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The Children of Jonestown
Investigates the deaths of the nearly three hundred children who were victims of the mass cyanide poisoning at Jonestown, analyzing the social and political factors that enabled Jones to exercise the power of life and death over the children
238 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1980
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 12, 2025
Not a lot shocks me after studying The Peoples Temple and the massacre but Kenneth Wooden's 1980 book is a must read.
Tim Stoen , who is longed himself as a martyr and a “survivor” of Jonestown is exposed for the human trafficker that he was. And he was only given an appointment as an assistant DA to San Francisco District attorney Frietas because Jones procured votes for George Moscone. Stoen is complete ____. He was almost solely responsible for legally trafficking the children, getting guardianship away from the parents, jumping counties with the children's records to confuse the system that either didnt care or had PT members wirking within it! Stoen made it possible for the procurement of hundreds of thousands of SSI, foster child and Indian money to go into the offshore accounts. He needs to be in prison. And it gets worse. The sexual exploitation, which is shockingly played down in the majority of all of the Jonestown documentaries, and even in some of the books, is looked at.
Kenneth Wooden bravely takes us through a broken system that allowed so many children and infants to end up slaughtered in Jonestown. He demonstrates how not only lackadaisical county and state children’s welfare and guardianship. Safeguards were in probably still are, he exposes how many of the people’s temple members were working within the system to make the trafficking of children possible. He calls out the highest levels of federal government as well. And he has everything documented meticulously with sources.
Honestly though, it’s Tim S who’s really exposed in this book. In the beginning as the DA in Mendocino, he made it possible for people‘s temple to literally collect children and make money off them eventually bring them to be slaughtered in South America . Stoen is so phony and fake in interviews that it doesn't completely surprise me but he "blew the whistle" soley to save himself. If I was a survivor, I would bar him from ANY memorial.
The book is essential reading. Jones was going to kill everyone from the very start and murdering as many children as possible was essential. There was never a "catalyst" or fracture point- only a plan and a pattern of suicide drills.
Tim Stoen , who is longed himself as a martyr and a “survivor” of Jonestown is exposed for the human trafficker that he was. And he was only given an appointment as an assistant DA to San Francisco District attorney Frietas because Jones procured votes for George Moscone. Stoen is complete ____. He was almost solely responsible for legally trafficking the children, getting guardianship away from the parents, jumping counties with the children's records to confuse the system that either didnt care or had PT members wirking within it! Stoen made it possible for the procurement of hundreds of thousands of SSI, foster child and Indian money to go into the offshore accounts. He needs to be in prison. And it gets worse. The sexual exploitation, which is shockingly played down in the majority of all of the Jonestown documentaries, and even in some of the books, is looked at.
Kenneth Wooden bravely takes us through a broken system that allowed so many children and infants to end up slaughtered in Jonestown. He demonstrates how not only lackadaisical county and state children’s welfare and guardianship. Safeguards were in probably still are, he exposes how many of the people’s temple members were working within the system to make the trafficking of children possible. He calls out the highest levels of federal government as well. And he has everything documented meticulously with sources.
Honestly though, it’s Tim S who’s really exposed in this book. In the beginning as the DA in Mendocino, he made it possible for people‘s temple to literally collect children and make money off them eventually bring them to be slaughtered in South America . Stoen is so phony and fake in interviews that it doesn't completely surprise me but he "blew the whistle" soley to save himself. If I was a survivor, I would bar him from ANY memorial.
The book is essential reading. Jones was going to kill everyone from the very start and murdering as many children as possible was essential. There was never a "catalyst" or fracture point- only a plan and a pattern of suicide drills.
November 30, 2024
My first thoughts were shocking, and it made me so mad how the children were used, abused, and killed. It's just unbelievable how Jim Jones used his attorneys and the legal system to separate some of those children from their parents.
January 2, 2014
I had already read a biography of Jim Jones, but this book is focused on the children that died there and how they were used to built his fortune. It is horrifying what Jones did to families that trusted him and children who didn't know any better. This book is really disturbing for anyone who cares about children and those who can't fight for themselves.
July 22, 2014
It was hard to say I liked this book.
It was very very sad....
It was very very sad....
February 9, 2016
A sad, but informative account of a maniac cult leader.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews