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#REDIRECT ] |
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{{suicide}} |
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A '''cult suicide''' is a term used to describe the ] by the members of groups that have been considered ]s. |
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<ref>*"Suicide Terrorists: Are They Suicidal?" Ellen Townsend. ''Suicide & Life - Threatening Behavior''. New York: Feb 2007. Vol. 37, Iss. 1; pg. 35, 15 pgs: "There are some other examples of suicides involving group (e.g., cult suicides) and dyadic (e.g., suicide pacts) processes; but these are very rare."<BR> |
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*"Leadership races need a little drama"; Tim Harper. ''Toronto Star''. Toronto, Ont.: Apr 19, 2003. pg. F.02: "... a vote for Campbell was akin to the party drinking its Kool-Aid, a stunning reference to the mass cult suicide at Jonestown in Guyana." |
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*"Suicidal credo that came from the West" Sam Kiley. ''The Times''. London (UK): Mar 20, 2000. pg. 3:"Until the weekend, suicidal doomsday cults were seen by Africans as a decadent Western luxury. But the deaths of more than 230 ordinary Ugandans ranks as the second-largest cult suicide in recent times."</ref> In some cases, all or nearly all members have committed suicide at the same time and place. Groups that have committed such mass suicides and that have been called cults include ], ], and ] (in the ] incident). In other cases, such as the ], a group has apparently supported mass suicide without necessarily encouraging all members to participate. |
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{{Redirect category shell| |
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==Known cult suicides== |
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{{R to subtopic}} |
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===Peoples Temple=== |
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{{Main|Jonestown}} |
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{{R to section}} |
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}} |
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On November 18, 1978, 918 Americans died in ]-related incidents, including 909 members of the Temple, led by ], in ], ].<ref> , excerpt from: Report of a Staff Investigative Group to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives, May 15, 1979</ref> The dead included 303 children. A tape of the Temple's final meeting in a Jonestown pavilion contains repeated discussions of the group committing "revolutionary suicide," including reference to people taking the poison and the vats to be used.<ref name=tape> ''Alternative Considerations of Jonestown and Peoples Temple''. San Diego State University.</ref> On that tape, Jones tells Temple members that ], with whom the Temple had been negotiating a potential exodus for months, would not take them after the Temple had murdered ] ], NBC reporter ] and three others at a nearby airstrip.<ref name=tape/> When members apparently cried, Jones counseled "Stop this hysterics. This is not the way for people who are Socialists or Communists to die. No way for us to die. We must die with some dignity."<ref name=tape/> At the end of the tape, Jones concludes: "We didn't commit suicide, we committed an act of revolutionary suicide protesting the conditions of an inhumane world."<ref name=tape/> The people in Jonestown died of an apparent cyanide poisoning, except for Jones (injury consistent with self-inflicted gunshot wound) and his personal nurse.<ref></ref> The Temple had spoken of committing "revolutionary suicide" in prior instances, and members had previously drunk what Jones told them was poison at least once before, but the "Flavor Aid" drink they ingested contained no poison.<ref>Layton, Deborah. (1998) '']''. Anchor, 1999. ISBN 0-385-48984-6.</ref> Concurrently, four other members died in the Temple's headquarters in ]. |
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===Solar Temple=== |
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From 1994 to 1997, the ]'s members began a series of mass suicides, which led to roughly 74 deaths. Farewell letters were left by members, stating that they believed their deaths would be an escape from the "hypocrisies and oppression of this world." Added to this they felt they were "moving on to ]." Records seized by the ] police showed that some members had personally donated over $1 million to the cult's leader, ]. |
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There was also another attempted mass suicide of the remaining members, which was thwarted in the late 1990s. All the suicide/murders and attempts occurred around the dates of the ] and ], which likely held some relation to the beliefs of the group.<ref>, Religious Tolerance.org, Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref><ref>, ], Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref><ref> |
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Stephen Dafoe & Templar History Magazine, 2002, Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref><ref>, CBC News, Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref><ref>Katherine Ramsland, , Crime Library, , Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref> |
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===Heaven's Gate=== |
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On March 26, 1997, 39 followers of ] died in a mass suicide in ], which borders ] to the north. These people believed, according to the teachings of their cult, that through their suicides they were "exiting their human vessels" so that their souls could go on a journey aboard a spaceship they believed to be following ].<ref>Jonathan Broder, , Salon/March 28, 1997</ref> Some male members of the cult underwent voluntary ] in preparation for the genderless life they believed awaited them after the suicide.<ref>, CNN, March 28, 1997, per Rick Ross</ref> |
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On March 30, 1997, Thomas Nichols, younger brother<ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/712/000023643/</ref> of actress ], was discovered dead in his California trailer, with a note nearby that read in part "I'm going to the spaceship with Hale-Bopp to be with those who have gone before me." Using propane gas to end his life, Nichols, like the members of Heaven's Gate, had his head covered by a plastic bag and his upper torso covered with a purple shroud. Nichols' connection with the cult is unknown. |
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In May 1997, two Heaven's Gate members who had not been present for the mass suicide attempted suicide, one completing in the attempt, the other going into ] for two days and then recovering.<ref>"Two More Search For Heaven's Gate", The Associated Press, May 6, 1997, per Rick Ross</ref> In February 1998 the survivor, Chuck Humphrey, committed suicide.<ref>"Ex-Heaven's Gate member is found dead", ], February 21, 1998, per Rick Ross</ref> |
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==Disputed cult suicides== |
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===Branch Davidians=== |
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{{main|Waco siege}} |
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On April 19, 1993, the ] siege of the ] near ] ended with an assault and subsequent ] that destroyed the compound and killed most of the inhabitants. During the siege, highly concentrated C.S. gas and pyrotechnic "]" grenades<ref>, ] August 27, 1999</ref> were fired.<ref>Carol Moore, , Ch. 10, "''The Davidian Massacre''"</ref> |
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Some believe these devices ignited the gasoline stockpiled inside the building. |
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Richard L. Sherrow, a fire and explosion investigator hired by plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit to investigate the cause of the fire stated in his conclusion that "the fire originated in the southeast corner tower from the tipping of a lit Coleman-type lantern which fell onto combustible materials, most likely bedding materials, as the room was utilized as sleeping quarters, and was most likely caused by violent contact or mechanical shock associated with the ] removing the corner of the southeast tower directly under the point of origin."<ref>, In The United States District Court, For The Southern District Of Texas, Houston Division</ref> |
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The mainstream media reported immediately after the fire that the Branch Davidians, when being overrun, started fires, and therefore this incident was a "cult suicide" or even a ] perpetrated by the leaders. However, some independent journalists, academics, and other experts contend that the fires could have been an accident or result of a panic. {{Citation needed|date=April 2011}} |
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===The Family International=== |
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At the beginning of 2005, ] gained renewed media attention due to the premeditated<ref>, Ricky Rodriguez</ref> ] of former member ], biological son of current leader ] and informally adopted son of the group's founder, ]. It revived allegations that the group is abusive and inciting of suicidal ideation. Thus his death was widely called a "suicide of a cult member", or "cult suicide", though this view was far from universal. The event made it to popular culture in oblique references in ] shows '']'' and '']''. <ref>, episode originally aired March 30, 2005, Footnote TV, Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref> |
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Defenders of the group contend that Rodriguez's behavior was not typical of the group, and that there is no evidence their members are more suicidal than those in mainstream society.<ref>, The Family International, Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref> |
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=== Heide === |
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Heide Fittkau-Garthe, a German psychologist, and a previously high-profile ], were charged in the ] with a plot of ] in which 32 group members, including five children, were to ingest poison. After the suicides, they were told they would be picked up by a spaceship and taken to an unspecified destination.<ref>Rod Usher, , '']'', January 19, 1998 Vol. 151 No. 3</ref> Suicide was to take place in the ]. It seems that the sect had no official name, although it was referred to as "]" in honor of its founder. However a more recent article in Tenerife News casts doubt that there was any intention on the part of the group to commit suicide.<ref>, Tenerife News Online, Retrieved, 2007-10-13</ref> |
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=== Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God === |
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On March 17, 2000, 778 members of the ] died in ].<ref name="POISON">Cult in Uganda Poisoned Many, Police Say ''New York Times'' July 28, 2000</ref> The theory that all of the members died in a mass suicide was changed to mass murder when decomposing bodies were discovered in pits with signs of strangulation while others had stab wounds.<ref>New Vision, "Kanungu Dead Poisoned", Matthias Mugisha, July 28, 2000.</ref> The group had diverged from the ] in order to emphasize ] and alleged ].<ref>Logan Nakyanzi, , ], Feb. 14, 2000(?)</ref> The group had been called an inward-looking movement that wore matching uniforms and restricted their speech to avoid saying anything dishonest or sinful.<ref>Massimo Introvigne, , CESNUR, Retrieved 2007-10-13</ref><ref>, ], 29 March, 2000</ref> On the suicide itself locals said they held a party at which 70 crates of soft drinks and three bulls were consumed.<ref>Simon Robinson, , '']'', Mar 26, 2000</ref> |
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This version of events has been criticized, most notably by Irving Hexham,<ref>Irving Hexham, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Calgary, , Religion in the News, Vol. 3, No. 2, Summer 2000, pp. 7-9 and 24</ref> and a Ugandan source states that even today "no one can really explain the whys, hows, whats, where, when, etcetera."<ref>Gerald Businge, , UG Pulse, March 17, 2007</ref> |
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===Falun Gong=== |
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{{main|Falun Gong|Tiananmen Square self-immolation incident}} |
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On January 23, 2001, six people ] in ], Beijing. The official Chinese press agency, ], stated that five members of Falun Gong, a banned spiritual movement, set themselves on fire to protest the unfair treatment of Falun Gong by the Chinese government. Falun Gong sources disputed the accuracy of these portrayals, noting that Falun Gong's teachings explicitly forbid violence or suicide. The Falun Dafa Information Center suggested the incident was staged by the Chinese government to turn public opinion against the group and to justify the ].<ref name="FDI_PressRelease">{{cite web |url=http://www.clearwisdom.net/eng/2001/jan/23/vsf012301_3.html |title=Press Statement |publisher=Clearwisdom |date=23 January 2001 |accessdate=9 February 2007}}</ref><ref> Falun Dafa Information Center, Jan 19, 2011</ref> |
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== See also == |
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{{wikisource|The Effects of Religious Cults on the Health and Welfare of Their Converts}} |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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== Footnotes == |
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{{Reflist}} |
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== External links == |
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* World Health Organisation |
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* ReligiousTolerance.org |
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* by Barry Isaacson |
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{{Cult suicide}} |
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{{New Religious Movements, Cults, and Sects}} |
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{{Branch Davidians}} |
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{{Heavensgate}} |
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{{Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God}} |
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{{Order of the Solar Temple}} |
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{{Peoples Temple}} |
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] |
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] |
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] |
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] |
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