The People's Temple From the mid-1950s to the early 1960s, the African-American civil rights movement was in its prime. Men and women of color were discriminated against and mistreated almost everywhere they went. By human nature, it would be ideal to fit in and be accepted for who you are, not the color of your skin. This was the perfect time for Peoples Temple to come into play, starting as a small church with a religious movement, the church gained a large number of followers among African Americans. Men and women of color felt comfortable joining this church for the primary reason of equality. The People's Temple apparently offered equality and preached socialism and this is what the movement's followers were seeking. Behind every great movement is a strong, charismatic leader. Peoples Temple was founded by Jim Jones who we now know was a very influential individual who abused the obedience and loyalty of his followers (Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple).Jim Jones was born May 13, 1931, in the Indiana town of Crete, but grew up in Lynn. Since his childhood, people remembered him as a troubled teenager, obsessed with the idea of ​​death and religion. During his youth, he captured animals and killed them in order to hold funerals for fun (Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple). Jones found this amusing, and for some reason no one took this as a wake-up call that something was wrong with this individual. However, these were not the only alarming actions taken by Jones: during his teenage years, he showed interest in the Pentecostal movement and also vandalized their established churches (Metcalf 336). Although... middle of paper... world, he possessed all the abilities that a great charismatic leader should have, but he had a bad mindset causing the largest mass suicide to date. Works Cited Jonestown: The Life and Temple of People's Death. Real. Stanley Nelson. Firelight Media, 2006. Documentary. Metcalf, Bill. "Salvation and Suicide: Jim Jones, the People's Temple, and Jonestown." » Reverend of Salvation and Suicide: Jim Jones, The Peoples Temple and Jonestown, by David Chidester. Utopian Studies June 2005: 335-338. Academic research completed. Internet. May 4, 2014.Moore, Rebecca. “The People’s Temple”. Virginia Commonwealth University College of Humanities and Sciences. Np, June 22, 2012. Web. May 4, 2014. Reiterman, Tim and John Jacobs. Raven: The Untold Story of Reverend Jim Jones and His People. New York: Dutton, 1982. Print.