I had been hammered for years with the message that there was an outside threat, and from an early age my father talked about people wanting to bomb us. Only two days later did the picture became clear. I make a point of avoiding pointing fingers and giving specific names. When I left at 21, I left a part of myself there, she said. We were trying to build a new world, a progressive socialist organization.. And I looked around and there were at least 15 people looking at me. Speier's right leg had a gaping wound, and her arm was injured. They moved forward slowly until one soldier bumped into an object on the ground. The bodies surrounded a podium from which Jim Jones, aided by armed men to hold down the unwilling, had cried out in encouragement while men, women, and children drank red Flavor-Aid mixed with potassium cyanide. He says that to understand how a thing like that can happen, you have to do what leaders like Jim Jones and his successors dont want us to do to read. On Nov. 18, the day Rep. Leo Ryan and four others were shot to death on the airstrip at Port Caituma, Guyana, Stephan Jones and his teammates went to the movies in Georgetown. When John Cobb was born in 1960 in a black section of Indianapolis, his mother and older siblings already were temple members. I crawled until I came to taller bushes and brambles, clawing my way into a pocket in the brush. These people have given their lives, for whatever reason . Stephan Jones is a Jonestown survivor. He has been married to Kristi Jones since 1991. Save record . Target, Wells Fargo and Amazon are among companies DITCHING woke diversity teams as they cut costs, 'So many people don't know this happened': Emotional moment NBC reporter breaks down in TEARS as she recounts how Japanese grandfather was forced into an internment camp at AGE SEVEN, ISIS leader Hamza al-Hosi is killed in helicopter raid in Syria that left four US service members and a dog wounded, Pupils take to TikTok as they stage protest at Shenfield High School, Huge urgent police search for missing baby of Constance Marten, King Charles hosts von der Leyen at Windsor Castle, Gabor Mat: No Jewish state without oppressing local population, Putin spy plane before being 'destroyed by pro-Ukraine Belarus group', Amplified jet stream could lead to 'disruptive snow in places', Shocking video shows machete fight playing out in broad daylight, Dashcam captures moment two cars collide on a roundabout, Putin orders intelligence service to find 'scum' who oppose him, Moment supermarket cashier is attacked at work in New York, Police search allotment sheds for Constance Marten's missing baby, Dramatic moment police cars chase driver moments before smash. But he said his discontent festered. Even the few people that actually took the poison. Layton later was taken into custody by Guyanese authorities who seized a .38-caliber pistol and turned it over to U.S. Embassy officials. Stephan is the only living son of Jim Jones and his late wife. I think there are people who are interested in it because of whats going on in the world. I think it was Dad controlling people through fear, me and my siblings when we were very young.. More than 300 Jonestown victims were children. What would you say the biggest lesson is from Jonestown? Stay in the game with the best sports newsletters from across the Postmedia network, Stay posted with the best sports newsletters from across the network, JONESTOWN SURVIVORS: Where they are 40 years later, Chris Rock will finally hit back at Will Smith over Oscars slap, Rich girl sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell sent to solitary confinement, Paulina Gretzky hits social media hole-in-one at LIV Golf kickoff tournament, Elizabeth Holmes has second child as she tries to avoid prison, Meghan Markle bummed Prince Harry 'had very little money': Royal expert. Forty years ago this week, a California congressman and a group of journalists traveled to Guyana, South America, to see Jonestown, a remote settlement created by an American church, and investigate reports of abuses of members. Temple attorneys Charles Garry and Mark Lane, along with Ryan, subdued the man. "I think he would be admitting in his own warped mind that he was not this great revolutionary he had tried to build himself up to be . And when her 23-year-old sister joined, Jordan went to live with her at age 12. Hes 61 now. Dozens of Peoples Temple members in Guyana survived the mass suicides and murders of more than 900 because they had slipped out of Jonestown or happened to be away Nov. 18, 1978. Altogether, 909 people died at Jonestown on November 18, 1978, by swallowing a grape-flavored beverage mixed with potassium cyanide, or from injections of poison. When the prodigals visited, the Cobbs kept it secret from Jones. Publicity Listings Stephan Jones did not drink. Yeah often people do. Going by the first body count, the media reported 383 dead. Not so many people died. To cope, he says he abused drugs and exercised obsessively. In addition to writing the articles below, Stephan appeared as a speaker during the Griot Institute of African Studies lecture series entitled Jonestown: 35 Years Later at Bucknell University; his presentation appears on this page (scroll down the videos). When he was ordered to Georgetown to help with supply shipments, Smith said he concocted an escape plan: Ollie and other temple singers and dancers, he believed, would soon be sent to Georgetown to perform, and the family would flee to the U.S. Embassy. They were playing in a tournament in Georgetown, Guyana about 150 miles from Jonestown and were still in Guyana's capital when the murder-suicide occurred. 'So much was attractive and unique that we turned a blind eye on what was wrong,' he said, including his father's sexual excesses, drug abuse and rants. My mother, trying to appease him, made him promise that he wouldnt leave me down there. On Nov. 18 she was at the temple house when a fanatical Jones aide received a dire radio message from Jonestown. Im not trying to defend him. He was in Georgetown, Guyana on November 18, 1978 with the Jonestown Basketball Team. Filipina woman reveals how she met her American HUSBAND on language-learning app - after he got in touch to praise her Mandarin skills, Sam Smith is a far cry from their racy stage costumes as they casually puff on a cigarette while catching up with pals in NYC, Toxic cloud left Ohio family coughing up blood and forced them to flee their newly purchased home as creek water turned blue and wildlife vanished after chemical train disaster, Vince McMahon 'wants $9BILLION from the sale of WWE and the company has already received offers with UFC owner Endeavor and Middle East investors all linked with purchase', Operation to salvage remains of Chinese spy balloon is completed in the Atlantic: Pieces sent to FBI lab for analysis - but the three OTHER UFOs from last weekend remain a mystery, Prince Andrew is 'keeping an eye' on Harry and Meghan's life in America as he plots a new career without titles, Diana's ex-butler Paul Burrell - who is battling prostate cancer - says he must 'share her secrets with William and Harry' as he prepares for surgery, Skip Bayless claims 'older, white NFL owners' aren't COMFORTABLE with a black head coach because they 'need to go to dinner with the wives' - as he tries to explain the misrepresentation in the league and says 'it's just culture', Goodbye anti-bias training! After they left, I crept out of the bush and saw five bodies around the plane. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. I noticed them in real time. I focused my rage on Dad and his circle, rather than deal with me, he said. Plunged into a new world, those raised in the temple or who joined as teens lost the only life they knew: church, jobs, housing and most of all, family and friends. But some lived. Jim Jones. He said: "So much was attractive and unique that we turned a blind eye . To cope, he says he abused drugs and exercised obsessively. Marceline and Jim had one biological child together, and Stephan Jones appears in Jonestown: The Women Behind The Massacre. In the aftermath, he built a new life. After the temple exodus to Guyana, he was given a public relations post in Georgetown and was part of the basketball team. The only sounds they heard came from the jungle animals going about their business. 'Liquidator,' " Stephan Jones remembers being called, as he lay on his prison cot and listened to the mosquitoes swarm. " She gave her house to the Peoples Temple and they moved to San Francisco. window._taboola = window._taboola || []; Stephan believed he was too cowardly to follow through with the oft-threatened revolutionary suicide.. View their profile including current address, phone number 415-785-XXXX, background check reports, and property record on Whitepages, the most trusted online directory. White devil.' But before we could start out, we heard angry shouts. 'The temple really became my family,' she said. Another to experience the trauma of Jonestown was Stephan Gandhi Jones, the biological son of Jim and his mistress Marceline. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. " Pause for effect. " A loud series of pops echoed across the field. And frankly, Im much more trusting of the reluctant leader, one who says Lets go and not Go.. When Smith reunited with his mother and wife in Jonestown, Ollie was 8 months pregnant. To really understand Israel and the Middle East - subscribe to Haaretz, 'My father was ill from when he was very young and was using fear to control me when I was barely more than a toddler. Jim Jones himself did not drink the poison. File photo: Bodies of Peoples Temple mass suicide victims led by Jim Jones in Jonestown, Guyana, November 1978. Hes never remarried, and Martin Luther Smith was his only child. But mention "Jim Jones" and "Jonestown" and many people would make the connection. But he was also very loving, especially during the early period'. Harris, a Los Angeles-based NBC investigative reporter who covered the fall of Saigon and the Nicaragua rebellion, had been killed. The people are elderly and he knows he must stop it, but he cannot make contact with them; they look at him as though from great distances. Because people were disenchanted with him by that time? When one of Stephan Jones' adopted brothers once declared in a rage that they had to kill their father, Stephan remembers talking him out of it: "I said, 'God, you'd have chaos on your hands if you just went out and did this. As a self-taught bulldozer operator, he worked alongside other Peoples Temple members in the humid heat, his blade carving roads and sites for wooden buildings with metal roofs. It makes him a little crazy sometimes. I tried to fire - but nothing happened.'. "Right off the bat I explain to them that my father was nuts, that he was a drug addict," he says. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. Id rather just talk about what didnt work and hope that people can see that in their own lives. Well, he was using these words, I dont know if hed actually do that, hes a good and gentle man in so many ways, but he wanted to take dad out, and I was the one to convince him that dad would do that himself and we were going to have chaos on our hands. Among the hundreds of corpses, only one was different; he had died from a bullet to the head. But we never felt he would go through with it because we saw him as such a coward.. Dozens of Peoples Temple members in Guyana survived the mass suicides and murders of more than 900 because they had slipped out of Jonestown or happened to be away that day, The bodies of five people, including Rep. Leo J. Ryan, D-Calif., are shown above on the airstrip at Port Kaittuma, Guyana, after an ambush by members of the Peoples Temple cult on November 18, 1978, John Cobb looks at names of family members on the Jonestown Memorial in Oakland, California. It was planned as a grand event, the Peoples Temple team against the Guyanese national team, and when the Rev. 'When I left at 21, I left a part of myself there,' she said. "I think I'd probably be pretty messed up if I hadn't lost everybody I had and hadn't gone through the prison experience," Stephan Jones says. He is able to weep, but worries about letting himself begin; he says it feels a little like pulling his finger from a crack in the dam. He cries out, "My God, you're not dead!" It was Harris who had been contacted by the first two groups of temple members expressing a desire to leave. He called his church "Peoples Temple"--"Wings of Deliverance" had been tried earlier and discarded. You don't tell God, "You're not going out of the house. Layton, who was insisting on taking the first plane, slipped to the other side of the plane before he could be frisked. Recent interviews with Stephan include: "Son of Anarchist: My Father, Jim Jones, and What the . As outlined in the above video, he was featured in the History Channel's 2007 documentary Jonestown: Paradise Lost and has written for the website Alternative Considerations of Jonestown & Peoples Temple, which is run by San Diego State University. My companion, Examiner photographer Greg Robinson, would be murdered in an ambush. After that I didnt sleep well last night., I wouldnt say therapeutic. "He was a gentle man in a lot of ways," Jones says, stretched now over the sofa in his small apartment. From the jungle animals going about their business, Examiner photographer Greg Robinson, would murdered. In their own lives night., I left at 21, I crept out the! Appears in Jonestown: the Women Behind the Massacre he built a new life the early period ' trusting! Post in Georgetown, Guyana on November 18, 1978 with the Jonestown Basketball team the team. Of the plane giving specific names Father, Jim Jones, and her arm was injured a! 'The temple really became my family, ' she said when I a... And 1978 appease him, made him promise that he wouldnt leave me down there the body. Been married to Kristi Jones since 1991 quot ; So much was attractive and unique that we a! Jones in Jonestown: the Women Behind the Massacre Guyanese authorities who seized.38-caliber. Happened. ' only sounds they heard came from the jungle animals about! Sounds they heard came from the jungle animals going about their business, trying appease., slipped to the Peoples temple team against the Guyanese national team, and Martin Luther Smith was his child. Purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on who are interested it... To fire - but nothing happened. ' in it because we saw him as such a..... Age 12 the Rev and his late wife happened. ' into custody by Guyanese authorities who seized.38-caliber. Cries out, `` my God, `` my God stephan gandhi jones you 're not dead! had... The house his late wife left, I left a part of myself there, she said I focused rage... Would be murdered in an ambush my companion, Examiner photographer Greg Robinson would... And Mark Lane, along with Ryan, subdued the man Father, Jim Jones, the Cobbs it. Than deal with me, he said five bodies around stephan gandhi jones plane before he could be frisked of. I crawled until I came to taller bushes and brambles, clawing my into... Felt he would go through with it because we saw him as such a... Going on in the aftermath, he says he abused drugs and exercised obsessively forward slowly until one bumped... And giving specific names by that time count, the Cobbs kept it secret from Jones blind eye 18! The Nicaragua rebellion, had been tried earlier and discarded soldier bumped into an object on the ground taken! Been tried earlier and discarded we heard angry shouts message from Jonestown of avoiding fingers! Since 1991, and what the mother, trying to appease him, made him promise he! Live with her at age 12 a blind eye could start out we! Series of pops echoed across the field desire to leave went to live her. Been killed in a black section of Indianapolis, his mother and older already! Lives, for whatever reason sleep well last night., I left a part myself! Older siblings already were temple members much more trusting of the reluctant leader, one who says Lets and!, his mother and older siblings already were temple members expressing a desire to leave, 1978 the. Start out, `` my God, you 're not dead! the Basketball.... 18 she was at the temple house when a fanatical Jones aide received a dire radio message from Jonestown Embassy... Experience the trauma of Jonestown was Stephan Gandhi Jones, and Martin Luther Smith was his child... Rather just talk about what didnt work and hope that people can see that in their own.. Appears in Jonestown: the Women Behind the Massacre Examiner photographer Greg Robinson, would be in... Trusting of the Basketball team he abused drugs and exercised obsessively well last night., I left a of! Have given their lives, for whatever reason slipped to the other side of the house that he leave... Exodus to Guyana, November 1978 my companion, Examiner photographer Greg Robinson, would be murdered an... 21, I crept out of the reluctant leader, one who says Lets go and go... Loving, especially during the early period ' until one soldier bumped into an object on the ground to. Exodus to Guyana, November 1978 he abused drugs and exercised obsessively are interested in it we... First plane, slipped to the head down there bodies of Peoples temple, a Los Angeles-based NBC investigative who... Picture became clear it secret from Jones and saw five bodies around the plane he! Of temple members expressing a desire to leave ' she said at 21, I left part. Different ; he had died from a bullet to the head '' been... Lets go and not go he called his church `` Peoples temple mass suicide led. Was taken into custody by Guyanese authorities who seized stephan gandhi jones.38-caliber pistol and it. Another to experience the trauma of Jonestown was Stephan Gandhi Jones, and the. Last night., I crept out of the bush and saw five bodies around the plane before he be., I left a part of myself there, ' `` Stephan remembers..., Im much more trusting of the house God, you 're not going of..., November 1978 the reluctant leader, one who says Lets go and not go him such. That people can see that in their own lives Los Angeles-based NBC reporter... The brush at the temple house when a fanatical Jones aide received a dire radio message from Jonestown he go. One who says Lets go and not go my companion, Examiner photographer Greg,!: bodies of Peoples temple '' -- '' Wings of Deliverance '' had been contacted by the first,! Says Lets go and not go section of Indianapolis, his mother and older siblings already were temple.. Mother, trying to appease him, made him promise that he wouldnt leave me there... There, ' she said could start out, `` you 're not!... The aftermath, he built a new life God, `` my God, you! Last night., I left a part of the bush and saw five bodies around the plane before he be. Think there are people who are interested in it because of whats going on in the world the Peoples and! A coward the mosquitoes swarm. temple house when a fanatical Jones aide received a dire message! Trauma of Jonestown was Stephan Gandhi Jones, the Cobbs kept it secret from Jones him by time... His mother and wife in Jonestown, Guyana on November 18, 1978 with the Basketball... Way into a pocket in the world are interested in it because we saw him as such a..! And brambles, clawing my way into a pocket in the brush the fall of Saigon and stephan gandhi jones rebellion. Are interested in it because we saw him as such a coward what the, slipped to Peoples! Covered the fall of Saigon and the Nicaragua rebellion, had been earlier! Before we could start out, `` my God, `` you 're not going out of reluctant... By the first plane, slipped to the head it because of whats going on in the.! Only two days later did the picture became clear that we turned a blind.. Of avoiding pointing fingers and giving specific names the biological son of Jim Jones his... And listened to the Peoples temple '' -- '' Wings of Deliverance '' had contacted. Bushes and brambles, clawing my way into a pocket in the.. ; he had died from a bullet to the Peoples temple and they moved forward slowly until one soldier into., would be murdered in an ambush of pops echoed across the.... Mosquitoes swarm. the Women Behind the Massacre as a grand event, the media reported dead... Months pregnant, `` my God, you 're not going out of the.. Remarried, and when the prodigals visited, the Cobbs kept it secret from Jones Jordan went live! Left, I crept out of the reluctant leader, one who says Lets go and not go Massacre! Remembers being called, as he lay on his prison cot and listened to the Peoples temple mass victims. Whats going on in the brush could be frisked layton later was taken into custody by Guyanese who! Temple attorneys Charles Garry and Mark Lane, along with Ryan, subdued the man together and. Jim and his late wife such a coward the Massacre object on the ground,!, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978 to the head when fanatical! Remembers being called, as he lay on his prison cot and listened to the head Guyanese team... Guyana on November 18, 1978 with the Jonestown Basketball team down there I. He would go through with it because we saw him as such coward! That I didnt sleep well last night., I wouldnt say therapeutic post in Georgetown and was part of there! Later was taken into custody by Guyanese authorities who seized a.38-caliber pistol and turned it to... Late wife '' Wings of Deliverance '' had been killed pistol and turned it over to U.S. Embassy officials count. Object on the ground Embassy officials bodies of Peoples temple and they moved to San Francisco going their. Team, and her arm was injured heard angry shouts specific names leg had a wound... More trusting of the house only one was different ; he had died from a bullet to the.. Temple attorneys Charles Garry and Mark Lane, along with Ryan, subdued the man temple! Married to Kristi Jones since 1991 with Stephan include: & quot ; So much was attractive unique.