A former Twelve Tribes member finds her voice through TikTok
Published By admin
SWANTON — Tamara Mathieu starts all of her TikTok videos with a version of this introduction: “I’m a cult survivor. I lived for 14 years in the religious group called the Twelve Tribes, and I share videos about things that we were not allowed to do in this group.”
Some of the things she says she couldn’t do: Participate in some athletic competitions, celebrate her birthday and read texts other than the Bible or publications by the Twelve Tribes.
Last year, the Swanton resident published a memoir about her experience. Now, she’s taking to TikTok. Mathieu started sharing her videos in July.
She currently has 3,403 followers with each video receiving over 1,000 views.
“A lot of people have contacted me that were also in the Twelve Tribes,” she said, “or people that have family in the Twelve Tribes.”
One viewer said they are devastated that a young family member joined the group. Another viewer commented, “Thank you for helping me understand what my granddaughter is going through being there for almost three years.”
Social media can play an important role in helping survivors of cults connect, said Megan Goodwin, senior editor for Religion Dispatches and co-author of “Religion is Not Done With You.”
“One of the most powerful parts of recovery is learning about people who have shared similar experiences,” Goodwin said. “In my research, I see it being empowering for a lot of people. The connection part of it is really positive.”
The Southern Poverty Law Center describes Twelve Tribes as “a Christian fundamentalist cult,” but Hadassah Hebert, a current member of the Twelve Tribes community in Plymouth, Massachusetts who grew up in the religious group describes it as “a selfless endeavour.”
“We all have a common goal to not live for ourselves, but to create a place where people can come and find love,” Hebert said.
Mathieu remembers first hearing about the religious group from her college boyfriend, whose relatives were in the Twelve Tribes. Mathieu met her boyfriend at the University of Vermont, where she majored in nutrition and food science.
During her junior year, she became pregnant and eventually decided to leave the university to care for her newborn. She remembers feeling lonely and isolated.
Read more https://vermontdailychronicle.com/a-former-twelve-tribes-member-finds-her-voice-through-tiktok/
Content retrieved from: https://vermontdailychronicle.com/a-former-twelve-tribes-member-finds-her-voice-through-tiktok/.
