Anthro Insights Stories

  • The Cult Next Door. Growing up in The Geftakys Assembly.

    Strange Neighbors We all knew there was something off about our neighbors. Their daughter, Lindsay, was my age, and we immediately struck up a friendship. I appreciated her intelligence, strangeness, and her rebellious spirit. I knew there were things she wanted to tell me but couldn’t. Most specifically, that she was being raised in an…

  • The End Times (It gets weird). I hacked the Book of Revelation so your Cult Leader doesn’t have to.

    Cults are obsessed with the Book of Revelation. Why? Because it’s scary as hell. The controversial final book of the Bible literally details the end of the world. With its terrifying imagery and horror movie timeline, so-called prophets are able to morph it into whatever narrative they choose. Nearly every Bible-based group (COG, JH, LDS,…

  • It’s easy to feel sorry for Nancy Salzman?

    “From all the former NXIVM members I’ve met, and believe me, I’ve met a lot of them, NO ONE has had anything nice to say about Nancy Salzman.”– Janja Lalich I re-watched The Vow (Season 2) last night and thought I might flush out some of my impressions. The star of this season cuts a pitiful figure;…

  • The Bizarre Asceticism of Aum Shinrikyo

    ” Do your training, Do your training, Do your training, Do your training, Do your training, Do your training, Do your training …” Why is asceticism such an optimal tenet for cultic groups? To begin with, it establishes a series of challenges the follower must overcome. For every test passed, a deeper devotion to the…

  • His Last Spring Break. The Nganga and The Sacrifice of Mark Kilroy.

    “Next time, bring me an American. Someone blonde and soft. Bring me someone I can use. Someone who will scream.” – Adolfo Constanzo to his followers. Setting: 1989. Matamoros, Mexico. The streets are packed with Texas Spring Breakers in various states of intoxication. Thousands of young college students from Texas and the Gulf Coast make…

  • Caught In Her Own Trap: The Death of Mother God. Into the Cult Logic of LOVE HAS WON.

    [Content Warning] This post contains some disturbing images. Cult members aren’t pretending. Their devotion to their leader and her teachings are their reality. It is sacrosanct. It is as real to them as a heart attack. Love Has Won isn’t unique or especially compelling. This small-scale cult, which enjoyed an online following of several hundred;…

  • How Allison Mack Represents What We Don’t Understand about Cults.

    “The fact of the matter is she gained so much pleasure out of other people’s pain, myself included. I saw the evil glimmer in her eyes and the sick sadistic smile on her face whenever she would punish us. She took great pride and joy knowing her total control, having blackmail to make us do…

  • Female Cult Leaders you may not want to invite to your Dinner Party. Anne Hamilton-Byrne

    In an early interview, when asked how it was that 28 children ended up under her care, Anne Hamilton-Byrne tilts her head, looks confidently at the reporter and says, “I love children.” In fact, she loved children so much, she had her followers kidnap them from hospitals, forge adoption records, and in some cases hand over…

  • Who was Merry Berg? The true tragedy of Heaven’s Girl.

    [Content Warning- This story involves child abuse both sexual and physical] Few cults are as notorious as The Children of God, now called The Family International. Perhaps what is most disturbing about this group is that they are still alive and operating to this day. I have to ask myself why I’m even re-telling this…

  • I Called in Sick. Lunch at The Yellow Deli

     My work week had turned me into a fiery ball of anxiety so on Friday I took the day off and took a road trip to Hiddenite, NC. This tiny mountain hamlet was known for their gem mine, but also as a hub for the group The Twelve Tribes. Synonymous with the group is The…