The Vanguard unsettled Catherine.
11
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At the end, you know, India came up to me,
and she said, "Mom, this is for me."
12
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And I-- My jaw dropped. I was in shock.
13
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India would end up giving
hundreds of thousands of dollars to NXIVM,
14
00:00:47,131 --> 00:00:51,385
and got drawn into something
much more sinister than Executive Success.
15
00:00:51,469 --> 00:00:56,307
I got a call from somebody,
and she said within NXIVM,
16
00:00:56,390 --> 00:00:58,184
there is a secret group.
17
00:00:58,267 --> 00:01:00,478
And that's the first time
I heard this term "DOS."
18
00:01:00,561 --> 00:01:03,606
Dominus Obsequious Sororium.
19
00:01:03,689 --> 00:01:07,068
It was sold
as a female empowerment group, but...
20
00:01:07,151 --> 00:01:12,740
That's Latin
for "master over female slave."
21
00:01:12,824 --> 00:01:16,035
I was then told
that they were branding these women.
22
00:01:16,119 --> 00:01:19,539
The branding
was part of an initiation into DOS.
23
00:01:19,622 --> 00:01:23,709
A new member would be blindfolded,
told to take off her clothes,
24
00:01:23,793 --> 00:01:25,711
and lie on a massage table.
25
00:01:26,295 --> 00:01:30,049
Three other women would then
hold down her legs and shoulders,
26
00:01:30,133 --> 00:01:31,676
and she was told to say,
27
00:01:31,759 --> 00:01:35,221
"Master, please brand me.
It would be an honor."
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The women were told
that the symbol represented the elements,
29
00:01:38,141 --> 00:01:40,810
but they'd been branded with
Keith Raniere's initials.
30
00:01:42,061 --> 00:01:44,981
Thousands of groups like NXIVM
have risen throughout history,
31
00:01:45,064 --> 00:01:47,692
groups that are often described
as cults.
32
00:01:47,775 --> 00:01:49,235
But it's impossible to know how many,
33
00:01:49,318 --> 00:01:51,237
because most cults insist
they're not cults
34
00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:54,782
and almost nobody in a cult
realizes they're in one.
35
00:01:54,866 --> 00:01:56,742
So what makes a group a cult?
36
00:01:57,493 --> 00:02:01,372
And how have some been able to make
ordinary people do horrible things?
37
00:02:03,666 --> 00:02:07,295
[man] I shall be God, and beside me,
there shall be no other.
38
00:02:07,378 --> 00:02:08,254
[second man] Yeah!
39
00:02:08,337 --> 00:02:10,923
[third man] We want to
share this knowledge with everyone.
40
00:02:11,007 --> 00:02:13,968
[woman] It was felt that
whatever method necessary
41
00:02:14,051 --> 00:02:17,722
was okay because we were heavenly children
and God knew why we were doing it.
42
00:02:17,805 --> 00:02:20,683
Waco is gonna bear witness
against the ATF.
43
00:02:20,766 --> 00:02:23,311
You want to keep playing that game,
somebody's gonna get hurt.
44
00:02:23,394 --> 00:02:27,481
[man] You are told to replace your family
and discard your old identity.
45
00:02:27,565 --> 00:02:32,570
Your only chance to survive
is to leave with us.
46
00:02:38,910 --> 00:02:42,371
[Jim Jones] Love is a healing remedy.
47
00:02:42,455 --> 00:02:44,874
Peoples Temple was unique at that time.
48
00:02:44,957 --> 00:02:48,920
It was black and white
and American Indian and Hispanic.
49
00:02:49,754 --> 00:02:52,131
We all walked in naively thinking,
50
00:02:52,215 --> 00:02:55,218
"Okay, Jim said he wants a utopia.
I want a utopia."
51
00:02:55,301 --> 00:02:57,887
We thought we were joining a movement
to make the world better.
52
00:02:58,638 --> 00:03:01,807
But what they were actually joining
ended up defining for the world
53
00:03:01,891 --> 00:03:04,310
-the modern idea of a cult.
-Thank you, baby.
54
00:03:05,561 --> 00:03:06,687
Shh.
55
00:03:06,771 --> 00:03:09,690
In the late 1970s,
the group's leader, Jim Jones,
56
00:03:09,774 --> 00:03:13,027
led nearly a thousand followers
from the Peoples Temple in California
57
00:03:13,110 --> 00:03:16,072
to the remote jungles of Guyana
to build Jonestown,
58
00:03:16,155 --> 00:03:18,532
sold as a self-sufficient utopia,
59
00:03:18,616 --> 00:03:21,160
free of the violence and racism
that plagued America.
60
00:03:21,244 --> 00:03:24,080
-You all happy you here? You happy, Tom?
-Yes.
61
00:03:24,163 --> 00:03:27,750
Everybody's happy down here.
You can see that that's an obvious fact.
62
00:03:27,833 --> 00:03:30,461
But concerned relatives
began pressuring officials
63
00:03:30,544 --> 00:03:33,172
with pamphlets
about a nightmare at Jonestown,
64
00:03:33,256 --> 00:03:35,466
saying Jones was using mind programming,
65
00:03:35,549 --> 00:03:40,221
even holding mock mass suicides
to condition them to die for the cause.
66
00:03:41,013 --> 00:03:44,725
California Congressman Leo Ryan
flew down to Guyana to investigate
67
00:03:44,809 --> 00:03:47,019
-and never returned.
-[Jones] It's too late.
68
00:03:47,103 --> 00:03:49,605
The congressman's dead,
the Congress today is dead.
69
00:03:49,689 --> 00:03:53,442
If we can't live in peace,
then let's die in peace.
70
00:03:53,526 --> 00:03:54,819
[followers cheering]
71
00:03:59,490 --> 00:04:01,784
The images of nearly a thousand dead,
72
00:04:01,867 --> 00:04:04,704
the largest mass murder-suicide
in modern history,
73
00:04:04,787 --> 00:04:05,997
horrified the world.
74
00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:08,833
[man] Cultists who believed
in everything that Jim Jones said
75
00:04:08,916 --> 00:04:10,126
took their own lives.
76
00:04:10,209 --> 00:04:12,753
[woman] Some shot to death.
Most apparently self-poisoned.
77
00:04:12,837 --> 00:04:15,548
[second man] There were empty bottles
of potassium cyanide.
78
00:04:15,631 --> 00:04:17,591
Entire families took the poison together.
79
00:04:17,675 --> 00:04:20,553
[woman] Among the bodies were those
of the Temple's fanatical founder,
80
00:04:20,636 --> 00:04:22,847
-the Reverend Jim Jones.
-[third man] Jones told them,
81
00:04:22,930 --> 00:04:25,141
"It is time for us to meet
in another place."
82
00:04:27,518 --> 00:04:30,354
[Stanfield] Groups called cults,
led by charismatic leaders
83
00:04:30,438 --> 00:04:32,606
with extreme beliefs
and fanatic followers,
84
00:04:32,690 --> 00:04:35,693
have existed in almost every country
across the globe.
85
00:04:35,776 --> 00:04:38,237
But the scale of destruction at Jonestown
86
00:04:38,321 --> 00:04:41,490
gave the word "cult"
a new horrifying connotation...
87
00:04:42,158 --> 00:04:45,786
and drove social scientists
in the United States to publish research
88
00:04:45,870 --> 00:04:49,582
attempting to define what these
destructive groups had in common.
89
00:04:49,665 --> 00:04:51,876
They settled on
three main characteristics.
90
00:04:51,959 --> 00:04:54,754
A cult is a group or a social movement
91
00:04:54,837 --> 00:04:58,382
that's led by a charismatic leader,
92
00:04:58,466 --> 00:05:00,176
uh, who is authoritarian
93
00:05:00,259 --> 00:05:04,055
and who demands to be revered
as a godlike figure.
94
00:05:04,138 --> 00:05:08,768
We were taught to believe what he said
was straight from the mouth of God.
95
00:05:08,851 --> 00:05:11,854
In the "community," as we called it,
he was God's authority.
96
00:05:11,937 --> 00:05:13,731
The second key element of a cult...
97
00:05:13,814 --> 00:05:18,194
The group has some form of
indoctrination program,
98
00:05:18,277 --> 00:05:20,404
uh, sometimes called "thought reform."
99
00:05:20,488 --> 00:05:21,947
Or mind control.
100
00:05:22,031 --> 00:05:24,742
It was almost like
the operating system was the Bible,
101
00:05:24,825 --> 00:05:28,329
and then he was putting
all of his programs in there on top of it.
102
00:05:28,412 --> 00:05:30,081
And people would kind of accept them
103
00:05:30,164 --> 00:05:33,667
because they accepted the Bible,
so they shouldn't question the Bible,
104
00:05:33,751 --> 00:05:35,252
so they had to believe it.
105
00:05:35,336 --> 00:05:37,880
There is exploitation,
106
00:05:37,963 --> 00:05:39,632
uh, either sexual, financial...
107
00:05:39,715 --> 00:05:41,425
Some type of exploitation of the members.
108
00:05:41,509 --> 00:05:44,053
Whenever, you know, Sun Myung Moon
109
00:05:44,136 --> 00:05:47,640
needed my parents
for some kind of mission or anything,
110
00:05:47,723 --> 00:05:51,352
they had to put the cult leader's needs
before their children's.
111
00:05:51,435 --> 00:05:55,022
Like my father. He was gone
most of the year when I was growing up.
112
00:05:55,106 --> 00:05:58,025
But there's a small problem
with this definition of a cult.
113
00:05:58,109 --> 00:06:03,114
It's a value judgment
more than it is a-a functional word.
114
00:06:03,197 --> 00:06:08,536
Every prophet of every major religion
can be considered a charismatic leader.
115
00:06:08,619 --> 00:06:10,996
In fact, the biggest joke
in religious studies
116
00:06:11,080 --> 00:06:14,041
is that "cult plus time equals religion."
117
00:06:14,667 --> 00:06:19,672
"Cult" comes from the Latin "cultus,"
meaning "to till or cultivate,"
118
00:06:19,755 --> 00:06:21,549
and in antiquity, was used to describe
119
00:06:21,632 --> 00:06:26,846
the sacrifices, offerings, and monuments
built to cultivate favor with the gods.
120
00:06:26,929 --> 00:06:30,057
In time, it came to mean
any unorthodox religion.
121
00:06:30,141 --> 00:06:34,353
The Roman Empire
referred to Judaism as a cult.
122
00:06:34,437 --> 00:06:38,566
Some say that
certain versions of Islam are cults.
123
00:06:38,649 --> 00:06:44,655
Nowadays, most scholars prefer the word
"new religious movement" or "NRM."
124
00:06:44,738 --> 00:06:47,533
And many arose,
not to exploit their followers,
125
00:06:47,616 --> 00:06:50,494
but to help them survive
in the face of an external threat.
126
00:06:50,578 --> 00:06:56,208
[Reza] The collective's very sense of self
is under attack by the world,
127
00:06:56,292 --> 00:07:00,671
and the only way to salvage one's identity
128
00:07:00,754 --> 00:07:06,552
is to come together under the leadership
of this charismatic authority
129
00:07:06,635 --> 00:07:09,138
and to rebuild from scratch.
130
00:07:09,221 --> 00:07:12,016
Jesus of Nazareth lived in perhaps
131
00:07:12,099 --> 00:07:16,979
the most politically
and socially turbulent era
132
00:07:17,062 --> 00:07:20,483
in the history of the Middle East,
which is saying a lot.
133
00:07:20,566 --> 00:07:26,489
And so Jesus was one of
at least a dozen messiahs
134
00:07:26,572 --> 00:07:27,615
that we know of.
135
00:07:27,740 --> 00:07:29,783
New Religious Movements have arisen
136
00:07:29,867 --> 00:07:33,662
to help humans navigate turbulent times
throughout history.
137
00:07:33,746 --> 00:07:36,499
In Europe, many arose
during the turmoil of the Renaissance
138
00:07:36,582 --> 00:07:39,543
and as a backlash
against institutional religions.
139
00:07:39,627 --> 00:07:41,879
In India,
they grew out of social turbulence
140
00:07:41,962 --> 00:07:44,173
caused by a transition to agriculture,
141
00:07:44,256 --> 00:07:46,884
and later, as a response
to British colonialism.
142
00:07:46,967 --> 00:07:48,677
But one country in particular
143
00:07:48,761 --> 00:07:52,264
welcomed new religions with open arms
from its very founding.
144
00:07:52,348 --> 00:07:55,601
Going back well into the 1600s,
145
00:07:55,684 --> 00:07:58,938
the American colonies
had developed a reputation
146
00:07:59,021 --> 00:08:01,524
as a safe harbor for religious radicals.
147
00:08:02,358 --> 00:08:04,318
And there was one small patch of America
148
00:08:04,401 --> 00:08:07,488
that was especially seized
by this new religious fervor.
149
00:08:07,571 --> 00:08:10,616
A section of land
stretching from Albany to Buffalo,
150
00:08:10,699 --> 00:08:12,785
known as the Burned-Over District.
151
00:08:12,868 --> 00:08:17,414
The Burned-Over District
became the birthplace of Mormonism,
152
00:08:17,498 --> 00:08:21,168
of Seventh-day Adventism,
of spiritualism.
153
00:08:21,252 --> 00:08:23,420
And a wide range
of other social, political,
154
00:08:23,504 --> 00:08:25,005
and religious movements as well.
155
00:08:25,089 --> 00:08:27,800
Wherever you encounter religious openings,
156
00:08:27,883 --> 00:08:31,136
you inevitably encounter
political openings as well.
157
00:08:31,762 --> 00:08:34,890
Jemima Wilkinson
was one prophet from that area.
158
00:08:34,974 --> 00:08:37,768
She recovered from
a near-death experience with typhoid
159
00:08:37,851 --> 00:08:41,188
to declare herself
a reincarnation of a holy spirit
160
00:08:41,272 --> 00:08:43,941
named Public Universal Friend.
161
00:08:44,024 --> 00:08:45,818
And it was probably the first time
162
00:08:45,901 --> 00:08:50,906
that most Americans had ever seen
a woman preaching or speaking in public.
163
00:08:50,990 --> 00:08:52,741
This kind of American Sinai
164
00:08:52,825 --> 00:08:57,121
where people felt they were receiving
all kinds of messages and dispensations,
165
00:08:57,204 --> 00:08:59,290
not strictly religious in nature.
166
00:08:59,373 --> 00:09:01,875
This pattern repeated again and again.
167
00:09:01,959 --> 00:09:04,878
And they spread beyond
the Burned-Over District,
168
00:09:04,962 --> 00:09:07,339
like to New York City in the 1930s,
169
00:09:07,423 --> 00:09:10,426
where tens of thousands
considered a man called Father Divine
170
00:09:10,509 --> 00:09:12,553
-to be God on Earth.
-[cheering]
171
00:09:12,636 --> 00:09:15,973
For all of humanity, I am broadcasting.
172
00:09:16,056 --> 00:09:17,182
[cheering]
173
00:09:17,266 --> 00:09:20,060
One has to understand Father Divine
174
00:09:20,144 --> 00:09:24,773
as a very early progenitor
of the civil-rights movement.
175
00:09:24,857 --> 00:09:27,526
Father Divine's early followers
176
00:09:27,610 --> 00:09:31,572
were involved in protests
and petition drives
177
00:09:31,655 --> 00:09:35,784
and letter-writing campaigns
that insisted upon civil rights
178
00:09:35,868 --> 00:09:39,580
at a time when that call
was very muted in American life.
179
00:09:39,663 --> 00:09:41,665
But a call that would grow
180
00:09:41,749 --> 00:09:44,209
and touch off a new era
of social upheaval...
181
00:09:44,835 --> 00:09:47,504
with racial tensions
erupting into violence
182
00:09:47,588 --> 00:09:50,174
-and a wave of political assassinations.
-[gunshots]
183
00:09:51,216 --> 00:09:53,719
Many began doubting
the war in Vietnam was just.
184
00:09:54,345 --> 00:09:56,680
Americans' trust in their government
plummeted...
185
00:09:57,681 --> 00:10:01,143
and the specter
of imminent nuclear annihilation
186
00:10:01,226 --> 00:10:04,480
made the entire nation
feel like it was under siege.
187
00:10:04,563 --> 00:10:08,150
This drove a generation
to search for new kinds of community
188
00:10:08,233 --> 00:10:10,069
and alternative sources of meaning.
189
00:10:10,152 --> 00:10:12,279
And so what we saw at that time
190
00:10:12,363 --> 00:10:15,407
was the rise
of these charismatic individuals,
191
00:10:15,491 --> 00:10:20,079
some of them American, many of them
drawing from traditions of the East,
192
00:10:20,162 --> 00:10:22,039
particularly in India.
193
00:10:22,122 --> 00:10:24,249
"We are the righteous few."
194
00:10:24,333 --> 00:10:26,001
"We know the answer."
195
00:10:26,085 --> 00:10:29,380
And that knowledge was an antidote
196
00:10:29,463 --> 00:10:32,925
for the turbulent times in which we lived.
197
00:10:34,718 --> 00:10:37,805
But that knowledge
sometimes came with a catch.
198
00:10:37,888 --> 00:10:41,308
The search for
alternative forms of meaning,
199
00:10:41,392 --> 00:10:45,062
these things have at their back
a very powerful appeal.
200
00:10:45,145 --> 00:10:47,439
And sometimes people start out,
201
00:10:47,523 --> 00:10:50,609
even the leaders themselves,
believing in that appeal.
202
00:10:50,693 --> 00:10:52,986
But there is a break in human nature
203
00:10:53,070 --> 00:10:57,074
in which idealism can very easily
turn into authoritarianism.
204
00:10:57,157 --> 00:11:00,369
The same religious tolerance
that allowed the country to thrive...
205
00:11:00,452 --> 00:11:01,453
Take that step.
206
00:11:01,537 --> 00:11:04,456
...made Americans
particularly susceptible to manipulation.
207
00:11:04,540 --> 00:11:05,708
[cheering]
208
00:11:07,209 --> 00:11:08,836
Even Father Divine was accused of
209
00:11:08,919 --> 00:11:11,130
taking advantage of his followers
financially,
210
00:11:11,213 --> 00:11:13,549
including convincing them
to buy him a hotel,
211
00:11:13,632 --> 00:11:15,759
and bilking a woman
out of her inheritance.
212
00:11:16,552 --> 00:11:19,221
And one man was watching all this
and taking notes--
213
00:11:20,305 --> 00:11:21,432
Jim Jones.
214
00:11:21,515 --> 00:11:24,309
So Jim Jones, he studied,
you know, Father Divine
215
00:11:24,393 --> 00:11:27,146
to see how Father Divine
set up his community.
216
00:11:27,771 --> 00:11:29,815
Jones' desire to learn from Divine
217
00:11:29,898 --> 00:11:33,026
was even immortalized
in a 1980 TV miniseries.
218
00:11:33,110 --> 00:11:35,696
That's James Earl Jones
playing Father Divine.
219
00:11:35,779 --> 00:11:38,490
But how could you sustain such a movement?
220
00:11:38,574 --> 00:11:41,577
How did my son Moses sustain his flock?
221
00:11:42,286 --> 00:11:43,328
But the cost?
222
00:11:43,412 --> 00:11:48,000
Ask and you shall receive, my son.
223
00:11:48,083 --> 00:11:49,460
Ask and you shall receive.
224
00:11:49,543 --> 00:11:53,046
Jim Jones took some of the appeals
to social justice
225
00:11:53,130 --> 00:11:56,341
that were intrinsic
to Father Divine's message,
226
00:11:56,425 --> 00:11:58,886
and he used them,
first to attract people,
227
00:11:58,969 --> 00:12:01,054
and later, to manipulate people.
228
00:12:01,138 --> 00:12:03,640
And it's when that manipulation
becomes destructive
229
00:12:03,724 --> 00:12:06,894
that a group becomes a cult,
according to social scientists.
230
00:12:06,977 --> 00:12:10,314
It's really not about the belief system,
per se.
231
00:12:10,397 --> 00:12:13,317
It's about the behaviors of the group
232
00:12:13,400 --> 00:12:18,614
and the ways in which it uses, uh,
various methods of influence and control
233
00:12:18,697 --> 00:12:21,116
to manipulate and exploit the members.
234
00:12:22,785 --> 00:12:25,788
Charles Manson convinced his followers
to murder nine people
235
00:12:25,871 --> 00:12:27,998
in an attempt to incite a race war.
236
00:12:28,081 --> 00:12:30,292
Shoko Asahara ordered his followers
237
00:12:30,375 --> 00:12:34,421
to release sarin gas in the Tokyo subway,
killing 13.
238
00:12:35,422 --> 00:12:39,051
And Marshall Applewhite of Heaven's Gate
convinced his followers of this...
239
00:12:39,134 --> 00:12:42,930
Periodically,
that level comes in close enough
240
00:12:43,013 --> 00:12:46,391
and offers a graduation class,
241
00:12:46,475 --> 00:12:49,561
offers life out of this evolutionary level
242
00:12:49,645 --> 00:12:51,730
into that evolutionary level.
243
00:12:51,814 --> 00:12:54,900
Which led many
to castrate, then kill themselves,
244
00:12:54,983 --> 00:12:57,903
believing this would help them
ascend to a higher plane.
245
00:12:58,779 --> 00:13:01,990
The eternal fascination with cults
stems from the mystery
246
00:13:02,074 --> 00:13:04,827
of how their leaders
exert such complete control.
247
00:13:05,911 --> 00:13:08,705
[Janja] What they're using
is basic social psychology.
248
00:13:08,789 --> 00:13:12,793
They're using everyday influence
and control techniques.
249
00:13:13,377 --> 00:13:15,963
[Stanfield] So as a public service,
we present to you
250
00:13:16,046 --> 00:13:20,259
seven elements that social scientists say
can lead to indoctrination into a cult.
251
00:13:21,009 --> 00:13:22,052
Number one--
252
00:13:22,135 --> 00:13:25,180
you're going through a transition,
perhaps a difficult one.
253
00:13:25,264 --> 00:13:28,016
I was a starving,
not-very-successful actor
254
00:13:28,100 --> 00:13:29,685
in my 20s in New York.
255
00:13:29,768 --> 00:13:32,354
When you're in that vulnerable state,
256
00:13:32,437 --> 00:13:35,524
uh, you're going to be more open
to trying something.
257
00:13:35,607 --> 00:13:39,778
Maybe, you know, pull a thing
off a-- on a bulletin board
258
00:13:39,862 --> 00:13:41,655
that says, "Come to this yoga class."
259
00:13:41,738 --> 00:13:45,367
The first meditation began,
and I felt the experience
260
00:13:45,450 --> 00:13:49,538
of wave after wave
of love and connectedness.
261
00:13:49,621 --> 00:13:51,748
Which is all part of the soft sell.
262
00:13:51,832 --> 00:13:53,250
I had a questionnaire.
263
00:13:53,333 --> 00:13:56,420
Just, like, questions about life
and the universe, "Are you happy?"
264
00:13:56,503 --> 00:13:58,046
Once you take that first step
265
00:13:58,130 --> 00:14:03,385
and go to that first meeting or talk
or meditation group or Bible study,
266
00:14:03,468 --> 00:14:05,804
recruiters can work on you
and invite you back,
267
00:14:05,888 --> 00:14:08,098
and-and it basically is a process
from there.
268
00:14:08,181 --> 00:14:11,852
We'd encourage them
to go to this retreat center in the woods,
269
00:14:11,935 --> 00:14:14,021
you know, where we can
further indoctrinate them.
270
00:14:14,104 --> 00:14:17,858
This is the first step
toward the creation of a new reality.
271
00:14:17,941 --> 00:14:20,444
We were kept in this closed environment--
272
00:14:20,527 --> 00:14:23,739
no outside books, no TV, no movies--
273
00:14:23,822 --> 00:14:26,700
to protect us from
what-what my parents would say
274
00:14:26,783 --> 00:14:28,201
is the defilement of the world.
275
00:14:28,285 --> 00:14:32,122
Over time, you're going to become,
uh, more and more enveloped
276
00:14:32,205 --> 00:14:34,499
in this what I call
a self-sealing system.
277
00:14:35,167 --> 00:14:39,421
Until your most important relationship
is with "The Dear Leader."
278
00:14:39,504 --> 00:14:41,590
They would have Sun Myung Moon
279
00:14:41,673 --> 00:14:43,800
and/or his family members come out.
280
00:14:43,884 --> 00:14:47,638
"Ladies and gentlemen,
the true parents of mankind--
281
00:14:47,721 --> 00:14:49,389
Reverend and Sun Myung Moon."
282
00:14:49,473 --> 00:14:51,516
You're in a group
that has found the answer,
283
00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:53,644
and you have this leader
who is the only leader
284
00:14:53,727 --> 00:14:56,229
who is the only one
who can take you on this path.
285
00:14:56,313 --> 00:14:59,399
And everything else
and everybody else is wrong.
286
00:14:59,483 --> 00:15:01,818
Every Sunday morning at 5:00 a.m.,
287
00:15:01,902 --> 00:15:05,447
we just bowed to a picture
of Reverend and Mrs. Moon.
288
00:15:05,530 --> 00:15:09,034
We were told to love Reverend
and Mrs. Moon as our own parents,
289
00:15:09,117 --> 00:15:11,370
but even more than our own parents.
290
00:15:11,954 --> 00:15:15,123
Which the leader will often solidify
by creating an external enemy.
291
00:15:15,207 --> 00:15:20,253
He said to me, "You're going to be raped,
you're gonna be beaten.
292
00:15:20,337 --> 00:15:22,214
You're going to be left in a ditch."
293
00:15:22,297 --> 00:15:26,259
He said all these horrible things
about what would happen to me if I left
294
00:15:26,343 --> 00:15:28,428
because the world was such an evil place.
295
00:15:28,512 --> 00:15:33,225
This means that you're going to
"psychologically" run to the cult leader.
296
00:15:33,308 --> 00:15:39,189
You become in a perpetual state of denial
of your own reasoning power.
297
00:15:39,272 --> 00:15:40,357
You don't reason anymore.
298
00:15:40,440 --> 00:15:42,901
People in this state of
cognitive dissonance,
299
00:15:42,985 --> 00:15:45,237
they're going to choose
over and over and over
300
00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:46,697
for the cult or the cult leader.
301
00:15:46,780 --> 00:15:50,701
Which brings us to the key way
cult leaders scale up their control--
302
00:15:50,784 --> 00:15:52,077
simple peer pressure.
303
00:15:52,828 --> 00:15:56,206
This fundamental human desire
to be a part of a group
304
00:15:56,289 --> 00:15:59,042
can override
even our own perception of reality.
305
00:15:59,126 --> 00:16:01,962
In 1951, social psychologist Solomon Asch
306
00:16:02,045 --> 00:16:05,007
demonstrated this
by placing several students in a room.
307
00:16:05,090 --> 00:16:06,842
All but one were in on the experiment.
308
00:16:06,925 --> 00:16:10,429
Your task is a very simple one.
You're to look at the line on the left
309
00:16:10,512 --> 00:16:12,556
and determine
which of the lines on the right
310
00:16:12,639 --> 00:16:13,849
is equal to it in length.
311
00:16:13,932 --> 00:16:16,143
-[man] Two.
-[second man] Two.
312
00:16:16,226 --> 00:16:17,227
Two.
313
00:16:19,146 --> 00:16:20,522
Uh, two.
314
00:16:20,605 --> 00:16:24,484
Seventy-five percent of those tested
would end up agreeing with the majority,
315
00:16:24,568 --> 00:16:27,195
even when their responses
were obviously false.
316
00:16:27,279 --> 00:16:29,281
It's this pressure to conform
317
00:16:29,364 --> 00:16:31,950
that the cult leader uses
to control members.
318
00:16:32,034 --> 00:16:34,286
In a way, that's what he did
the last day at Jonestown.
319
00:16:34,369 --> 00:16:39,332
He incited a riot, and then he sat back
and let peer pressure work.
320
00:16:39,416 --> 00:16:42,586
All to serve the whims
of a likely sociopathic narcissist.
321
00:16:42,669 --> 00:16:47,174
He said, "You couldn't live without me,
so since I'm dying, you're gonna die, too,
322
00:16:47,257 --> 00:16:50,260
and you're not that important
because I'm the one who's essential."
323
00:16:51,303 --> 00:16:54,514
When the kids
were all outside the pavilion,
324
00:16:54,598 --> 00:16:56,516
then he had his secretaries
and mistresses
325
00:16:56,600 --> 00:16:58,727
go out and shoot the poison
in their mouths,
326
00:16:58,810 --> 00:17:00,604
and so he started killing the children.
327
00:17:00,687 --> 00:17:02,606
No parent could sit there,
328
00:17:02,689 --> 00:17:05,400
knowing that the child died
ten feet from them,
329
00:17:05,484 --> 00:17:09,488
and think that they were gonna go back
and-and live a life in the United States.
330
00:17:13,658 --> 00:17:15,327
Today, a different kind of threat
331
00:17:15,410 --> 00:17:18,497
is driving people
to search for new sources of meaning.
332
00:17:18,580 --> 00:17:21,124
There's an epidemic of social isolation
so serious,
333
00:17:21,208 --> 00:17:24,544
it's been recognized as a public health
threat in countries around the world.
334
00:17:24,628 --> 00:17:26,755
Medical experts believe loneliness
335
00:17:26,838 --> 00:17:29,716
is becoming Australia's
newest public-health crisis.
336
00:17:29,800 --> 00:17:33,053
[woman] America is in the grips of
a loneliness epidemic.
337
00:17:33,136 --> 00:17:35,680
The government has appointed
a minister for loneliness.
338
00:17:35,764 --> 00:17:39,768
[in Japanese] There are 800,000
to 900,000 middle-aged people
339
00:17:39,851 --> 00:17:41,686
who have completely withdrawn
from society.
340
00:17:42,479 --> 00:17:45,774
People don't necessarily
have a built-in community
341
00:17:45,857 --> 00:17:47,901
be it at the level of family,
at the level of church,
342
00:17:47,984 --> 00:17:49,194
at the level of neighborhood.
343
00:17:49,277 --> 00:17:51,988
As fewer people identify with
organized religion
344
00:17:52,072 --> 00:17:54,282
and the communal gathering spaces
they offer,
345
00:17:54,366 --> 00:17:57,119
virtual communities
are helping to fill that void.
346
00:17:57,202 --> 00:18:03,041
What the Internet has done
is, for the first time in human history,
347
00:18:03,125 --> 00:18:08,088
made the definition of community
no longer geographically bound.
348
00:18:08,171 --> 00:18:12,425
We are finding statistically small,
but personally huge,
349
00:18:12,509 --> 00:18:14,219
groups of like-minded individuals
350
00:18:14,302 --> 00:18:16,429
who will reinforce us
and reinforce who we are.
351
00:18:16,513 --> 00:18:19,349
This has led to a new generation
of online leaders
352
00:18:19,432 --> 00:18:23,019
who are using the tools of social media
to attract fervent virtual followers.
353
00:18:23,103 --> 00:18:24,229
You're going to feel like
354
00:18:24,312 --> 00:18:27,816
you have your own hands in your own clay
because you do.
355
00:18:27,899 --> 00:18:32,320
The only place where you can find
what you're seeking is within you.
356
00:18:32,404 --> 00:18:35,490
You are accepting yourself
a hundred percent for who you are.
357
00:18:35,574 --> 00:18:38,160
If people don't like it, too bad.
They can hit the road.
358
00:18:38,243 --> 00:18:42,414
[Tara] You can disseminate information
quickly to a bunch of followers
359
00:18:42,497 --> 00:18:45,417
if you're just in your room
with no social connections.
360
00:18:45,500 --> 00:18:48,336
You're able to, because of
the sheer size of the Internet,
361
00:18:48,420 --> 00:18:50,922
find a community for almost anything.
362
00:18:51,006 --> 00:18:54,092
And that sense of reinforcement
can be really, really powerful.
363
00:18:54,176 --> 00:18:55,927
Teal Swan is one such leader.
364
00:18:56,011 --> 00:18:59,347
Some people actually use depression
as a way of avoiding suicide.
365
00:18:59,431 --> 00:19:01,099
She's attracted a large following
366
00:19:01,183 --> 00:19:04,144
by offering controversial advice
to the hurting and lonely.
367
00:19:04,227 --> 00:19:06,897
What suicide is
is pushing the reset button.
368
00:19:06,980 --> 00:19:09,900
It's not a good or bad decision
in and of itself.
369
00:19:09,983 --> 00:19:14,070
Some have accused Teal of being
an online cult leader, which she denies,
370
00:19:14,154 --> 00:19:17,365
although she acknowledges
she has "the perfect recipe for a cult."
371
00:19:17,449 --> 00:19:19,701
"These people are desperate.
They need my approval.
372
00:19:19,784 --> 00:19:21,536
They'll do whatever I say."
373
00:19:21,620 --> 00:19:24,289
And the built-in features
of today's online gathering spaces
374
00:19:24,372 --> 00:19:25,790
can help lead the vulnerable astray.
375
00:19:25,874 --> 00:19:28,835
You watch one video,
and YouTube will suggest others,
376
00:19:28,919 --> 00:19:32,380
and often, that can lead to, for example,
a spiral of radicalization.
377
00:19:32,464 --> 00:19:35,133
And a lot of online spaces,
like message boards,
378
00:19:35,217 --> 00:19:38,303
can create a cult-like community
without a need for a leader at all.
379
00:19:38,386 --> 00:19:40,222
These alternate movements,
they provide answers,
380
00:19:40,305 --> 00:19:42,766
and they provide a home.
They provide someone to listen to them.
381
00:19:42,849 --> 00:19:46,019
Vulnerable people at a crossroads
can easily find this content.
382
00:19:46,102 --> 00:19:49,439
There's often a soft sell
with content that's less extreme,
383
00:19:49,522 --> 00:19:52,734
like a forum where
men vented about sexual frustration
384
00:19:52,817 --> 00:19:55,237
that can pull people into a new reality,
385
00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:59,616
exacerbated by an external enemy
and enforced by peer pressure.
386
00:19:59,699 --> 00:20:02,035
Other men urging each other
to seek revenge.
387
00:20:02,118 --> 00:20:04,829
Just because
they don't have physical spaces
388
00:20:04,913 --> 00:20:08,291
does not make these modern-day cults,
um, any less potent.
389
00:20:08,375 --> 00:20:12,128
And in the last few years,
these scenes have horrified the world.
390
00:20:12,212 --> 00:20:14,297
[woman] The Santa Barbara shooter,
Elliot Roger,
391
00:20:14,381 --> 00:20:16,049
left a trail of threats online.
392
00:20:16,132 --> 00:20:19,094
[man] He stabbed or shot
six people to death.
393
00:20:19,177 --> 00:20:22,389
These forums
are leading to physical violence.
394
00:20:22,472 --> 00:20:25,684
A van plowing into pedestrians
on a busy street in Toronto.
395
00:20:25,767 --> 00:20:27,519
[man] Incel. It's an online community
396
00:20:27,602 --> 00:20:30,730
frustrated with their romantic lives
with women.
397
00:20:30,814 --> 00:20:32,649
[Stanfield] Minutes before
the Toronto attack,
398
00:20:32,732 --> 00:20:35,402
the man responsible
posted a call-out to 4chan,
399
00:20:35,485 --> 00:20:38,738
his message board of choice,
referring to it as a sergeant,
400
00:20:38,822 --> 00:20:40,699
as if it was his commanding officer.
401
00:20:40,782 --> 00:20:43,910
[woman] A mass shooting in New Zealand,
a New Zealand mosque,
402
00:20:43,994 --> 00:20:45,704
leaves dozens of people dead,
403
00:20:45,787 --> 00:20:49,708
with the gunman live-streaming
the incident on social media.
404
00:20:49,791 --> 00:20:52,627
[Stanfield] The attacker in New Zealand
boasted to his online community
405
00:20:52,711 --> 00:20:53,837
about the mass murder...
406
00:20:54,671 --> 00:20:57,757
which was enthusiastically endorsed
by his community.
407
00:20:57,841 --> 00:21:01,553
One trapped in an alternate reality
as complete as any physical cult.
408
00:21:01,678 --> 00:21:03,680
These online cults do give people
409
00:21:03,763 --> 00:21:07,726
who believe themselves to be disaffected
or alienated from the dominant culture
410
00:21:07,809 --> 00:21:10,729
an alternate narrative,
an alternate script to follow.
411
00:21:11,563 --> 00:21:15,734
Whether that alternative narrative
is built online or in the physical world,
412
00:21:15,817 --> 00:21:17,944
on the promises of social justice
413
00:21:18,028 --> 00:21:21,448
or the promise of
a better, happier, successful self,
414
00:21:21,531 --> 00:21:26,161
they all use the same methods of control,
and they're all incredibly hard to escape.
415
00:21:26,244 --> 00:21:29,539
[Janja] It's hard to leave a cult
because it's your whole world.
416
00:21:29,622 --> 00:21:33,084
In time, the majority of cult members
will leave on their own,
417
00:21:33,168 --> 00:21:35,545
often when they discover
their infallible leader
418
00:21:35,628 --> 00:21:36,963
isn't so infallible.
419
00:21:37,088 --> 00:21:38,173
It was very commonplace
420
00:21:38,256 --> 00:21:42,427
for him to throw out a date
when the end of the world would be.
421
00:21:42,510 --> 00:21:46,056
If you look at his track record,
he was very inconsistent.
422
00:21:46,139 --> 00:21:49,309
Or when they find their guide
to a moral life is actually a hypocrite.
423
00:21:49,392 --> 00:21:53,396
They all took vows of celibacy,
pretended to keep those vows.
424
00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:55,774
Muktananda himself, I later learned
425
00:21:55,857 --> 00:22:00,278
that he was a very fervent,
prodigious sexual predator.
426
00:22:00,362 --> 00:22:03,448
Or when their constructed reality cracks.
427
00:22:03,531 --> 00:22:04,824
My dad passed away.
428
00:22:04,908 --> 00:22:08,036
The leadership allowed me
to go to his funeral.
429
00:22:08,119 --> 00:22:10,747
Just getting away from my situation
430
00:22:10,830 --> 00:22:13,458
and looking at things
from a different perspective,
431
00:22:13,541 --> 00:22:18,296
I said, "I have to-I have to get out,
and I have to get my kids out."
432
00:22:18,380 --> 00:22:22,092
The idea of leaving the cult
and going into that world,
433
00:22:22,175 --> 00:22:24,427
uh, is-is very terrifying.
434
00:22:24,511 --> 00:22:26,221
I remember being scared
to cross the street
435
00:22:26,304 --> 00:22:29,808
because I was afraid that, you know,
God would take my life.
436
00:22:29,891 --> 00:22:34,521
It's difficult also because you're not
used to making your own decisions.
437
00:22:34,604 --> 00:22:38,233
About seven or eight years ago,
I-I was in, like, a-a book club,
438
00:22:38,316 --> 00:22:42,320
and it was triggering, 'cause it was like,
"What do you think of this book?"
439
00:22:42,404 --> 00:22:46,157
And I-I was just getting agitated,
440
00:22:46,241 --> 00:22:48,827
and I could barely get a word out,
and I just stopped going.
441
00:22:48,910 --> 00:22:51,371
People I loved, something I believed in,
442
00:22:51,454 --> 00:22:56,000
was suddenly proven to be
just a delusion. You know?
443
00:22:56,084 --> 00:22:58,169
So you kind of hate yourself for that.
444
00:22:58,253 --> 00:22:59,838
It's going to be exhausting,
445
00:22:59,921 --> 00:23:02,882
and hopefully the person
will have a safe place
446
00:23:02,966 --> 00:23:04,467
to put their life together.
447
00:23:04,551 --> 00:23:08,680
The arrest and conviction of Keith Raniere
has allowed Catherine and India Oxenberg
448
00:23:08,763 --> 00:23:10,890
to begin the long process of recovery.
449
00:23:10,974 --> 00:23:14,477
Ultimately, we are completely reunited.
450
00:23:14,561 --> 00:23:15,603
It's a process.
451
00:23:15,687 --> 00:23:17,814
She understands that it impacted her
452
00:23:17,897 --> 00:23:21,985
and that she's not broken,
but she's not unscathed, either.
453
00:23:22,068 --> 00:23:24,320
Parts of myself
that I had tried to kill off,
454
00:23:24,404 --> 00:23:27,782
they started coming back,
and it's gonna sound ridiculous,
455
00:23:27,866 --> 00:23:32,829
but I began birdwatching,
and that was a part of my old identity.
456
00:23:32,912 --> 00:23:36,749
My survival instinct had not been crushed.
457
00:23:36,833 --> 00:23:40,003
And whatever it was gonna mean
for me to survive,
458
00:23:40,086 --> 00:23:41,880
that's what I was focusing on.
459
00:23:41,963 --> 00:23:43,631
You find other weirdos.
460
00:23:43,715 --> 00:23:47,135
You find other people who are--
who feel a little offbeat or different.
461
00:23:47,218 --> 00:23:49,220
I mean, I'm an artist already, so...
462
00:23:49,304 --> 00:23:51,681
a lot of artists--
we're all weirdos, right?
463
00:23:51,764 --> 00:23:53,641
So stone by stone that you turn over,
464
00:23:53,725 --> 00:23:57,520
you realize, like,
"Oh, there's really nothing to fear here,"
465
00:23:57,604 --> 00:24:00,482
and that I'm still, like, learning.
466
00:24:00,565 --> 00:24:04,152
I was starting from a blank slate
in my late 20s.
467
00:24:04,235 --> 00:24:07,447
I still feel like I have that-that ability
to learn new things
468
00:24:07,530 --> 00:24:09,782
that maybe some people my age don't have,
469
00:24:09,866 --> 00:24:12,494
and I think it's because
I will always want to learn,
470
00:24:12,577 --> 00:24:14,829
because I was deprived of learning.
471
00:24:14,954 --> 00:24:16,998
I decided when I was 21 or 22
472
00:24:17,081 --> 00:24:21,294
that I wanted to, really,
at some point in my life,
473
00:24:21,377 --> 00:24:24,756
be able to give back and to help people
474
00:24:24,839 --> 00:24:26,841
in a way that I didn't have when I left.
475
00:24:26,925 --> 00:24:29,093
Teaching them they can
make a choice for themselves,
476
00:24:29,177 --> 00:24:31,221
that they can do something
that's good for themselves,
477
00:24:31,304 --> 00:24:33,223
and they can be independent like that.
478
00:24:33,306 --> 00:24:37,727
You know, I'm a survivor,
and from pretty early on,
479
00:24:37,810 --> 00:24:40,438
I felt like every day that I survive,
480
00:24:40,522 --> 00:24:42,690
I was flaunting it in Jim's face.
481
00:24:42,774 --> 00:24:47,362
Laura Kohl returned to Guyana in 2018
with other Jonestown survivors,
482
00:24:47,445 --> 00:24:49,656
the lucky few who happened to be
away from Jonestown
483
00:24:49,739 --> 00:24:51,199
the day the tragedy occurred.
484
00:24:51,908 --> 00:24:55,328
I think that that's something
that doesn't get said enough.
485
00:24:55,411 --> 00:24:58,748
It's not Jim Jones and... and the people.
486
00:24:58,831 --> 00:25:01,668
It's 917 people and that other guy.
487
00:25:01,751 --> 00:25:03,545
[sniffs and laughs and sniffs]
488
00:25:08,716 --> 00:25:10,718
[closing music playing]