All language subtitles for Jonestown - Paradise lost [Discovery NL subs] XviD-MP3 ABR.1080p.WEBRip.x265-RARBG

(SIREN BLARING)

NARRATOR:
An Evangelical preacher led
nearly a thousand followers

from the United States
deep into the jungles
of South America.

How about you,

is it the best thing that
ever happened to you?

NARRATOR: They would build
a new community,

free of oppression
and violence.

It was to be
their paradise on Earth.

VERNON GOSNEY:
I wanted to leave
as soon as I got there.

I was in an armed encampment.

NARRATOR: But outsiders
threatened to expose
the dark side of their leader.

We are going into Jonestown.

And if any of your
family members
want to come home,

then, by God,
we're gonna bring 'em home.

(SCREAMING)

You people gonna just...
Just leave us.

VERNON:
They're killing everyone!

NARRATOR: In one day,
two worlds collided
and paradise was lost.

JIM JONES:
Know that you have never,

never been loved so much
as I love you right now.

(WOMAN SOBBING)

(ALL SINGING)

The People's Temple
was a wonderful mosaic

of the whole spectrum
of humanity.

It was a dream that died
on November 18th, 1978.

The threat of mass suicide
was quite real.

Now this morning,
there are fresh reports.

Jones ordered a mass suicide.

914 people were murdered
or drank Kool-Aid
laced with poison.

MAN: A lot of the children
were crying

and he was telling them
not to tell the children
that they were dying,

not to tell them
it was painful

and that people had to die
with dignity.

NARRATOR: In November 1978,

reporters around the world
broke the news

that Jim Jones
and more than 900
of his followers died.

By the late 1960s
and early '70s,

the streets of America erupted
in violence and civil strife.

The war in Vietnam,
civil rights marches
and political assassinations

played out on television.

(CLAMORING)

OFFICER ON LOUDSPEAKER:
Everyone, disperse
immediately.

NARRATOR:
Out of this turmoil,
thousands of Americans

flocked to hear the sermons
of a charismatic preacher
named Jim Jones.

A fiery order,
Jones' early speeches
were a mixture

of socialist ideals
and Christian redemption.

STEPHAN JONES: If there was
anything universal

about the Temple experience

and what it was
that drew people,

it was on some level

we were all wanting to belong.

NARRATOR:
Some turn to the Temple
because they need help,

others want to serve humanity.

Whatever they need,
Jim Jones and his Peoples
Temple seem to have it.

JONES: The only way
it's going to get better
is through us

and what we can do
in the world

and that was everything
from gradual social change

to violent revolution
to cleaning up after
nuclear fallout.

NARRATOR: Jim Jones
claimed special powers
to heal the sick and dying.

Staged healings were
a popular attraction
at Temple meetings.

(JIM JONES SPEAKING)

A guy like my dad

found out what
you wanted to hear and see

and showed it to you.

Whatever you were looking for

or wherever you were running
from or running toward,

Dad had an uncanny ability
to hook into that.

It's exhilarating
and very attractive.

Once you get hooked by that

it's really hard
to get unhooked.

NARRATOR:
As his popularity grew,

Jim Jones preached
less about the bible and
more about social activism.

He called himself a prophet,

a savior who would
guide, protect
and watch over his followers.

JIM: I want you
to be like I am.

I want you to
become what I am.

I want you to enjoy
the fearlessness that I have,

the courage that I have,

the compassion that I have,

the love that I have,

the all-encompassing
mercy that I have.

I want you to be what I am
and something greater.

NARRATOR: Jim Jones'
devoted followers
referred to him as Father.

Many signed over their
paychecks, possessions,
even their homes.

But at the height
of his power,

a darker side of
Jim Jones emerged.

Former Temple members
accused Jones

of physical and sexual abuse,

mind control
and forced druggings.

In 1977,
as media interest grew,

Jim Jones and hundreds
of his supporters

left San Francisco,
California.

They set out for Guyana,

determined to build
a new community
in the South American country.

In the middle of the jungle,

150 miles from the capital
of Georgetown,

Peoples Temple built
what was to be a socialist
paradise on Earth.

They called it Jonestown
after their leader.

(INAUDIBLE)

Because of Father's example
here in Guyana,

we are building equipment
and doing things
to feed hungry people

and set up a little town,

an actual community
or a country of our own

where we can live
the way we like to live
with our own lifestyle.

Not to be interfered
from people from the outside

and to help starving
masses of the world.

NARRATOR:
As the allegations in
the United States intensified,

Temple members continued to
flock to the remote outpost.

Labeling the attacks
as a government conspiracy
to topple Peoples Temple,

Jones and many of his
followers denied the charges.

It's the most beautiful place
I've ever been in all my life.

There's so many
wonderful things about it.

This is a beautiful place here

and it's fun over here,
it's really good.

I do not want to go back

in any way shape or form

to the States.

I can't help but say that
none of this would
have been possible

had it not been for Jim Jones.

JONES: My father,
his entire existence

lay in the hands of those
who perceived him.

I think
people need to understand

that every hour of the day

Jim Jones
thought he was a fraud.

He knew he was a bad guy,

he knew he was a sick guy,

he just didn't want
anybody else to know.

(SIREN BLARING)

White Night, White Night,

everybody
report to the pavilion.

White Night.

NARRATOR:
Vern Gosney had joined
Peoples Temple in 1974

and had been living
in Jonestown for eight months.

GOSNEY: The term White Night
was a term used for like
an extreme emergency.

(SIREN BLARING)

There would be a siren
or an announcement

to come to the pavilion
immediately

and it was a life
and death situation.

It was something
where the community
was being threatened,

and we had to make
an immediate decision

about a course of action.

And it would usually be
all of the night.

NARRATOR: White Nights
were used by Jim Jones

to create an atmosphere
of fear and desperation
amongst his followers.

The White Nights
sometimes included
rehearsals for mass suicide,

which Jones considered
a test of faith and loyalty.

(TAPPING ON MIC)

I am the greatest friend
that you will ever have,

and I'm trying on every level
to protect this community.

Are you with me?

Are you with me?

(CHEERING AND APPLAUDING)

GOSNEY: There were people
with guns and rifles

surrounding the assembly.

People that I knew,
for years, with guns,

and they weren't pointed
outward,

they were pointed inward.

And so there was a sense
of an armed encampment.

So I must warn you
again and again

to be together
with the community.

(BREATHING HEAVILY)

Jim?
You've been at it for hours.
You're exhausted.

They're exhausted and afraid.

Let them go to sleep.

All right.

Go on, go on back to bed.

NARRATOR:
After the death of his wife,

Vern Gosney arrived
in Jonestown
with his four-year-old son.

Night.

GOSNEY: I was very vulnerable.

I decided I was going to
go to Jonestown

and they were going to
make me be a good socialist.

Whatever I was lacking
within myself

would be instilled in me
by living in Jonestown.

I wanted to leave
as soon as I got there.

I was not free to leave,
nor was anyone.

(CLATTERING)

I had confided in my roommate
that I wanted to leave

and that was taking a huge,
huge risk.

(CLATTERING)

He had at one time
attempted to escape,

and he was punished
so severely

that he was literally
frightened out of his mind.

We're gonna die here man.

We're gonna die here.

NARRATOR: On
November 14th 1978,
US Congressman Leo J. Ryan,

along with his aide,
Jackie Speier,

flew to Guyana to investigate
allegations of abuse
within the Temple.

The delegation included
relatives, who were
determined to see

that their loved ones
were free to come and go
as they pleased.

Jim Jones considered the group
a direct threat,

bent on his and
the movement's destruction.

Fourteen relatives,
some former Temple members

who spoke out against Jones
accompanied Ryan.

Members of the US media
covered the trip including

Don Harris from NBC,
an American television
network,

and Tim Reiterman,
a reporter on assignment for
the San Francisco Examiner.

Jim Jones initially presented
Peoples Temple

as an extraordinary
institution.

And he was someone
who was viewed
as a little eccentric

because he went around
with bodyguards

and he wore dark glasses,

whether the sun
was out or not.

Think he's got
something to hide?

What do you think?
You spoke with him.

Yeah, on the radio once.

Figures we're out to get him.

REITERMAN:
Congressman's Ryan's trip

was designed to find out

whether the allegations
from ex-members were true,

that Jim Jones controlled
the members

through disciplinary beatings,

forcing them to
turn over their property

and in some cases
custody of their children,

and whether he was
threatening people with death

if they would leave
the organization.

Folks, we're about to land
in Georgetown.

It's been a long road
for many of you.

Your loved ones are down there

and I just want to
let you know that

we're gonna do everything
we can to make sure
they're safe,

they're happy
and they're being
well looked after.

In other words, we still
don't have an official invite.

Uh... Let me tell you
something right now,

not as your congressman
but as your friend.

We are going into Jonestown,

and if any of your
family members
want to come home,

well, by God,
we're gonna bring them home.

(APPLAUDING)

Congressman?
I just wanted to say...

To thank you.

This wouldn't have happened
without you.

LEO: May I?
SHERWIN HARRIS: Oh, sure.

She's going to be 22
in a week.

You always hope yours
are gonna turn out all right.

-LEO: Your ex?
-Yeah.

She was Linda when I knew her.

Now she's Sharon.

Jones made her do that.

You know why?

He knew this other girl
called Linda,

didn't like her, so now no one
can be called Linda.

Don't you worry
about a thing, Sherwin.

Everything's gonna be
just fine.

NARRATOR: Sherwin Harris
was attempting to
visit his daughter Liane

who was living in Jonestown.

Peoples Temple was something
that started out

apparently to be a good thing,

and just turned
into a nightmare.

In 1978, my daughter
was 21 years old.

My daughter, Liane,

was brought into the
Peoples Temple by her mother,

who was one
of the initial members.

I had what I considered
a strange relationship
with my daughter.

There was always
a distance between us,

there was always something
strange going on.

It was clearly, you know,
a dangerous situation.

At this point we knew
that guns had been
transmitted there.

We knew what
their attitudes were,

we knew that
they were talking,

that they were Marxist
and revolutionaries

and people that acted brutally
towards their own members.

So I don't think
there was any illusions
on any of our parts.

(HAMMERING)

GOSNEY:
The promise of Guyana was
cloaked in religious terms.

It was the promised land,

the land of milk and honey,

the land where we're
gonna build a society

that's really just.

We worked from sun up
to sun down.

We ate rice three times a day.

It's hard to really convey
the remoteness of that place.

There was no means
of communication
with the outside world.

There wasn't like,
"Let me run a mile

"to go to the phone."

There's no phone.

There's no telephones,

there's no televisions,
there's no nothing.

I think it's difficult
to express to people

who don't have
this kind of experience that,

"Oh, well,
why didn't you leave?

"It's so horrible,
it's so terrible.

"How could you put
yourself in that position?"

When, actually, we were
working for a cause
that we believed in.

It's like taking people
to the limit,

and then moving that line,
and then moving that line,

and then moving that line

and wanting so desperately
to believe in the dream

and not seeing
that the dream has
become a nightmare.

NARRATOR:
A handful of Temple members

were permitted to
form a basketball team.

Amongst them was Jim Jones'
19-year-old son, Stephan.

Days before the arrival
of the Ryan delegation,

Stephan and the basketball
team left for Georgetown

to play a series of games
against the
Guyanese national squad.

Dad was worried about
the basketball team leaving

and going into Georgetown.

He knew the congressman
was coming.

I'm sure he feared that
we might turn against him

and, fortunately,
Mom saw that happening

and Mom had really
made this her cause,
to get us out of there.

You have in your hands
the opportunity
to make or break Jonestown,

but you have to show
a lot of character,

a lot of character and grace.

I've seen tremendous growth
in you, Stephan.

Now what you want to do
is when they score a goal,

-you, um,
you give a little clap...
-(CLAPPING)

...and you run right back
to your post.

All right?

"Now remember boys,
when the other team scores

-"you just give them
a little clap, just like that.
-(CLAPPING)

"A little clap."

Believe me, fellas.
I had a little clap in my day.

Don't let him provoke you.

He's trying to find a reason
to keep you from going.

Hmm? Just be the better man.

Okay. Come on now.

Keep your eye on them.

On who?

You don't trust them?

Anybody is capable of putting
a bullet into your head

and if you see
any of those relatives,
those liars,

you don't have anything
to do with them,

you understand?

You did well.

Goodbye, my baby.

You take care of yourself.

I'll see you real soon.

JONES: I remember
saying goodbye to her.

I remember a long moment of
just us looking at each other.

I remember tears in her eyes
and tears of my own.

I remember each of us saying
that we'll see you soon,

me believing it.

Looking back,

I don't think she did believe
that would happen.

(TRUCK DOOR CLOSING)

I honestly think
she thought she was
getting us out of there

before all hell broke loose.

HARRIS: When we
got off the plane,

the first person I saw
was my ex-wife,

and she was
one of their leaders.

She was pretty much
the true believer,

the fanatic, if you will,

the type of person who
could strap the dynamite on

and walk in and
take the whole room out.

That's the degree
of commitment.

When we were in Guyana,

my concern was
to see my daughter.

To that end I contacted
my ex-wife. I phoned her.

SHERWIN: No, I'm not trying
to tear anybody apart.

I am not against anybody.

Would you stop that, please?

I am here...
I am here to see Liane.

Lin... Sharon,
I'm not gonna argue with you.

I've just flown
thousands of miles
to see my daughter

and I am going to see her,

and neither you,
nor the Temple,

nor Jim Jones Almighty
himself is going to stop me.

All right? Do you hear me?

Then hear me.

She's my daughter, too,

and I am going to
see her tomorrow,

if I have to go to
Jonestown myself,

I am going to see her.

Good night.

HARRIS: I wasn't really
concerned about
getting into Jonestown

as much as seeing my daughter.

I wanted to spend the time
that I had there
with my daughter

and also to discover fully
what was going on.

I loved my daughter very much.

I was committed to my daughter

like you can't believe,
from the moment of her birth,

I got that
her life depended on me.

It was just that simple
and I was committed to her.

I was very young
when she was born,

but it didn't matter.

I would move Heaven and Earth.

NARRATOR: The Peoples Temple
owned a house
in the capital of Georgetown,

which functioned as
a way station

for Temple members
moving in and out
of Jonestown.

Residents of the house
included Sherwin Harris'
ex-wife.

Come on, back to sleep, baby.

NARRATOR:
And his daughter Liane's
stepsister, Kristen,

and a younger stepbrother,
Martin.

(STATIC)

Come in Jonestown.
This is Georgetown.

JIM: Go ahead,
go ahead, go ahead.

SHARON: They're here.

They're determined to get in.

(STATIC)

(MIC CLATTERS)

(SNIFFS)

(SIREN BLARING)

JIM: (OVER PA)
White Night, White Night,

everybody report
to the pavilion.

White Night, White Night.

GOSNEY: I had confided
in my roommate
that I wanted to leave

and he confided
in someone else.

What's going on?

And that was Monica.

Dunno.

We have gotta get out of here.

I didn't trust anyone.

Everybody
was watching everyone.

I had never had
a conversation with Monica.

You got a plan?

Hell no! I thought you did.

And we began
to talk to each other

and bolster each other
about wanting to leave.

NARRATOR:
For many in Jonestown,

the reality was at least
as bad as the press reports.

From what I've seen,

what was reported was true

and it wasn't good.

Such as torture, abuse,

deceit, theft, faked healings,

drugging of people,

punishing of children,

the drumming up of fear.

NARRATOR: Jim Jones used fear
as his chief method
of controlling his people,

especially those with
thoughts of returning
to the United States.

It was just one account
after another

of how horrible the
United States was becoming.

Concentration camps
were being constructed
for people of color.

The borders
were being patrolled

by racist organizations
like the Ku Klux Klan.

When that failed,

the message was, well,
nuclear war is just
around the corner

and we were in
one of the safest places

to ride out nuclear holocaust.

NARRATOR: Jim Jones,
determined to keep prying eyes
away from his settlement,

rallied temple members
to sign a petition

demanding that Congressman
Ryan and his delegation
stay out of Jonestown.

I want to see how many of you
will sign right now,

right now and say, "No!

"No, I will not go back."

GOSNEY: The conditions at
Jonestown were not conducive

for someone to think clearly
or sharply.

I was numb.

I was emotionally, mentally
and spiritually drained.

My own personal feeling was

I didn't know what
was going to happen to me.

"No, I will not see
any of my relatives."

This is what you have to do

because if your relatives come
with Congressman Ryan,

if your relatives
come with him,

then your relatives,

your relatives are
no better than he is.

GOSNEY: I was unclear about
what the plan exactly was,

but my focus
was the congressman

and getting his assistance.

NARRATOR:
Running out of options,

Congressman Ryan
confronted Temple members

at their headquarters
in Georgetown,

the only link to Jim Jones
and Jonestown itself.

I better do this alone.

Uh, if I'm not back
in, say, five minutes,
send in the dogs.

NARRATOR: The house was
full of Temple members,

including Stephan Jones
and the rest of
the basketball team.

(PEOPLE SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)

Hi.

I'm Leo Ryan, the bad guy.

Hi.

JONES: I remember
the congressman showing up.

I remember having
mixed feelings about it.

Are you drawing? Let's see.

JONES: Very outgoing,
charismatic, genuine man,

or so it seemed to me,

and you don't get much
of that in the Temple.

What's your name?

SHARON:
What can I do for your,
Mr. Ryan?

Well, I'd like to
speak with Jim.

Jim's not here.

But you can put me
in touch with him.

And at the same time thinking,

"Who do you think you are

"walking up on our house?"

SHARON:
You're gonna have to leave.

Hi. I'm Leo Ryan.

You must have heard of me.

Stephan Jones. Once or twice.

Oh, what are you
doing in town?

Basketball tournament.

Us against
the Guyanese nationals.

LEO: How's it going?

Well, sir, they kicked
our butts good
the first two games.

We're looking
for a little revenge.

Well, let me know
if you could use
an extra pair of hands.

I can't dunk, but
you know us politicians,

we pass things really well
like basketballs and the buck.
(LAUGHING)

Congressman,
you can't just come in here
as you please.

Lighten up, Sharon.
The man's just trying
to be friendly.

Mind if I ask
you a couple of questions?

Like, do you like it there?
Jonestown, I mean.

How is it?

Your father
wants to talk to you.

Well, good luck, Stephan.

With the game, I mean.

You're gonna have to
leave now, Mr. Ryan.

This is private property.

Okay, it was nice meeting you.

I'll be seeing you again.
Bye-bye.

JONES: There was a point
at which my father
sent orders,

funneled
through the radio room.

Everything came through there
and Sharon Amos,

that we were to return
to Jonestown.

The basketball team
was ordered to come back.

JIM: I want you to come home.

Why?

Why?
You're needed here is why.

McElvane's coming back
first thing in the morning.

I want you to be
on the truck with him,

the whole damn bunch of you.

STEPHAN: Look.
You said it yourself,
we're good PR, Dad.

That's all there is to it.

We're having a good time,
we're playing basketball.

You talk to him.

Talk to him.

MARCELINE: Stephan? I think
you'd better come back.

You don't know what's
happening here, Stephan.

We really need you.

We're staying, Mom.

We got a game against
the national team tomorrow.

How's it gonna look if we
just hightail it outta here?

Besides, you don't need
to speak for him.

(GRUNTING)

Well, it's up to you.

(GRUNTING)
No! It is not up to him!

I do not want him
having anything to do

with that congressman
or with the relatives.

I want him back here now.

You don't give a damn
what happens here!

JONES: I knew,
had known for a long time
my father was nuts.

I'm one that believes
he was...

He was sick
from very early on.

By the time
the congressman came,

he only had a few more months

at the rate he was going,
with his drug use.

He was just slowly
killing himself on drugs.

(BREATHING HEAVILY)

Who do you think is
keeping this place together?

I am!

I am keeping this
goddamn place together.

That boy!

JONES: I know I sent him
closer to the edge

by refusing to come back
at that time.

There was no denying
that he was losing control.

And to a man like my father,

it must have been like
he was sinking in quicksand,

grabbing at nothing.

(WHIMPERING)

NARRATOR: Jim Jones
summoned Peoples Temple
lawyer, Charles Garry,

to handle Congressman
Ryan's visit to Jonestown.

But Jones suddenly reversed
course and denied entry.

What do you mean
we're not going to Jonestown?

The only goddamn reason
I came here

is to take Ryan to Jonestown.

Who the hell changed it,
Sharon, you?

Jim did, all right?

It was Ryan's fault anyway,
coming in like he did.

CHARLES:
It's a whole lot of crap.

It was Jim's decision
to cancel the visit.

You know I've had it
with you people.

There's a plane going back
to Miami at 1:00 p.m.

I'm going to be on it.

You hear me?

Listen to me, Jim.

I'm a righteous man.

We are a righteous people

and these traitors,

they've come to destroy
what we've... (SIGHS)

CHARLES: Jesus!

We cannot allow them.

They want to
steal our children.

Jim...

They been after me so long,

so long, so long.

Jim, cut it.

Now what I'm gonna say
is very simple.

You've got two alternatives.

Now the first is
you can tell the Congress
of the United States

to go to hell.

You can tell the media
to go to hell,

which is what you've been
doing all along
over my objections.

You can tell
the concerned relatives
to go to hell,

but if you do that,
I cannot live with it.

It's the end of the line.

I won't be with you.

Now the second alternative is

what I've been urging
you to do all along.

You can let the media in,

you can let
the congressman in,

you can let
the concerned relatives in

and you can let them
see for themselves

what a beautiful place
we have there.

Come down then.

I don't know
what I'm going to do.

Just come down.

REITERMAN: Finally,
we got word after negotiations

between the Congressman and
the Peoples Temple's lawyers

and Jones that
we would be allowed

to head into Jonestown.

(SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)

The preparation for Jonestown
before Ryan's visit was

just like the mayor
was visiting

or the congressman
was visiting.

You'd paint the house,
you'd spruce up the plants,
you'd weed.

Everything would be
in A number one condition

to make a positive impression.

(INDISTINCT ANNOUNCEMENT
OVER PA)

GOSNEY: We had a lot
of rehearsal

about what to say to these
people if they came in.

We were rehearsed
over and over

and over and over again.

JIM: How long
would you like to stay?

Forever.

You just can't imagine that

all the hundreds of us here
are so extremely happy.

And I love it here.
Nobody to bother me.

I'm free and I love
everything about it.

Now you, you tell me.

Those big buildings out there,
what are they?

Cottages.

And how many people
would you say on average

-lives in a house?
-Four or five.

Two couples to a house.

No, no, no.
I wouldn't say that.

I'd say four or five.

Just don't you go into that.

Pass.

What do you find is wrong
with this place?

Oh,
I don't find anything wrong.

I've had more
opportunities here

than, uh, any other...

Than I ever had in the States.

And how do you feel
about the USA?

Oh, I feel it's all right,

for those who
want to be there.

That's very good.

We don't want to say
we're pro-Soviet or
that we're against America.

-You got that? Pass.
-I got it.

Monica,
when you refer to Jonestown,
how do you refer to it?

As a, uh, a very nice place.

GOSNEY: There was always
an atmosphere
of us versus them.

Jones mentioned that
Congressman Ryan was coming,

concerned relatives
were coming,

journalists, who were
evil incarnate, were coming

and they were coming
to destroy us.

MONICA: Uh, people get along,

white and black together
and, uh...

JIM: Look.
I'd just say it's a community.

Jonestown, it's a community.

All right, pass.

GOSNEY: The survival
of the community rested upon

a good report
from these people

coming and leaving
without incident

and giving wonderful reports
on Jonestown.

What are common complaints
you hear in the community?

I don't hear any complaints,

only praises of our being able
to live here in Guyana.

Uh, my son's here with me
and I appreciate being here.

I enjoy it here.

Uh, I've had... I've had
many more opportunities
for learning trades

than I have in my whole...
In my entire lifetime.

What are some
of the complaints you hear

against the community,
against the Temple?

I don't hear any complaints.

The only thing I hear is
how much people love it here.

Everybody says this is
the best thing

that's ever happened to them
in their whole lives.

How about you?

Is it the best thing that
ever happened to you?

The very best, I really
appreciate being here.

I enjoy it.

That's right.

Thank you.

Thank you.

SHERWIN: Liane's coming here?

No, no. That's fine.

I don't need to go
to Jonestown.

No, if she's coming here,
then I'll just stay here.

Okay.

Lunch is...

Lunch, dinner,
I really don't care.

-Oh, hold on. Hold on.
-(CLATTERING)

One second.

Okay, go ahead.

"Lamaha Gardens."

Good.

No, no. I'll find it.

Yes. Okay.

And, Linda.

Sharon.

Thank you.

Bye.

(SIGHS)

HARRIS:
When I got that information

that my daughter was gonna
come down on Saturday,

there was no reason
in my mind to, at that point,

to go to Jonestown.

Now, if it turned out
I was being lied to

and she didn't show up
on Saturday,

I'm going to Jonestown.

I'm going
wherever I need to go.

I'm gonna find my daughter.

NARRATOR: Congressman Ryan
chartered a plane

to transport relatives
and journalists to Jonestown.

Okay, folks.
The plane's ready.

More than 150 miles deep
into the jungle.

JIM: He says
the Constitution...

The Constitution
gives him the right

to come down here and see us

because we are
American taxpayers.

Well, I say the Constitution
does not give him
the right to go

wherever he is not invited!

(CROWD CHEERING)

I mean, what are we
gonna say to him?

What are we gonna say
to him anyway?

You can't win,
I'm telling you,
with this kind of a prick.

You cannot win!

Oh, he treated
our children all nice.

He come tripping
into our house

like he owned it,
telling Sharon Amos,

"I've heard a lot
of dirty things about you."

(CROWD CHEERING)

Well, I said, "You tell him.

"You tell him to go to hell!

"And, and, and, and,
and to get lost!"

You know what?

We don't have to tell him
anything anyway.

We don't have
to tell him anything.

And you know what?

I don't know how long
he's gonna stay,

but I can assure you,

if he stays
long enough for tea,

he's gonna regret it.

CROWD: Yeah!

Know that you have never,

never been loved so much
as I love you right now.

Amen!

CROWD: Amen!

I love you.

CROWD: We love you, too!

Monica, myself and my roommate
did have a meeting

about Ryan coming.

The plan was
I was going to slip
the congressman a note

asking for his help to leave.

This is our chance.

Monica? Keith?

What about your son, Vern?

If I tell him,
he might report us.

(SCRIBBLING)

I wrote the note.

"Vernon Gosney, Monica Bagby,

"help us get
out of Jonestown."

That was the note.

(SIGHS)

He's better off here anyway.

I didn't know
whether to take my son

was the right thing
to do or not.

I, uh...

I wasn't thinking clearly.

REITERMAN: When we flew
over the jungle,

it became pretty clear
how remote and inaccessible
Jonestown really was.

NARRATOR:
The plane touched down
at an isolated airstrip

more than five miles
from Jonestown.

REITERMAN: When we finally
landed on a small dirt
airstrip in Port Kaituma,

it became clear

how difficult
it would have been

for anyone to leave Jonestown.

LEO: Okay,
there is the truck.

REITERMAN: When a truckload
of Peoples Temple members

pulled up with a flatbed,

we expected

that we'd be moving on
quickly to Jonestown

and started
unpacking our gear.

Congressman Ryan?

I'm Corporal Emil Rudder
of the Guyanese Defence Force.

Oh. Thank you very much
for coming to meet us.

Uh, I've been instructed
to inform you that

only Mr. Garry is to board
the truck for Jonestown.

Look, we're
a congressional delegation.

We're here to inquire
into the health and welfare
of the people of Jonestown.

My instructions are clear.

Well, who are you getting
your instructions from?

(SIGHS) Please return
to the plane.

Uh, Congressman Ryan
and his assistant here
can come with us.

Uh, Mr. Garry, I was told...

Never mind
what you've been told.
I'm telling you!

If you catch any grief,

I'll be right there.
Congressman.

And what about the others?

(SIGHS) I'm working on it.

Thank you.

Don't try to come on your own.

REITERMAN: Clearly,
at that point
we were not welcome.

All we could do was wait.

Finally, within a few hours,

the truck returned
to the airstrip.

Anybody that wants to come
to Jonestown, climb on!

And we were allowed
to board it

and we rode toward Jonestown

with several members
of the Temple.

Let's go!

REITERMAN:
I think everyone recognized

that there was
a potential for danger.

We were entering a place

where not only were we
surrounded by miles of jungle,

but we also
were in the control

of Jim Jones and his members.

And as a practical matter,

it would be hard to get out
without their permission.

CHILD 1: Look it!
They just arrived!

CHILD 1: Here! They're here!
CHILD 2: Come on!

When we pulled into Jonestown,
my first impression was

that this place had taken
a tremendous amount
of work to produce.

To make something from scratch

in the middle of nowhere

was an impressive feat.

WOMAN ON PA: Attention,
attention, attention!

The reporters are arriving.

Some of them
will want to take pictures,

so anyone who doesn't
want their picture taken

will be excused.

REITERMAN: There were
hundreds of people

around the pavilion

and we were
escorted there directly

-to the Reverend Jim Jones.
-(JOVIAL MUSIC PLAYING)

CHARLES: Jim, the gentlemen
of the press have arrived.

This is Don Harris
of NBC News.

Nice to meet you.

(CLEARS THROAT)

Reverend Jones? Tim Reiterman.

I've read
many of your stories.

I guess you can only print
what they're telling you.

TIM: Well, we've tried
to get your side of the story,

but haven't had much success.

That's why I'm here,
to see the mission for myself.

Good. A lot of people
have found it to be
beautiful, a paradise.

REITERMAN:
He was very cordial,

but it was still disturbing

to see that he appeared weak.

What really concerned me
was the way he spoke.

Mind if I ask you
a couple of questions?

Why did you decide
to let us in now,

a year after
our first request?

What have we got to lose?

There is no barbed wire here.

We don't have three,
let alone 300
that want to leave.

We're not violent.
We don't do violence
to anyone.

Ageism, sexism, racism

have all been eliminated.

Elitism is almost eliminated.

We are Marxist
in the sense of sharing work

and in the distribution
of goods and services.

What about the threats
of mass suicide, Reverend?

I only said
that it will be better

that we commit suicide
than kill.

(STAMMERING) Why hurt
social progress?

He started speaking
in a paranoid fashion

about his enemies,

and began to quietly

sort of rant about them.

(STAMMERING) I curse
the day I was born.

I don't know why
these people hate me so.

In some ways,
I feel like, um...

Well, like a dying man.

You don't need to put
a bullet in my head.

Thank you.

REITERMAN:
It was disturbing to hear him
sort of put a figurative gun

in the hands of those of us

who had come
to Jonestown to visit.

It was also disturbing
to hear someone

who had the lives
of so many people in his hands

speak that way.

GOSNEY: The plan was
I was going to slip
the congressman a note

asking for his help.

In my state of mind,

I didn't know who was who
at that time yet.

I see someone who I think
is the congressman

who is walking around
the perimeter of the assembly.

If I passed the note
and it was unsuccessful,

I knew I would be killed.

There was no doubt about it.

I would be...
I would be killed.

VERNON: You dropped this.

He passed a note!

McELVANE: What was
that about, Vern?

VERNON: It was
nothing. (LAUGHS)

He dropped something
and I picked it up for him,
that's all.

MARCELINE: And now, everyone,
I'd like to introduce you

to a very special guest.

He has represented many of us
who lived in his district

back in California,

and we'd like for you
to say a few words to us.

GOSNEY:
It wasn't until later

that I found out that
that individual was not
the congressman.

Congressman Ryan.

(CROWD CHEERING AND CLAPPING)

Thank you, Marceline.

I'm not used to making
public speeches.

(CROWD GROANING)

Yeah, don't give me
that here, I guess.

I'm very glad to be here.

I have already met
a former student of mine.

I've already met
a former classmate

of one of my daughters

from Mills High School
in Burlingame.

This is
a congressional inquiry.

I think all of you know
that I'm here to find out

more about questions
that have been raised

about your operations here.

But I can tell you right now
that from the conversations

I've had with
some of the folks
here already tonight,

that no matter what
the comments are,

that there are
some people here who believe

that this is the best thing
that's ever happened to them
in their whole lives.

(CROWD CHEERING AND CLAPPING)

GOSNEY: After Ryan spoke,

I was approached
by Congressman Ryan.

Is your name Vernon Gosney?

Did you give this man a note
asking to leave Jonestown?

VERNON: Yes, sir.

Then let me tell you,
you've got seats

on the first plane
out of here tomorrow.

Congressman Ryan had no idea

of what he had
walked into, at all.

I'm not sure we should wait
till tomorrow, Congressman.

LEO: We've got a lot
of work to do here.

You're in danger.
You have to know that.

We'll be fine.

We're under the protection

of the US Congress.

Tomorrow.

GOSNEY: And it was apparent
after talking to him

that he couldn't
really conceive

the level of danger
that he was in.

REITERMAN: On that Saturday,

the last day...

(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION)

I wondered just
how many other people

might want to leave.

The thing is, Ryan told me

someone else
aside from this Vern guy
approached him.

Wanting out?

Yeah, exactly.

MARCELINE: Morning!
Sleep all right?

Oh, that was the softest
hardwood floor
a man could ask for.

(ALL LAUGHING)

REITERMAN:
Marceline Jones,

who was Jim Jones' wife,

took some of us
throughout the encampment.

This is my pride and joy,

I don't mind saying.

This is the first home
to all 33 children
born here in Jonestown.

REITERMAN: Marceline Jones
was clearly proud

of everything that
had been built in Jonestown.

The school and the nursery,

the clinic that provided
healthcare for children

that seemed to be

what inspired her
and sustained her.

(INDISTINCT SPEECH)

That's some pretty
advanced reading.

MARCELINE: Those are some
pretty advanced kids.

Hey.

Well, hi.

I'll take him
from here, Vernon.

I think you're needed back
at the pavilion, aren't you?

MARCELINE: We also have
a large nursing staff.

Of course we could
always use more.

There are almost 300 children
here in Jonestown.

DON: Tim.

I'm cutting out.
Something's going on.

-Okay.
-Come.

Um, would you like
to see the dispensary?

Uh, excuse me.

(WOMAN WHIMPERING)

WOMAN: No. You bring
those kids back here!

Hold on for a second.

You bring them back!

Don't you touch my kids!

REITERMAN: Within hours,

um, it became clear

that more than just
two people who slipped
the note to a reporter

wanted to come out.

There were
some entire families

who stepped forward

and informed the congressman

that they wanted
to leave with us.

I'm all right.
I'm... I'm just gonna...

Just say goodbye to someone.

And the tension
just radiated out

from Jones and those groups
of potential defectors.

The whole place was paralyzed.

Stay put. I'm gonna
have a word with you later,
all right?

Hey, don't go
anywhere right now.

I wanna talk to you
and ask you some questions.

(BOTH WHISPERING)

Why are you doing this?

Are you lovers?

No. No.

Because you can have
a relationship here.

No. We're not lovers.

Don't you talk to any
of the reporters, all right?

They're liars.
They're all liars.

You don't have
to say anything.

Even the ones who lie,

they always come back.
They always do.

Always have a place here.

All right?

GOSNEY: I signed a document

that I was leaving
my son there

of my own free will.

I didn't know

if I was doing
the right thing,

and...

I signed it.

How many you got, Congressman?

I think we're gonna
need another plane.

REITERMAN: As time went on,

probably about a dozen people

had stepped forward

and they were insistent
on leaving.

My name is Monica Bagby.

I wish to leave Jonestown
of my own free will

and return
to the United States.

Is that it?

Um, my name is Vernon Gosney,

and I

wish to leave Jonestown
of my own free will

and return
to the United States.

GOSNEY: I was of
a divided mind.

On one hand,
I thought my son is black.

And he is going to be
subject to the racism

of the United
States government.

And I thought that

this was the better place
for him to be.

I didn't know.
I was confused.

What now?

Now, we pack up.
Truck's leaving soon.

I don't think
I ought to go alone.

I wouldn't either.

That lady said
she'd go with me.

You ought to get someone, too.

GOSNEY: When the door
swung open,

there was a number
of security guards

within the cottage.

I was petrified.

I was in extreme fear
and terror.

What you doing, Vern?

He's packing up.

What are you doing?

Go ahead, Vern.

Pack your things.

Thank you.

As the potential defectors

began gathering up
their belongings,

-NBC conducted an interview...
-Bob.

...with Jim Jones
in the pavilion.

Okay, Reverend.
We're ready to go.

Well, you never accomplish
what you set out.
I'm a perfectionist.

I mean, we wanted to fade out
of the whole arena
of public attention,

but, obviously, we haven't
because of lies.

I never... Never understood
how people could lie

with such total
freedom and conviction.

REITERMAN:
As the interview went on,

Jones grew

more and more tense.

That's a lie. That's a lie.

Who... Who conspired to kill
Dr. Martin Luther King?

Uh, Malcolm X? John Kennedy?

Every agency
in the whole government

is giving us a hard time.

Somebody just
doesn't like socialism.

REITERMAN:
I think it was sinking in,

if it hadn't already,

that this visit
was not going to play well

outside Jonestown.

DON: We've heard that
security guards with guns

had gone around to the houses
and warned people...

-No, no!
-...not to cause trouble.

Nobody came
to see people with guns!

I... I have strictly
prohibited guns.

You don't have to shoot me.

'Cause the media smear
does it.

I... I've given
my life for people,

serving people.

Now, you people gonna just...

Just leave us.

I just beg you.
Please just leave us.

I'm gonna go
say goodbye to them.

-WOMAN: Traitors!
-(PEOPLE PROTESTING)

MAN: Scum!

I hope they shoot
the plane down!

GOSNEY: I met
with my son briefly.

And...

I'll see you soon, okay?

Well, he wasn't of an age
where I could tell him
what was happening.

I just...
I hugged him. (SIGHS)

I said goodbye to him,

and that was the last time
that I saw him.

I, uh...

I don't know what else to say
about that moment.

Come back anytime.

You'll always
have a place here.

Come back anytime,
visit your son.

-Okay?
-Mmm-hmm.

Come back anytime.

You'll always be welcome here.

Reverend, can I just ask you?

Could I get your reaction
on what's gone on here today?

Did you try to stop anyone
from leaving?

No.

I feel sorry we're being
destroyed from within.

All we want is
to be left in peace.

REITERMAN: He looked
somewhat broken,

and crestfallen but angry.

And what he was saying really

was that the defections

by some of his members
were going to be the undoing

and the unmasking of Jim Jones
and Peoples Temple,

and what was going on
inside of Jonestown.

If we get out now,
I can still make deadline.

Where's Ryan?

He's staying back
to help with the rest
of the defectors.

You mean, there's more?

Yeah, only he's not saying so.

Thanks. (GRUNTS)

TIM: Everybody, ready?

LEO: Jim,
why are you so upset?

There are only 15 people

leaving out of nearly 1,000.

I mean,

if 400 people were leaving,

then I'd be worried.

Things were spiraling
out of control.

There was a crack
that had opened.

And the crack
was continuing to open.

Jones was losing control

and the whole community,
in my opinion,

was going to crack
open completely.

It's only 15 people.

When I get back,

I'm gonna report to Congress

that of the 60 people cited
by the concerned relatives,

none of them wanted to leave!

They said they were
completely happy.

LARRY: Wait! Wait!

Hey. Room for one more?

There's no way
he's a defector.

-TIM: Come on.
-(GRUNTS)

Why are you leaving?

I'll tell you later.

All right.

Jim,

this is a wonderful thing
you've got going.

-(GASPS)
-(ALL SCREAMING)

MAN: I will kill him!

(BOTH GRUNT)

(GRUNTING)

-Well...
-It's not me.

I guess, um,
this changes things,
doesn't it?

(PANTING)

Some things,
but not everything.

REITERMAN: That convinced
the congressman

not to stay behind

and process
any more defectors,

that he needed
to leave with us

-on the truck.
-LEO: Thanks.

(MARCELINE SPEAKING
INDISTINCTLY ON PA)

Hey, you're bleeding,
Congressman.

-It isn't mine.
-MARCELINE:
Attention, everyone!

What happened?

A minor disagreement.

REITERMAN: We were
in serious danger.

Okay, let's roll!

Because the congressman

was in some ways
our protector.

To see him with blood
spattered on his shirt
from his assailant

and all disheveled

showed just how precarious
our situation was.

I think we wanted to move
as quickly as possible
down that dirt road

and get on a plane
with the defectors.

GOSNEY: When that truck
is pulling away,

I have no faith whatsoever

that we are ever
gonna get out of there.

HARRIS: Saturday,
November 18th,

I headed out
to Temple headquarters

in Lamaha Gardens
to see my daughter.

Liane.

Liane?

(FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING)

-(CHUCKLES) Hi.
-Hello.

-How are you doing?
-Good.

HARRIS: When I first
saw Liane,

it was like nothing
was between us.

Come inside.
We're just about to sit down.

We hugged, you know,
and kissed and...

It was just, uh, it was just
wonderful to see her.

I wish you could see
the wonderful work,

the great work that we do.

You'd see there's nothing
to be concerned about.

And I know she felt
the same way to see me.

How long are you thinking
of staying?

A couple of weeks.

Maybe even a month.
We could tour around.

You could show me things.

Why don't you two
sit down to dinner?

Everything's in the kitchen.

I won't be a minute.

It is so good
to see you, Liane.

It's been hard.

And I... I...

I just wanna get
to know you again,

and you me.

Would that be...

Would that be all right?

You must be hungry.
(LAUGHS) Come on.

(RADIO FEEDBACK)

JIM: (ON RADIO) Please.

Please take care
of everyone there.

Everyone, Jim?

Everybody.

Georgetown, everybody.

Relatives, too.

Just take revenge.

I'll have to tell the others.

JONES: Things were
going bad.

We'd been ordered
to get revenge.

Revenge meant
go out and kill people.

Concerned relatives first,

maybe members
of the Congressman's party,

but those
who had turned against us

would have been considered
the worst enemies.

It just took one spark.

It's time. It's time.

One thread of insanity
to unravel the whole works.

(SIREN WAILING)

White Night. White Night.

Everybody report
to the pavilion immediately.

White Night.

White Night.

Everybody report
to the pavilion immediately.

White Night.

SHERWIN: It was heavy.

So I'm pulling
and I'm pulling.

I'm reeling it in.

And finally, I yank it up.

It's a tire.

-Oh.
-(ALL LAUGHING)

I caught a tire. (LAUGHS)
Just like in the movies.

And here I am,
Buster Keaton looking at it.

Liane?
There's a call for you.

JONES: We had just
gotten the message

and Liane came down.

Liane was having dinner
with her father.

And Liane was told by Sharon.

Uh, Liane.

The order's just come through.

We have to die.

Okay.

JONES: She very calmly
took the news

and I was just struck by that.

Oh, this is really real

and... And how surreal
that was.

LIANE: Should I go
back to dinner?

You'd better have him leave,
your father.

This is a 21-year-old girl

who has just been told,

"End the dinner
with your father

"because we're gonna
have to kill ourselves,"
in so many words.

And I was just...

I was overwhelmed
with fear at that point.

Just dread and fear

of what must be going down
at Jonestown.

NARRATOR: A large shipment
of the liquid poison

potassium cyanide

had been delivered
earlier to Jonestown.

The cyanide was now

mixed with sedatives
and tranquilizers

and added to
a fruit-flavored drink.

JONES: I think that for Dad

to have just gone
and found a room somewhere

and shot himself.

One,

I don't think he was capable
of shooting himself.

Two, I don't think
he could bear to go alone.

His view of existence
was so bleak

that he thought
it was best for everyone
to check out.

A handful of people
with their lies

have made our life impossible.

And we are sitting
on a powder keg here.

And I don't think that

this is what we want
to do with our babies,
you know.

It has been said

by the greatest of prophets
from time immemorial,

no man may take
my life from me,

but I lay my life down.

(ALL CHEERING)

We have been betrayed and...

We have been
so horribly betrayed.

Now, now,
here's what's gonna happen

in a matter of
a few minutes

is that one of the people

on the plane is gonna...

Is gonna shoot the pilot.

And down comes the plane
into the jungle.

And we had better not
have any of our children left

when it is over,

because they will parachute
in here on us.

GOSNEY: When we got
to the airstrip,

I still had this feeling
of impending doom,

that something
was gonna happen.

REITERMAN: As people
were boarding,

a tractor-load of men

returned to the airstrip.

It was clear to me that
there was no real reason

for them to be coming back.

There might well be trouble.

GOSNEY: It was decided that
Monica and myself

were gonna go
onto the small plane,

so that plane
was boarded first.

LEO: Sorry about this, folks.

-I'm sorry,
but let's get safe.
-Turn.

Get on the plane.

We wanted to make sure
that nobody was getting on

either of these two planes
with weapons

because we didn't really know
whether the defectors

in fact were defectors.

Hey, Congressman,
I didn't search him.

Uh, excuse me. Excuse me.
Uh, just a moment, please.

Uh, what's your name?

LARRY: Larry... Larry Layton.
LEO: Larry Layton.

Everybody, okay?

He shouldn't have been
allowed to come with.

Someone said
he might have a gun.

Ryan's checking him.
All right?

He's not gonna
let us leave here.

Jones, I mean.

No, we'll be in the air
in five minutes.

Thank you.
Have a good flight.

When do I pick
you up tomorrow?

-Tomorrow?
-Yeah.

-Ah. (LAUGHS)
-(LAUGHS)

Whenever you like.

I like 7:00 in the morning.

Okay.

-Good. Liane.
-Okay.

This is bullshit, man!

JONES: I needed
to get away from it.

I needed to find out
more information,

maybe gather ourselves.

And with the hope that
we would learn something

other than the madness

we were hearing from Sharon.

HARRIS:
My ex-wife came out
from downstairs

where the radio room was,

and kissed me goodbye
on the cheek.

I just wanna thank you.

And when she
kissed me goodbye,

that was the...
That was really goodbye.

You know, I was feeling
rather buoyant overall.

You know, we had plans
for the next day.

I felt we were
making certain inroads.

I think they got...
I felt they got the message.

See ya tomorrow,
7:00 a.m.

Okay.

Pegasus Hotel, please.

So I felt very upbeat

and I felt that
we were making progress.

LEO: Okay, let's start
getting back on the plane.
We'll be fine.

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

MAN: Everybody, spread out!

-(GUNSHOTS)
-MAN: Spread out!

Spread out!

(INDISTINCT GROANING)

They're killing everyone!

-(GIRL SCREAMING)
-(GRUNTS)

(GIRL SCREAMING)

(GUNSHOTS)

(GUNSHOTS CONTINUE)

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

(GROANS)

Oh, shit!

(SOBBING)

The gunfire died down.

Then there were several

deliberate shots

over the space of

maybe a half-minute.

(GUNSHOT)

(GUNSHOTS)

REITERMAN: And then
there was silence.

JIM: Anyone who has
any dissenting opinion,
please speak.

Yes, Christine.

Well, I feel like,

that, as long as there's life,
there's hope.

JIM: Someday everybody dies.

Someday that hope runs out
and I'd just like to

choose my own
kind of a death for a change.

I'm tired of being
tormented to hell.

That's what I'm tired of.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUDING)

CHRISTINE:
I ain't ready to die.

I don't think that you are.

But, uh, I look about
at the babies and I think,

"They deserve to live,"
you know?

Yeah, I agree.
I agree, but don't they
also deserve much more?

Don't they deserve peace?

(CROWD AGREEING)

We all came here for peace.

-And have we had it?
-No.

Just hold on, sister.

We made it a beautiful day
and let's make it
a beautiful day.

That's what I say.

(CHEERING)

I've tried. I've tried to stop
this thing from happening,

but now I see,
I see it is the will,

the will of sovereign being
that this happened to us,

that we lay down our lives

as a protest against
what is being done.

You know,
the criminality of people,

-the cruelty of people.
-(CROWD AGREEING)

I just know,
I know there is no point,

there is no point to this.

JIM: What comes now, folks?
What comes now?

(WHISPERING)

It's all over.

The congressman
has been murdered.

Sharon Amos was one
of the small percentage of

the Temple membership
that I viewed as a zealot.

And, um, certainly
by the end days

she was every bit as
sick as my father was.

(CHILDREN GIGGLE)

I know that woman
loved her children dearly.

Go see Mommy.

And this is in no way
an explanation or an excuse
or a defense of what she did.

But for her,

she thought she
was saving them.

JIM: If we give them
our children,

then our children
will suffer forever.

(CROW AGREEING)

-We win.
We win when we go down.
-(CROWD APPLAUDING)

Paul said, "I was a man
born out of due season."

Well, I've been born
out of due season,
just like we all have.

And the best testimony
we can make is to leave
this goddamn world.

(CROWD AGREEING)

CHILD: (YELLS) Mama!

Mama!

JIM: What a legacy.

They invaded our privacy,

they come into our home,

they followed us
6,000 miles away.

Get us some medication.

It's simple.

There's no convulsions
with it.

It's just simple.
Just please get some.

JONES: You know,
so much of it feels like fate.

Every possible ingredient

that could be thrown into this
disastrous recipe

was thrown in there.

You've got my father who was
already unraveling.

Are you gonna separate
yourself from who shot
the congressman?

-I don't know who shot him.
-(CHEERING AND APPLAUDING)

And you've got a demoralized,

malnourished,
exhausted populous.

And the people of Jonestown
were just...

They were also crazy
on some level
because of the...

What they had been put through
by my father.

JIM: It's just simple.

Just please get some,
just get it.

JONES: And then who were
the first to die?

The children were
the first to die.

-CHILD: I don't want to!
-(BABY CRYING)

JIM: All they're doing
is taking a drink.

(CHILDREN CRYING)

JIM: The Guyana Defense
Force will be here,
I am telling you.

Get moving, get moving,
get moving.

I'm sure many people believed
that they were lost,

that they were going
to come in with force

and their children were
gonna be taken from them

and they were gonna die
or suffer greatly.

All they're doing
is taking a drink.

WOMAN: (YELLS) No! No!
JIM: They're taking...

Mother, Mother, please!
Mother, Mother,
please! Mother!

(CHILD CRYING)

CHILD: Mommy, what's happening
to everybody?

Can some people assure
these kids of the relaxation

of stepping over
to the next plane?

They set an example
for the others.

They take it and fall asleep.
That's what death is, sleep.

JONES: And even those
that still wanted
to get out of it,

where were they
gonna go at that point?

How were they
going to get out of it?

It's about more than,

you know, Jim Jones saying,

"Line up and take the poison,
it's time to go."

JIM: Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

WOMAN: No! No! No!

No!

No!

(GROANS)

WOMAN: Don't!

(SOBBING)

JIM: Lay down your burden.

Don't be afraid to die.

Jim told me to go.

He wants me to tell the world
what happened here, okay?

The truth of it.

JIM: I'm not gonna let them
take your child.

Would you let them
take your child?

Please, please,
please, please.

Please, please, please,
please, please.

(GROANING)

REITERMAN: After a while,

I stood and started
to work my way back

to the airstrip.

I wanted to see what had
happened to everyone else.

I saw several bodies
on the ground.

It appeared from the wounds
of some of them

that Temple members
had gone around

and finished them off
with shots to the head.

-(CAMERA CLICKING)
-Don Harris of NBC,

Congressman Ryan,

Greg Robinson,
the photographer with me,

Bob Brown of NBC,

Patricia Parks,

one of the defectors,
all of them were dead.

NARRATOR: During the ambush
at the airstrip,
five people were murdered,

including
Congressman Leo Ryan.

Eleven others were
wounded but survived

including Ryan's aid,
Jackie Speier,

and defector, Monica Bagby.

Jones sent gunmen
to the airstrip

to kill the congressman
and others

so that he could
then turn to his followers

and say, "No country,
no place wants us any longer

"because some of our people
have now killed
a congressman.

"There is no hope."

JONES: Till the last
possible minute,
you cling to hope

that people are alive.

And a young woman came out

and walked up to me and said
Sharon's killed herself
and killed her children.

She believed that her children
were going to be taken

to horrible circumstances

and that death

was better for them.

As I opened the door,
the first thing I saw was

the babies and...

And, you know, they were dead,

clearly dead, clearly gone.

It was just,

just horrible.

And Liane wanted so much
to please her mother.

The love of a daughter
for a mother,

there's probably
nothing like it

and what I learned later

was that

they actually killed
each other

by slitting
each other's throats.

GOSNEY: I came to
several hours later,

and I knew it was
several hours later
because it was dark.

I could hear people
walking through the bushes.

What it was, in fact,
was people looking
for survivors.

NARRATOR: Only a handful
of Temple members
inside Jonestown survived.

Some escaped into the jungle.

Seventy-six-year-old
Hyacinth Thrash
had hidden under her bed.

JONES: I lost
everything that day.

I lost brothers and sisters
and dear friends,

people I'd known
my entire life

and the dearest person
on the planet to me,
which was my mother.

She resisted

and physically restrained,

um...

Until the last child died.

And then she walked up
and took the poison herself.

My father, oh, I can tell you,
I've never grieved his death.

I remember feeling
disgust that

he didn't go the way
everybody else went.

Not only did he have
to be shot in the head,

but he had to have
somebody else do it,

and I still believe it was
because he couldn't bear

to go out the way he was
seeing other people go out.

(PLANE ENGINE WHIRRING)

HARRIS: For the entire
incident, I blame Jim Jones.

It's as if he was determined

to make sure nobody won.

If he wasn't gonna win,
nobody was gonna win.

GOSNEY: The people that died
in Jonestown were my family.

And they were my family

when my family
wasn't my family.

And they're all just...

Just really wonderful,
good people

who wanted to make a positive
change in the world.

REITERMAN: One of the myths

of Jonestown

was that it was
a mass suicide,

whereas in fact it was
a mass murder.

They lie, they lie.
What can I do about liars?

You people just leave us,
I just beg you,
please leave us.

REITERMAN:
It happened because

Jim Jones didn't want

word to get out
to the outside world

what was going on
inside his community.

He didn't want the defectors
to tell their stories,

and he didn't want
the reporters to tell
their stories

and he didn't want
the congressman
to tell his story.

GOSNEY: The first time
I thought about
the consequences

of Jonestown and what
had happened

when I was in
a military hospital
in Puerto Rico,

and, uh,

a military psychiatrist
came to speak with me

and tell me that
my son was dead.

The loss of my son has
been the most difficult thing
in my life to deal with.

My sense of remorse,
my sense of guilt,

my going back to that moment

a million times and making
a different decision.

To find some level of peace
and some level of forgiveness

has been the most challenging

thing for me.

HARRIS: I love my daughter
very much.

I've lost her.
(STAMMERS) I'm suffering,

truly suffering with the grief
of that all these...
You know, for years.

And I came to see

that I was really holding
onto the grief as if I...

As if if I let it go I would
be letting go of her.

And I thought
that's not right.

And I came to see that
I could hold my daughter
as a loving memory.

Forever.

And let the grief go.

JONES: There were a lot of
reasons I think that people
ended up taking the poison.

I don't know who took it,
who was injected.

I think more than anything
it was out of loyalty
to everybody else there.

Um, in my case
if I had been there,

I know I had a strong
will to live,

but I think it was so
important to me...

How I was perceived
by the people of my community

was so important to me

that it might have
taken me to my death.

Ask yourself what would
someone have to tell you,

or what would someone
have to do to you

to get you to do something
that you couldn't possibly
believe you were capable of.

And examine that.

Learn from it.

Don't judge it,
don't stand separate from it.

Be willing to

stand in the shoes of

the people you are judging.

And I hope that,

you know, 900-plus people,

that they died
and the way they died,

um, might offer us
something so that their
lives won't be in vain.