#this generation is SO EASY to manipulate and will fall SO EASILY for cult tactics i swear to god

[magnoliamyrrh]

i also love how this whole generation discusses enthusiastic consent and consent which isnt coerced at all and etc etc etc but they cant understand how consent cant be bought, especially when were talking abt +95% of cases of harsh poverty related prostitution. like. what the fuck is not clicking (why am i even asking whats not clicking; its that theyre literally so fucking afraid to think for themselves and to even question the dominant narratives theive been parroting that their entire brains just shut down ((because even questioning these things already makes you the worst person ever in the groups they hang out in)) just repete the mantra babes! sex work is work! just repete the mantra, mindlessly! you say something enough times and it becomes true!)

[akari-hope]

okay actually that post that’s like “there are people who can resist cult recruitment tactics and see through it” really does rub me the wrong way. i know what the op meant, that being informed and vigilant does allow you to more easily identify the warning signs. and that’s true and good and i’m not knocking it at all - being informed is your best defense.

however. it bugs me that that post seems to imply a few things: that being naive is the reason people get sucked into cults, the cult leader is the main recruiter, and that the signs are always obvious enough to identify. bc none of these things are true, and it honestly comes across as kind of victim blame-y.

i really want to stress that there is ZERO shame in falling for that sort of thing. cults use highly manipulative techniques that are shockingly easy to utilize and even easier to be roped in by. the blame is not on the manipulated, it is on the manipulator. it’s also not a singular person doing the manipulating - it is often the group at large that reinforces beliefs and behaviors. peer pressure is far stronger an incentive to get in line than a single person laying down the law. and groups that are good at getting people into their shit do not present themselves as cult-y on the surface. 

they will often present themselves as kind, generous, good samaritans. it’s often behavior that is initially completely harmless. the progression of showing the cult-like behavior is slow, so slow that most people do not notice as it begins to grow more and more extreme. and mind you, it’s not always as extreme as you may expect based on the most famous and prolific cults. and it is not always some religious death cult, or even always religious. cults can be based around anything. maybe you’re a firm atheist and think you’d never get roped into a religious cult, and maybe you’re right. but you are NOT immune to being roped into cult-like groups that are not religious. there are political cults. celebrity cults. fucking fitness cults. you name it, there is a cult-like group for it. implying that other people are stupid or naive for getting sucked in is cruel, and pretending that you would never be susceptible is just plain fallacy. that’s not overstating the power of cults, it’s a genuine reminder that you are not the immune genius you think you are.

tldr, cults and cult-like behavior are way more prominent than you think and no one is immune to falling for their tactics. blaming their victims is cruel and hypocritical; it could just as easily have been you.

[howwelldoyouknowyourmoon]

Growing Up Moonie

Hideo Higashibaba left the cult he was born into when he was 22 years old. The Unification Church, the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, also known as the Moonies, was founded in Korea by a man named Sun Myung Moon who proclaimed he was the Second Coming of Christ. In Growing Up Moonie Hideo asks people he grew up with what their childhoods were like and shares his struggles to make sense of his weird sheltered youth and the person he grew up to be. Edited and co-produced by Quinn Myers.

If you would like a transcript of any of these episodes please email Hideo at growingupmoonie @ gmail.com.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/growing-up-moonie/id1453725149

Trailer 2 minutes Join cult survivor Hideo Higashibaba as he talks with people who were also born into the Unification Church, aka the Moonies. Growing Up Moonie is a podcast of stories of the awkwardness, pain, struggles, and even a little hope that can come from growing up in a cult.

Episode 1: Have You Heard of the Moonies? 10 m When Hideo Higashibaba left the Moonies he had no idea how he was going to survive without them. He wondered if other kids born into the church had as much trouble adjusting to adulthood, even if they didn’t leave. In this first episode Hideo reflects on his own strange origins and the history of the Moonies.

Episode 2: Jenn 25 m Hideo and Jenn grew up going to church, Sunday school, and church camp together, but they had wildly different home lives. Hideo talks with Jenn about the pressures, guilt, and strict rules that guarded the childhoods of second generation Moonies.

Episode 3: The Mythology of Reverend Sun Myung Moon 18 m Sun Myung Moon was born the son of poor farmers in present-day North Korea and by the time he died ruled a global cult and was a billionaire. Hideo digs into some of the stories and legends surrounding the charismatic leader of the Moonies.

Episode 4: Teruko 28 m In the early days of the Moonies, members all lived together in centers across the country and world. But when the second generation were born many families decided to move out and try something new: being totally separate from and yet a part of society. That’s what the second generation had to juggle, all the time and every day. Hideo and Teruko talk about the struggle to understand identity and belonging as the second generation.

Episode 5: Ritual in the Unification Church 15 m In the textbook definition of a cult, a group must have three things: a charismatic leader, insider/outsider identity, and shared ritual. In this episode, Hideo shares some of the rituals of the Moonies and what he had to leave behind.

Episode 6: Katie 25 m Katie and Hideo talk about Katie’s recent marriage to another second generation, the struggle to live the values of the church, and the innate need for belonging.

Episode 7: Hideo 28 m In this final episode Hideo shares his reasons for leaving the Unification and all he lost—and gained—when he left.

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Growing Up Moonie Details Life Inside the Unification Church

REVIEW by Nic Dobija-Nootens

excerpt:

Moonies, like other cult members, can’t easily leave because their lives, identities, and families are so deeply entwined in the Unification Church. The sense that every member is part of one enormous “true family” is a great source of comfort and inspiration for many involved, but it’s also a manipulative tactic to scare people into staying.

Although Higashibaba started questioning his beliefs in high school, he didn’t leave the Unification Church until years later, because it would also entail cutting himself off from his family. When he finally left in college, he relied on support from non-Moonie friends to help him through his depression and self-reckoning.

Although there are documentaries, TV specials, and miniseries about cults, they often overlook the everyday individuals living and struggling through them. Instead, they demonstrate the bizarreness of the charismatic leader or emphasize the shocked public perception. By not focusing on Sun Myung Moon, or the Unification Church’s millions of dollars worth of investments and business dealings, the show strikes a brilliantly human connection. Ultimately, that connection is more devastating to bear than any flashy exposé.

Higashibaba grew up seeing the Moonies and other cults made fun of in sitcoms and comedy movies, and he found it maddening. “As somebody who used to be in a cult watching this, I felt very othered, and a lot like a zoo animal,” he said. “Like, ‘Look at these weird people and the weird stuff they believe.’ It’s all quite dehumanizing.” Growing Up Moonie is now one way for those people to be seen, and an honest look at a difficult group for the rest of us.

“Cults are really fun to cover because they seem uncomplicated, but actually they aren’t,” he said. “There’s so many stories of broken hearts because of them and in other cult media I never got to see the heartbreak that I have experienced in it, and I wanted that to be in the story.”

LINK to full review

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Excellent story telling – lane_c_97, 03/09/2019

As a former moonie myself (and someone who briefly knew the Massachusetts community Hideo grew up in) I found this to be fair, thoroughly informative, well organized, and beautifully honest. Hideo makes a unique story that is so particular to a few people around the world accessible to many more. And the experiences described and the questions then raised are important enough for anyone to consider. Thank you Hideo.

Compelling, compassionate, and vulnerable – Ju1iu$, 03/09/2019

I couldn’t stop listening to this podcast once I started. Painful and complex personal stories told with compassion and vulnerable honesty.

Despite how easy it may be to condemn this abusive and manipulative cult, Hideo expertly and tenderly unwraps the layered experiences of the folks who actually live/d it, including his own. The blurring mix of hate, control, and abuse mixed with community, closeness, and the comfort of superiority. The free-fall cliff dive of leaving the cult, family and community, along with every truth that ever felt solid in life. Why folks choose to leave or sort of leave or even stay.

Beautifully written, produced, and edited. Highly recommend.

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Growing Up Moonie, And What Comes Next

Hideo Higashibaba was born into the Unification Church (which is now known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification). Its members were commonly known as “Moonies” because of their devotion to the self-proclaimed messiah Rev. Sun Myung Moon.

Hideo talks with host Lee Hale about why he decided to delve into his painful past, and what he learned from it.

Podcast: https://www.kuer.org/post/growing-moonie-and-what-comes-next#stream/0

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Writings of former FFWPU / Unification Church members Many recount their experiences in the organization or their journeys out of it

Investigations into the Sun Myung Moon organization – Unification Church, Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, CARP, UPF, IAPP, etc.