Ryan Larkin

On November 19, 1978, the nation and the world woke to the news of the tragedy of Jonestown, learning of the carnage of the suicide and murder of over 900 people in the jungle of Guyana. What happened has been painstakingly studied however the how and the why continue to be the subject of discussion more than thirty years later. The death tapes captured much of what transpired on November 18, 1978. Jones was heard to say,” “Die with a degree of dignity. Lay down your life with dignity; don’t lay…

Benjamin Franklin once said “[t]hose who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” The message Franklin was trying to convey is that liberty is a gift, and it should not be used as a bargaining chip for ones personal desires. His warning to all about the value of vital rights is not just right-wing propaganda, but rather a warning with truth behind it. Throughout history many people have given total devotion to a ruler in hopes…

surrounded the town with guns. The roommate of a survivor (Veron) tried to escape and got punished so severely he was scared out of his mind. Punishment can as far as losing the custody of your children. Allegations of abuse attracted a congressman (Ryan) and some reporters and journalists. The monday before the massacre, the Jonestown basketball team left for a tournament in Georgetown. This team included Stephen Jones, Jim Jones’ son. The congressmen arrived at Georgetown to talk to Stephen…

Yet there is much scholarly debate as to whether sport today continues to uphold the values of hegemonic masculinity or actually contributes to breaking down the hegemonic aspects of masculinity. Juxtaposing the media portrayals of Nolan Ryan and Russell Westbrook, as well as examining the views of a men’s college soccer team in the Northeast, provides strong evidence that hegemonic masculinity, although it has aspects that maintain a significant presence in society, is being challenged…

On November 18, 1978, in what became known as the “Jonestown Massacre,” more than 900 members of Peoples Temple Church died in a mass suicide-murder under the direction of their leader Jim Jones.Jim Jones used blind faith, promise of reward, and violence to shape the identities of his followers. His followers were following by blind faith and used that to get followers.He let any race be apart of the church. Let any race in his Peoples Temple Church and that brought more people in.Did great…

The Sunday School Easter program was about to begin at Bethesda Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. For my last time speaking in front of the congregation before leaving for Tennessee State University (TSU), I was charged with introducing the speaker of the program. As I stood in front of hundreds of people to recite the introduction that I wrote, I was confident and thoughts of how far I had come since giving my life to Christ ran thru my mind. My spiritual journey began when I was about 5…

Keeping up with the Kardashians, is a reality docu-soap that presents the lives of the Kardashian-Jenner family on the television screen. The Kardashian-Jenner family members that are currently on screen, include Kim Kardashian, Khloé Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Caitlyn Jenner (formerly the Olympian Bruce Jenner), Kylie Jenner, Kendall Jenner, Scott Disick and Kanye West. This docu-soap has shown tremendous success ever since its first airing in 2007, with several spin-off…

Throughout history, there has been an enormous amount of leadership figures—both good and bad. One of the most famous is Martin Luther King Jr.--the leader of the African-American civil rights movement. He is best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights using nonviolent disobedience. Although there have been a significant amount of honest leaders who care for the well being of his/her people, there never ceases to be an evil commander who is self-absorbent, selfish, and corrupt.…

The corner of Broad and Sansom will always have a special place in my heart. In my travels around the city of Philadelphia, it is one of the few places that can smack me in the face with déjà vu. Whenever I walk by and look up at the windows above I still see the “David Wright shot a 72 on Wednesday” sign (this became a battle cry for me whenever the Phillies played the Mets, regardless of whether or not Wright was in the lineup). That was the prime location I was able to snag on October 31,…

In 1977 Jones Jimes fled the United States, and nearly a thousand of his people’s temples cult. Deep in the South American jungle him and his cult built a new community to find a new way of life and called it “JonesTown”. Having a great image of a “home sweet home” and a get away “paradise” is soon died on November 18, 1978. More than 900 people were killed or others committed suicide by drinking laced Kool-Aid. Jones did have a dark side to this all as you can tell he killed nearly a thousand…