Posted by
Mike Bates on Friday, November 14, 2008 12:56:08 PM
On Thursday, CNN aired
"Escape from Jonestown," presented by CNN special investigations unit corespondent Soledad O'Brien.
This week marks thirty years since the horrific deaths of more than 900
people, roughly a third of them children, at Jonestown. The massacre
was orchestrated by "Reverend" Jim Jones. What CNN barely referenced
was Jones's connection to several leading Democratic politicians of the
time. O'Brien did identify Jones as a believer in socialism and, with
a survivor, passingly alluded to his influence in the Democratic Party:
O'BRIEN: In 1975, Jones moved his church headquarters
from Redwood Valley down to San Francis, to a larger stage, where he
became a political force and a face in photo-ops.
GOSNEY: Roslyn (sic) Carter was campaigning for Jimmy Carter. I
believe that was 1976. And there was going to be a rally downtown.
Literally, we stuffed the building. We were -- we were the rally.
Jones was much more than a face in a photo-op. Democratic San
Francisco Mayor George Moscone appointed him to the city's housing
authority. Willie Brown, who later served as Democratic Speaker of the
California Assembly, in 1976 introduced Jones as a combination Martin
Luther King, Angela Davis, Albert Einstein and Chairman Mao.
That same year Senator Walter Mondale, later elected vice president,
invited Jones to meet with him on his campaign plane. The People's
Temple chief also had a personal meeting with Jimmy Carter's wife,
Rosalynn.
Jones referenced that in 1977 when he wrote to the First Lady and
recommended the U.S. government give Cuba medical supplies. He
mentioned his "deep appreciation for the privilege of dining privately
with you prior to the election." She replied by saying she'd enjoyed
the experience and hoped the U.S. would adopt his suggestion on Cuba.
When Jones moved his operation to Guyana, he brought with him written accolades from several liberal Democrats.
Wrote Walter Mondale: "Knowing of your congregation's deep
involvement in the major social and constitutional issues of our
country is a great inspiration to me."
Alaska Senator Mike Gravel thought the People's Temple "was almost
too good to be true." California Congressman Don Edwards expressed the
wish that "there were more like the people of the People's Temple
Christian Church."
Joseph Califano, an official in the Kennedy and Johnson
administrations and secretary of health, education and welfare for
Jimmy Carter wrote Jones: "Knowing your commitment and compassion, your
interest in protecting individual liberty and freedom have made an
outstanding contribution to furthering the cause of human dignity."
Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey said that Jones' work "is
testimony to the positive and truly Christian approach to dealing with
the myriad problems confronting our society today."
No, Jim Jones was more than just a face in a photo-op. He benefited
from the attention and praise of several notable Democratic politicians
of the era. In a two-hour program, that relevant part of history
should have been reported.