"He wrote more about this that I plan to use in a longer article, but for now, in light of recent news stories about the power of ISIS to brainwash vulnerable and disaffected young men and women around the world, I felt it was important to address this subject. It is real. It happened to me."
I wish I could say this was an isolated phenomenon in the world, and in the US, today. It IS real. I believe it happened to me too.
This youtube video shed a bit of light for me. I saw myself as this psychologist describes as both the child having been emotionally neglected but even more tragically, as the parent who did the same thing to my child. I believe your experience, Penworks, is related or parallel to mine.
In Britain, we nationally have a culty experience with recruitment of young girls for ISIS. There's a famous group of three 15 year old girls who left school and got to Turkey. The whereabouts of one is unknown; one is dead; and the other has become infamous. Shamima Begum was swiftly married to a Dutchman, a convert to Islam; she bore three children, all of whom died very very young. Her husband is also dead. She has been trying to return to the UK since she was about 20. She has been stripped of British citizenship as being too dangerous to allow to return, and is now stateless and stuck in a refugee camp with no prospect of return to the UK. There's a Wikipedia article about her [her alone] and also the attached one about the three friends who ran away. She has now just turned 24 and, in the last nine years, has lived a life that few could comprehend.
I honestly don't know how I feel, think, about this woman. I can see what she is reported to have said and done. I wonder how accurate it all is. Has some been made up or embroidered, as a deterrent to others? Is she really the violent person she's painted to be? Is she a person who can be rehabilitated?
She was an impressionable, immature 15 year old who had been groomed into thinking a particular way. She acted on that thinking and became deeper enmeshed with her cult ( <>she joined their "Way Corps"). Of her own free will, or was she lured, tricked, compelled into that?
Without in any way excusing what she did, I have compassion on the 15 year old child - all three girls in fact - who got groomed, brainwashed, into what they did (who knows really what they were thinking, or what their motivations were?) (and what factors in their home lives came into play?). I even have compassion for how they became more involved. Didn't that also happen to most (all?) of us? We too were groomed into thinking something was good that turned out to be poisonous, dangerous; and some of us got more and more involved, as Penworks did; others of us became part of the WC; yet more others became recruiters (Ambassadors/Way Disciples) etc. How far might some of us have gone, if pushed far enough? Many of our boundaries, especially sexually, were warped beyond comprehension. We weren't pushed into violent acts, but we were introduced to conspiracy theories.
We now regret those choices made when we were younger and under the influence of the group.
But despite feeling compassion towards these girls, I wouldn't trust them and others of their ilk for a very, very long time. We know how long it has taken for us to get TWI out of our heads, to get our thinking straight. Some indeed still refuse to see. And most here were somewhat older than these three immature 15 y.o. girls. I wonder how many years it would take for them to get ISIS out of their heads - if that's what they want?
I even have compassion for how they became more involved. Didn't that also happen to most (all?) of us? We too were groomed into thinking something was good that turned out to be poisonous, dangerous; and some of us got more and more involved, as Penworks did; others of us became part of the WC; yet more others became recruiters (Ambassadors/Way Disciples) etc. How far might some of us have gone, if pushed far enough? Many of our boundaries, especially sexually, were warped beyond comprehension.
Excellent reflection and introspection.
56 minutes ago, Twinky said:
But despite feeling compassion towards these girls, I wouldn't trust them and others of their ilk for a very, very long time. We know how long it has taken for us to get TWI out of our heads, to get our thinking straight. Some indeed still refuse to see. And most here were somewhat older than these three immature 15 y.o. girls. I wonder how many years it would take for them to get ISIS out of their heads - if that's what they want?
Hmmmm... it's been 37 yrs so far for me... and I didn't get pushed as far as those kids had been.
Recommended Posts
Rocky
"He wrote more about this that I plan to use in a longer article, but for now, in light of recent news stories about the power of ISIS to brainwash vulnerable and disaffected young men and women around the world, I felt it was important to address this subject. It is real. It happened to me."
I wish I could say this was an isolated phenomenon in the world, and in the US, today. It IS real. I believe it happened to me too.
This youtube video shed a bit of light for me. I saw myself as this psychologist describes as both the child having been emotionally neglected but even more tragically, as the parent who did the same thing to my child. I believe your experience, Penworks, is related or parallel to mine.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Twinky
Thank you for that honest and brave sharing, Charlene.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Twinky
In Britain, we nationally have a culty experience with recruitment of young girls for ISIS. There's a famous group of three 15 year old girls who left school and got to Turkey. The whereabouts of one is unknown; one is dead; and the other has become infamous. Shamima Begum was swiftly married to a Dutchman, a convert to Islam; she bore three children, all of whom died very very young. Her husband is also dead. She has been trying to return to the UK since she was about 20. She has been stripped of British citizenship as being too dangerous to allow to return, and is now stateless and stuck in a refugee camp with no prospect of return to the UK. There's a Wikipedia article about her [her alone] and also the attached one about the three friends who ran away. She has now just turned 24 and, in the last nine years, has lived a life that few could comprehend.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bethnal_Green_trio
I honestly don't know how I feel, think, about this woman. I can see what she is reported to have said and done. I wonder how accurate it all is. Has some been made up or embroidered, as a deterrent to others? Is she really the violent person she's painted to be? Is she a person who can be rehabilitated?
She was an impressionable, immature 15 year old who had been groomed into thinking a particular way. She acted on that thinking and became deeper enmeshed with her cult ( <>she joined their "Way Corps"). Of her own free will, or was she lured, tricked, compelled into that?
Without in any way excusing what she did, I have compassion on the 15 year old child - all three girls in fact - who got groomed, brainwashed, into what they did (who knows really what they were thinking, or what their motivations were?) (and what factors in their home lives came into play?). I even have compassion for how they became more involved. Didn't that also happen to most (all?) of us? We too were groomed into thinking something was good that turned out to be poisonous, dangerous; and some of us got more and more involved, as Penworks did; others of us became part of the WC; yet more others became recruiters (Ambassadors/Way Disciples) etc. How far might some of us have gone, if pushed far enough? Many of our boundaries, especially sexually, were warped beyond comprehension. We weren't pushed into violent acts, but we were introduced to conspiracy theories.
We now regret those choices made when we were younger and under the influence of the group.
But despite feeling compassion towards these girls, I wouldn't trust them and others of their ilk for a very, very long time. We know how long it has taken for us to get TWI out of our heads, to get our thinking straight. Some indeed still refuse to see. And most here were somewhat older than these three immature 15 y.o. girls. I wonder how many years it would take for them to get ISIS out of their heads - if that's what they want?
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Rocky
Excellent reflection and introspection.
Hmmmm... it's been 37 yrs so far for me... and I didn't get pushed as far as those kids had been.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.