Family is often considered a safety net to fall back on when plans don’t work out in the real world. It is a comfort space with the warmth of hope that everything will be alright. But this doesn’t necessarily mean only your biological family.
This can mean friends who care for you like siblings, or your work folks whom you feel like you truly belong, or a group of people with whom you share common interests and world views.
Then there’s one kind that promises you all the above, pledging protection during an apocalypse and offering life-long commitment and loyalty with blood. What kind of family is this?
Well, this is not a family; it is called a cult!
According to experts, a cult is a pseudo-family that takes in individuals who are lost in life and are searching for a sense of belonging.
Josh Hart, a professor of psychology at Union College, studied personality and social psychology, world views, and belief systems. His research on the cult suggests that “[They] provide meaning, purpose and belonging.”
“They offer a clear, confident vision [and] assert the superiority of the group.”
These groups target vulnerable people who are seeking companionship in their loneliness. A cult is a medium that shows them an alternate world and entices them with a blue pill of their own matrix.
But no one could have ever predicted a cult so dangerous, whose murders are echoed throughout the 21st century.
Who Is Leslie Van Houten? How Did She Become a Part Of the Manson Family?
The year was 1968 when a teenager was struggling with her identity. Leslie Van Houten lived with her middle-class family consisting of parents, one sibling, and two adopted siblings from Korea. After her parents’ divorce, Leslie found it challenging to cope with their separation and resorted to drugs and alcohol.
One day she told her mom that she was pregnant. Her mother demanded she get an abortion even though Leslie wanted to keep the baby. After this incident, she decided to clean up her act and get into business school. Leslie tried to pursue her studies but soon fell back on drugs.
She decided to leave her family behind for a better life. She wrote in a letter to her mother that she was leaving and never to contact her again. After hitchhiking for a while, a truck stopped beside her. Bobby Beausoleil introduced himself to 18-year-old Leslie and offered to take her to California. They picked up two other girls on the way and roamed together for a while.
After a few days, Bobby took the girls to an unknown establishment. Apparently, Leslie was not that impressed with a scraggly meek short man who introduced himself as the group leader. But when one of the girls wanted to stay back, Leslie decided to join her; thus unknowingly joining a cult led by Charles Manson.
Leslie slowly began an unsettling fascination with Manson and eventually pledged her devotion to his ultimate plan.
HELTER-SKELTER
Charles Manson had the nerves.
He was not all there in the head, but the more disturbing part was that he convinced a group of loyal followers that whatever he had visioned was the divine truth.
According to the whacko, America was becoming a boiling hub of intense race discrimination. And this would eventually lead to a cataclysmic race war between the Black and the white people. He predicted that this would end in the slaughter of the majority of white people and the blacks would dominate the country. But he also said he would emerge as the supreme leader in the doomsday scenario. And that is the entire premise of his manifesto, “Helter Skelter.”
What Did Leslie Van Houten Do?
Leslie was determined to be a part of the “Manson Family,” and carry out every mission leading up to the doomsday. On 10th August 1969, Charles Manson ordered a subunit to carry out murders after Sharon Tate and her associates were killed at her home.
Charles ‘Tex’ Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Leslie Van Houten were ordered to go to the home of supermarket owner Leno La Bianca and his wife, Rosemary.
[Warning: Graphic details of the murder explained.]
- Watson first stabbed Leno multiple times with a bayonet,
- Meanwhile, Leslie holds down Rosemary so that Patricia can stab her. Patricia attempted to stab her numerous times, but she was unable to do it.
- Tex jumped in after killing Leno and held Rosemary. Both Tex and Leslie took turns stabbing helpless Rosemary multiple times.
What Was Leslie Van Houten Charged With?
For the brutal murder of Rosemary, Leslie was sentenced to death in 1971. But later, the state of California decided to suspend the death penalty and give her a life sentence in 1972.
Houten still showed her devotion to Manson as she appeared with an ‘X’ carved into her forehead. And now, 53 years later, the 73-year-old woman is out on parole.
According to the facility, Van Houten displayed model behavior during her sentence. Her lawyer Rich Pfeiffer believes she would have been released years ago. He said, “the only reason she’s still in prison is one word- Manson.”
She is out on parole on the basis that she has repented for her crimes and has put her past behind her.
Ava Roosevelt, a former model and a young woman who narrowly escaped the cult told The Sun that–
“I don’t believe a person that’s capable of committing such a heinous crime can ever be rehabilitated, that kind of thing is ingrained in your DNA,” Ava Roosevelt told the US Sun.
“It’s a sad day for me, it really is, because I don’t think justice has been served for Sharon and the other victims at all.”
What do you think of Leslie’s release? Should she be serving her sentence until she dies?
Do you believe that she is a changed person? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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