The secret letters of the Jonestown death cult

14 May 2008

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Thirty years after the mass suicides and murders in Guyana, Barry Isaacson unveils a cache of letters he found in his LA home, mapping the pain of one of the families

The letter was discovered, along with many other documents, including Gene Chaikin’s isolated statement of dissent, by the team of volunteers from America who arrived in Jonestown to find over 900 corpses rapidly decomposing in the heat of the jungle. Three accounts of the mass murder/suicides cite eyewitnesses who place Phyllis Chaikin among the group which, under the supervision of Doctor Larry Schacht, dispensed the lethal cocktail.

According to those who knew them, Herbert and Freda Alexander never recovered from their grief. They forbade all mention in their presence of the violent deaths in Guyana of their only child and her family. For many years, Dr Alexander collected press clippings about Peoples Temple; over 200 of them were placed in the same briefcase as the letters from Phyllis and left behind in our house when the couple moved into a residential facility for the elderly where they died shortly afterwards. There is a mass grave in Oakland, California, the identity of which was only acknowledged in 2004, a lingering manifestation of the atmosphere of mystery, stigma and shame that is still associated with Jim Jones, Peoples Temple and Jonestown. In this grave lie the remains of 400 people whose bodies were never claimed by their relatives. It may be the final resting place of the Chaikin family.

The 30th anniversary of the mass murder/suicides at Jonestown will be commemorated on 18 November this year. We will attend, with our children, and will light a candle for another family which once sat down to dinner together under our roof.

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Dr James Thompson

May 16th, 2008 12:38pm Report this comment

Thank you for a beautifully written story about a loving mother and father.

Tony Loscalzo

May 17th, 2008 1:09pm Report this comment

As a Psych major I recall a Jone's speech in about "65. He started out like a conservative and ended as a one-world collectivist. I concluded he was not only crazy but also communist.

Jennie Laurie

May 18th, 2008 5:02am Report this comment

Thank you for that most beautiful and heart-wrenching piece, told with dignity and compassion.

Barry Isaacson

July 23rd, 2008 7:42pm Report this comment

Gosh, I've only just checked in again and was surprised to find that comments had been posted about my article. Thank you, I very much appreciate the positive response.