Jim Jones

Today in History 11/18 (Jim Jones)

Jim Jones in 1976 (© AP)(1978) Over 900 die in mass murder-suicide in Jonestown, Guyana
Following the murder of a visiting US congressman, American cult leader Jim Jones leads his followers in a mass murder-suicide that claims over 900 victims, a third of whom are children. Some are forced to drink cyanide-laced punch; others do so willingly. Jones shoots himself.
James Warren Jones was an American religious cult leader who, along with his inner circle, initiated and was responsible for a mass suicide and mass murder in Jonestown, Guyana. Jones achieved notoriety as the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple cult.
Lived: May 13, 1931 – Nov 18, 1978 (age 47)
Height: 5′ 8″
Spouse: Marceline Jones (m. 1949 – 1978)
Children: Stephan Jones (Son) · Suzanne O. Jones (Daughter) · Jim Jon Prokes (Son) · Agnes Pauline Jones (Daughter) · Stephanie Jones (Daughter) · Lew Eric Jones (Son) · Timothy Glen Jones (Son) · Jim W. Jones Jr. (Son) · John Moss Jones (Son)
Parents: Lynetta Putnam (Mother) · James Thurman Jones (Father)
Education: Butler University · Richmond High School
Highlights
  • 1949: Jim Jones married Marceline Jones on June 12, 1949.

  • 1971: The Temple repeatedly claimed that Jones fathered the child when, in 1971, Stoen had requested that Jones have sex with Grace to keep her from defecting.

  • 1977: In order to avoid potentially giving up the boy in a custody dispute with Grace, Jones ordered Tim to take John to Guyana in February 1977.

  • 1977: In September 1977, California assemblyman Willie Brown served as master of ceremonies at a large testimonial dinner for Jones attended by Governor Jerry Brown and Lieutenant Governor Mervyn Dymally.

  • 1978: Stoen traveled to Washington, D.C. in January 1978 to visit with State Department officials and members of Congress, and wrote a white paper detailing his grievances against Jones and the Temple.

  • 1978: Jim Jones died on November 18, 1978 in Port Kaituma, Guyana.

Rev. Jim Jones at an anti-eviction rally Sunday, January 16, 1977 in front of the International Hotel, Kearny and Jackson Streets, San Francisco Photo by Nancy Wong
Rev. Jim Jones at an anti-eviction rally Sunday, January 16, 1977 in front of the International Hotel, Kearny and Jackson Streets, San Francisco Photo by Nancy Wong
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(1978) Over 900 die in mass murder-suicide in Jonestown, Guyana.
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Today in History 11/18/17

Prime Minister Adolfo Suarez and his wife, Ambaro, cast their votes in 1977 in the first free elections in Spain (© Saris/AP)(1976) Spain's parliament approves bill to establish a democracy
A year after the death of Fascist dictator Francisco Franco, Spain's parliament members essentially vote themselves out of office, approving a bill to transition to democracy by allowing elections and the creation of a two-chamber parliament. The bill will later be approved by public referendum.
The Spanish transition to democracy (Spanish: Transición española a la democracia), or simply the Transition (Spanish: La Transición) was the restoration of democracy in Spain after the death of Francisco Franco in 1975. The transition began shortly after Franco's death on 20 November 1975, while its completion has been variously said to be marked by the Spanish Constitution of 1978, the failure of an attempted coup on 23 February 1981, or the electoral victory of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) on 28 October 1982. Though faced with political and economic crises at the time, the transition to democracy was one of the factors that allowed Spain to join the European Economic Community and NATO.
Political posters from the 1970s on a simulated street wall in an exhibition celebrating 20 years of the Spanish Constitution of 1978.
Political posters in an exhibition celebrating 20 years of the Spanish Constitution of 1978.

wiki/Spanish_transition_to_democracy
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