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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 27, 2000)
Solicit complete dedication to one philosophy or leader’ Hide its identity or ultimate goal from new members’ Lise guilt or tear tactics to maintain loyal tv? Fofce members into marathon serv ice hours, exhausting them and less ening their critical thinking skills’ Encoilrage alienation from family, friends, or other groups? AP Photo/WTOL-TV and KCBS-TV If someone came up to you while you were reading this and asked you to fork over your bank account, give up your education, spend 18 hours a day with the same people and not have any more contact with your parents or friends, what would you do? Probably laugh in the person's face and walk away. But what if his tactics were dif ferent? What if he asked you about school sports, campus issues, your friends and family? You might be more inclined to give out your phone number. When you arrive on campus you’re vul nerable: away from home, in a new city, eager to break away from your old life and try something new. Cult recruiters, trained to be disarming and friendly, latch onto students and bring them into an new circle of friends. Slowly the commitment increas es, and your schoolwork starts to slip. On campus friends disappear, and family con tact is limited. Before you know it, you're sucked in. Hundreds, if not thousands, of college students have been recruited into cults. Exact figures are hard to come by, but there are about 3,000 cults operating in the U.S. Universities are responding to this threat in several ways. Some schools, such as UCLA, produce warning pamphlets with information about avoiding and responding to cult pressures. Boston University has a support group for victims. Several schools have banned certain organizations from soliciting students. One group, the Videotape frame of Herff Applewhite, leader of the Heaven's Gate cult, whose 39 members committed suicide in 1997. International Churches of Christ, has been banned from at least 39 colleges, including Harvard. The ICC is a fast growing Christian evangelical group found across the U.S. The organization was founded in Boston. A sub-group within the ICC, called the Upside Down Club, is a youth-run organi zation and can be found on many campus es. New recruits are brought to meetings and outings before they realize that it is not a school-sanctioned organization. By that time, they have made connections with group members, and it’s difficult to leave. The emotional strain can be intense, especially if the recruit feels as though there’s nowhere else to turn. Religious cults, although most com monly discussed in the media, are not the only high-pressure groups found on cam pus. Political, business, and social organiza tions can also meet the criteria for a cult. These organizations can also require total devotion, but instead of a religious agenda, they preach revolution, wealth or superiori ty. All these groups use the same tactics to recruit and retain members. • For a guide to online support groups and emergency information go to steamtunnels.net and search for keyword "Support.” Weirdest College Nicknames and Mascots School Arkansas Tech Southern Arkansas UC-Irvine UC-Santa Cruz Whittier College (CA) Oglethorpe (CA) University of Idaho Trinity Christian College (IL) Earlham College (IN) Pittsburg State (KS) Southwestern College (KS) Washburn University (KS) Western Maryland Nickname Wonder Boys Muleriders Anteaters Banana Slugs Poets Stormy Petrels Vandals Trolls Hustlin' Quakers Gorillas Moundbuilders Ichabods Green Terror School Wayne State University (Ml) St. Louis University Webster University (MO) Campbell University (NC) Wake Forest (NC) Muskingum College (OH) Franklin and Marshall (PA) Gettysburg College (PA) Columbia College (SC) South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Evergreen State College (WA) Nickname Tartars Billikens Corlocks Fighting Camels Demon Deacons Fighting Muskies Diplomats Bullets Koala Bears Hardrockers Geoducks Source: usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/find/comasct Read about cults in the news, with FAQs on how to avoid and identify high-pres sure groups. fftCTMUra A nonprofit news source and archive dedicated to the “freedom of mind.” Good source of links, lots of information on Scientology. VvIcOVX ■WlVftVIiwI /»•■■■ vWIVv/ Comprehensive list of links to articles on cults. Based in California, but the infor mation applies to schools and cults across the county. BBamhar* tfimiil mm /afithni /inrfav him] This evocative site was created by parents who have lost their children to the Jim Roberts Group, whose members wander the U.S. and eat out of garbage cans— hence their nickname “The Garbage Eaters.”
