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Warren Jeffs' Wife Escapes Polygamist Community


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Wow, this is disturbing.

http://news.yahoo.com/video/phoenixktvk ... 38686.html

Long story short: An FLDS "lost boy", now grown and out of the cult, buys a Colorado City home on a plan to provide some reparation to FLDS youths who were essentially slave labor. Things deteriorate from there.

To paraphrase the reporter, when the church is the state, the courts aren't going to be impartial and fair.

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I really wish they would do a little more research when writing these articles. Outsiders not welcomed in Colorado City? My husbands brother (who is non-religious) bought a foreclosure there and his kids go to school there and they love it. I live close enough I could drive there right now and they would welcome my $$$. They have stores, even have ads in the newspaper and craigslist. They even give tours for money now.

I understand some women do not want to leave but escape is a strong word. FLDS women have alot more freedom then people think. I personally think the Duggars have less freedom. Everyday I see FLDS women shopping, at yard sales, at resturants, alone or with sister wives or kids. They have cell phones, and internet.

My husband had family roots in polygamy and recently his Uncle and mother died(they were both non-polygamous). Plenty of polygamous relatives came to the funeral including a great aunt who is one of Warren wives. She or any of the other women or kids could have choosen not to return to colorado city/hildale/canebeds. Alot of them stay because they have a community and houses and lifestyle that will allow them to be together. It isn't easy or cheap to find a house that will accomidate 6,8,10 kids plus I know the wives feel bad making the kids leave thier siblings.

I think this next generation will be alot smaller. I know alot of the kids in the last 20 years are leaving and going on to great careers and not returning. the education is actually pretty decent. I know at least 5 harvard grads and many doctors and plenty of nurses and teachers that were raised in colorado city. The now are not FLDS and are living in the suburbs.

What I do feel for is that these women are putting thier lives on hold to make sure the kids stay together and have a good quality of life now the Warren is gone but I do not see them as trapped but more as torn.

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I really wish they would do a little more research when writing these articles. Outsiders not welcomed in Colorado City? My husbands brother (who is non-religious) bought a foreclosure there and his kids go to school there and they love it. I live close enough I could drive there right now and they would welcome my $$$. They have stores, even have ads in the newspaper and craigslist.

This is good to know. The media would have us believe otherwise. Just within the past month one of the news shows like Dateline or 48 Hours showed Colorado City and a car being followed until it left the area.

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I really wish they would do a little more research when writing these articles. Outsiders not welcomed in Colorado City? My husbands brother (who is non-religious) bought a foreclosure there and his kids go to school there and they love it. I live close enough I could drive there right now and they would welcome my $$$. They have stores, even have ads in the newspaper and craigslist. They even give tours for money now.

I understand some women do not want to leave but escape is a strong word. FLDS women have alot more freedom then people think. I personally think the Duggars have less freedom. Everyday I see FLDS women shopping, at yard sales, at resturants, alone or with sister wives or kids. They have cell phones, and internet.

My husband had family roots in polygamy and recently his Uncle and mother died(they were both non-polygamous). Plenty of polygamous relatives came to the funeral including a great aunt who is one of Warren wives. She or any of the other women or kids could have choosen not to return to colorado city/hildale/canebeds. Alot of them stay because they have a community and houses and lifestyle that will allow them to be together. It isn't easy or cheap to find a house that will accomidate 6,8,10 kids plus I know the wives feel bad making the kids leave thier siblings.

I think this next generation will be alot smaller. I know alot of the kids in the last 20 years are leaving and going on to great careers and not returning. the education is actually pretty decent. I know at least 5 harvard grads and many doctors and plenty of nurses and teachers that were raised in colorado city. The now are not FLDS and are living in the suburbs.

What I do feel for is that these women are putting thier lives on hold to make sure the kids stay together and have a good quality of life now the Warren is gone but I do not see them as trapped but more as torn.

Excuse me, but have you done any research on what goes on behind closed door in the FLDS? I'm just flabbergasted that you're attempting to defend them. Women are simply owners of wombs to them, and nothing more. Cattle are more valued. This is a society that promotes sex with underage girls, and has a graveyard full of unexplained dead bodies. Colorado City may be more open these days, but try going to YFZ ranch. The FLDS will not quit until all the creepy old men are put in jail, if that ever happens.

Geez-Louise, what is with these new posters??

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Excuse me, but have you done any research on what goes on behind closed door in the FLDS? I'm just flabbergasted that you're attempting to defend them. Women are simply owners of wombs to them, and nothing more. Cattle are more valued. This is a society that promotes sex with underage girls, and has a graveyard full of unexplained dead bodies. Colorado City may be more open these days, but try going to YFZ ranch. The FLDS will not quit until all the creepy old men are put in jail, if that ever happens.

Geez-Louise, what is with these new posters??

Yeah, jsut because they let you shop in their stores so they can pay bills does not mean the FLDS women are free by any means. Being brainwashed, having little formal education, getting married at 16 and then having multiple children does not make leaving "easy". It really is an escape from abuse for these woman, one they often have to make without their children. I also have a feeling Stockholm Syndrome comes into play here as well.

But maybe you and I have different definitions of freedom.

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I really wish they would do a little more research when writing these articles. Outsiders not welcomed in Colorado City? My husbands brother (who is non-religious) bought a foreclosure there and his kids go to school there and they love it. I live close enough I could drive there right now and they would welcome my $$$. They have stores, even have ads in the newspaper and craigslist. They even give tours for money now.

Outsiders are not welcome in Colorado City. There are too many stories from too many people about how they were followed and harassed when in town. Last week, Mike Watkiss with Channel 3 here in Phoenix did a story about something that was going on in Colorado City and he and his cameraman were harassed by "plyg rigs"--that is, young men with souped-up trucks circling around and around. He's not the first person to be harassed, nor will he be the last. I'm also reminded that author Jon Krakauer, who had previously done books on outdoors and mountaineering subjects, landed in Colorado City in the late 90s after doing some climbing and was harassed by the locals. When he got back to civilization, he learned why he was harassed, and that's the genesis for his book "Under the Banner of Heaven."

I'm also going to call bullshit on your brother-in-law buying a foreclosure in Colorado City proper. The land there (and in Hildale, UT) is owned by a trust known as the United Effort Plan. The UEP has been in court for several years now, it's not clear to me who has the ability to sell property, whether it's Bruce Wisan the main trustee or Warren's buddies in the FLDS, because of the trust. I suspect that if your brother-in-law bought a foreclosed property, it was one in the area called "Centennial Park" or "Second Ward," which is home to a breakaway group of FLDS members.

And finally, yeah, I heard there were tours, but those tours are run by people who have been kicked out of the FLDS, not by members themselves, who have been told by Warren to "answer them nothing."

I could go on about the rest of your drivel, but I'll stop now.

ETA: if they're so fucking WELCOMING, why was there a standoff? Why did the local cops and church security follow this woman?

ABC 4 has learned that it happened Monday in Hildale, Utah, a polygamist town along the Arizona border.

The incident originally triggered a major manhunt and then a standoff, according to sources.

Sources also told ABC 4 News that local town marshals and FLDS security surrounded the business of Willie Jessop, where the young woman had sought refuge.

Willie Jessop is a former FLDS spokesman who was kicked out of the religious group by Jeffs.

Washington County Sheriff's deputies were called in, and took the woman to a shelter in St. George.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office told ABC 4 News that the woman left her residence in Colorado City, Arizona and fled to Jessop's property in Hildale.

...

ABC 4's sources say this is not the first time the woman has tried to escape the FLDS group.

The Washington County Attorney is looking into allegations that the 25-year-old woman was held against her will and even drugged.

link here: http://www.abc4.com/content/news/top_st ... Z8q2Q.cspx

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Women are simply owners of wombs to them....

Uhh, I'm going to make an educated guess and say that FLDS women do not own their wombs, their husbands do. An FDLS woman has no choice in becoming pregnant or bearing a child or not.

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I actually came to Utah to write my thesis on the LDS church almost 20 years ago. I then decided to go back to grad school and research the FLDS. I have spent the last 10 years living in the area, it was during this time I got married. My husband has roots in the FLDS(I actually had no idea when I met him because he was mainstream LDS). I have interviewed over 2000 FLDS men, women kids and residents of the community. My husband and I even own land in the colorado city school district. My husband's grandfather was FLDS and he has some aunts and uncles that are still active in the faith. His aunt is one of Warren wives. She came to her brother's funeral and I spoke with her, this was this year.

I am an outisder, I am not LDS or FLDS (in fact I was sent by a very liberal college in new england to write my thesis) and I had never been booted out of colorado city. I went to colorado city before I met my husband and after so I do not think it is who I am married to (in fact I would think my husband would be less welcome if most of his family left the faith?) My husband's aunt teaches at the colorado city school and we has nieces and nephews that attend the school and I have gone to school functions. My niece and nephew attend no church and never have but after school they attend activites with FLDS kids.

I also had a job that let me into some of the big compounds both in colorado city and centenial park. It was an amazing set up to see (makes the duggars industrial kitchen and big table look like a joke). I have volunteered over the years helping women with divorces/child custody and other legal matters.

So much has changed in the last 5 years. 15 years ago I would say it would have been harder to leave. Now when I visit I get the feeling the women are staying to keep the kids together. I know 4 wives that left and came down to southern utah. they got a big house but it was very hard to find a house for themselves and 25+ kids. Women do go to college , in fact colorado city has a great college for healthcare and provides southern utah with most of the nurses. I also really think that the future of polygamy has changed. 15-20 years ago i would not think so many would be leaving. I see wives encouraging kids to leave and go out of state to college.

I didn't mean to infer that my experinces were only in a check out line. I just wanted people to know that most FLDS are out alone, shopping, taking kids to the dr, doing regualr mom things. Of course sometimes they travel with a sister wife, with gas prices and the trips to the city being 100 miles round trip, it would be silly not to carpool.

I'm sorry if I offended anyone because I only have 25 posts that I'm considered a new poster. I joined here after lurking for a long time after TWOP howard was censoring too many comments. I just felt like expressing what I have seen as a participant observor/researcher in the FLDS community over the last 15 years, the last 10 pretty much full time. I have spoken at college/universites on the subject and have been asked to talk on tv. I have 100's of personal stories/examples from FLDS. Again I'm sorry I offened anyone.

I also wanted to claify my brother in law buying a house. His gradfather was FLDS, the kids and now grandkids have inherited land. The land is currently leased via the trust. He pays property taxes and has a 99 year lease and a legal option to buy for a very small sum. My husband also inherited land this way. His brother brought a half built house(lots of houses in colorado city are not finished to avoid taxes, I remember the first time I went there I was shocked at how many big nice but imcomplete houses there were) and moved it to his land. It was actually more expensive to move the house and to run power to the house then buy the house then to buy the house. A few years ago the real estate market was so out of control in southern Utah it was an option my brother in law choose to not be house poor.

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So all the people who run away in the middle of the night and meet a car in the desert wilderness to be taken to a safe house are just a bunch of drama queens? I'm not really buying it.

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I do believe it's gotten better - the police force used to be 100% in the control of the FLDS, and that got busted up a few years ago - at least one officer's been prosecuted for misuse of official property (I think I read that in Predators' Prey but I read so much reporting in the FLDS it might have been an article instead.) Used to be the actual police would take runaway wives & daughters back to their abusers, and I'm pretty sure that's been halted.

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So all the people who run away in the middle of the night and meet a car in the desert wilderness to be taken to a safe house are just a bunch of drama queens? I'm not really buying it.

I think this was the norm 15-20 years ago when Warren was in power but not so much in the last 5 years. Im sure there are a very small few hardcore members there but very few compared Warren's days. Some people might feel trapped? I do not know everyone. I know alot feel torn, between people they love and the life they know and the lives thier kids know and taking them to a big city in cramped quarters going to schools that are so different.

Some of the documentaires are all little over the top. The one shown 2 years ago on either nat geo or tlc had it seem like the investgator was going off an exit that says brigham rd to get to colorado city. The exit they filmed was for the bloomington golf course and walmart in Utah, about 50+ miles from colorado city and in no way any sort of route to colorado city. They were trying to play up the "brigham apsect".

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I think this was the norm 15-20 years ago when Warren was in power but not so much in the last 5 years. Im sure there are a very small few hardcore members there but very few compared Warren's days. Some people might feel trapped? I do not know everyone. I know alot feel torn, between people they love and the life they know and the lives thier kids know and taking them to a big city in cramped quarters going to schools that are so different.

Some of the documentaires are all little over the top. The one shown 2 years ago on either nat geo or tlc had it seem like the investgator was going off an exit that says brigham rd to get to colorado city. The exit they filmed was for the bloomington golf course and walmart in Utah, about 50+ miles from colorado city and in no way any sort of route to colorado city. They were trying to play up the "brigham apsect".

Sorry to shout, but DID YOU READ THE ARTICLE I POSTED? Obviously not. Instead, you're trying to present the community as not being so bad. I'm sorry, but it really is that bad when a woman cannot leave and there's a standoff between the county police (sworn to uphold the Utah and US Constitutions) and the city police (sworn to uphold the Law of Warren Jeffs). And you frankly didn't tell the truth about your brother-in-law's house (or is this a half-brother-in-law or some other weird combination because of the FLDS predilection for sealing and unsealing and remarrying women to new men as the old ones got exed for being "unfaithful"?). You only came clean (and I can't even be sure of THAT) when I pointed out that the land in town was mostly locked up in the UEP trust.

That said, as the years go by, and good old Warren stays locked up in the hoosegow (or if he dies due to the damage he's already put on his health), the young girls who got sealed to him in 2003-2006, some of whom are still not of legal age, are going to want out. They have desires and hormones, and they're not going to want to sit around and wait for a guy who is never getting out. Never. Getting. Out.

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I think this was the norm 15-20 years ago when Warren was in power but not so much in the last 5 years. Im sure there are a very small few hardcore members there but very few compared Warren's days. Some people might feel trapped? I do not know everyone. I know alot feel torn, between people they love and the life they know and the lives thier kids know and taking them to a big city in cramped quarters going to schools that are so different.

Some of the documentaires are all little over the top. The one shown 2 years ago on either nat geo or tlc had it seem like the investgator was going off an exit that says brigham rd to get to colorado city. The exit they filmed was for the bloomington golf course and walmart in Utah, about 50+ miles from colorado city and in no way any sort of route to colorado city. They were trying to play up the "brigham apsect".

WTH? This alone makes me think you haven't done your research. Warren has been in power, and many say is STILL in power, in the last 5 years. He has been running things from prison since his capture 3ish years ago. He was in full power until his arrest.

And going on a shopping trip does not in ANY WAY mean escaping is easy. Sure, she coul djust keep driving, but that would mean leaving with no money, no education and having to leave her children. Not sure how that is in any way easy.

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All I've got to say is HALLELUJAH! I received Carolyn Jessop's (a former member) book Escape one Christmas and it opened my eyes to a frightening world I had no idea about, one that made my blood boil. So it makes me so glad to hear that one more woman has gotten away, and even more so a wife of their leader.

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FLDS women are allowed to go to college, run businesses, have cell phones and go out alone - even Carolyn Jessop's book discussed her college studies and experience running a hotel (especially before Warren Jeffs took over).

That said, I don't think anyone's going to argue that FLDS women's lives are fun and tea parties.

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I do believe it's gotten better - the police force used to be 100% in the control of the FLDS, and that got busted up a few years ago - at least one officer's been prosecuted for misuse of official property (I think I read that in Predators' Prey but I read so much reporting in the FLDS it might have been an article instead.) Used to be the actual police would take runaway wives & daughters back to their abusers, and I'm pretty sure that's been halted.

Did you read Flora Jessop's "Church of Lies?" I was astounded at how the government actually assisted abusers and polygamists. Taping her caseworker sessions and handing them over to her "father" who they knew was a practicing polygamist and abusive to boot. Insanityyy.

Yeah, I call bullshit on silverspoons. "I've been asked to talk on TV! I have hundreds of examples! Its really not that bad! They go to college! Warren Jeffs hasn't been in charge for 15 years! I help women with legal issues sometimes! Oh and I have familial ties to the FLDS LOL."

Also, in all the books I've read on the FLDS (which is many, I just finished a unit recently!) the women moved about in their locations pretty freely. Carolyn Jessop talked about how they would have cars with no license plates, expired registrations or identifying marks so that they'd be stopped if they left their stronghold, or so that their husbands could be called if their car was seen leaving. I mean, she lived virtually alone, running a hotel quite a ways from her husband, but still she stayed, because she was SCARED OF GOING TO HELL. FLDS women are limited in their resources and education, yes, but discounting the GOING TO HELL thing is really ignorant- even if they could pick up and leave, even if they had money saved and family on the outside (like Carolyn Jessop did!), eternal damnation is a very good motivator to stay.

ETA: crossposted with acheronbeach

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Well, and Warren Jeffs made things a lot stricter. You can't view events from before he took over as representative of modern realities.

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FLDS women are allowed to go to college, run businesses, have cell phones and go out alone - even Carolyn Jessop's book discussed her college studies and experience running a hotel (especially before Warren Jeffs took over).

That said, I don't think anyone's going to argue that FLDS women's lives are fun and tea parties.

Carolyn Jessup actually grew up in a less strict time. I am pretty sure most FLDS women can go to college in the same way that ultra-fundies can go to college. When you get married at 16, and start having babies right away, you don't have much time for advanced studies.

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Did you read Flora Jessop's "Church of Lies?" I was astounded at how the government actually assisted abusers and polygamists. Taping her caseworker sessions and handing them over to her "father" who they knew was a practicing polygamist and abusive to boot. Insanityyy.

Oh yeah. I <3 Flora Jessop, she's a tough lady and not afraid to admit her own faults. She's not the only one with that kind of story, it's pretty common - do you remember the two Fawns? The police around the twin towns were just an arm of the church for a long, long time.

That said, I am pretty sure that sharing information on "troubled" teens with their abusive parents was standard most places in the past - it wasn't *so* long ago that the standard response was to put the victim in juvenile detention for being "wayward" (one of my mom's cousins narrowly escaped that in the late '50s) It went away in different places at different times, but Utah is so conservative and "family-oriented" it wouldn't surprise me if it lasted longer there than some other places - the early to mid-80s, when Flora Jessop was there, was just the time when a lot of attitudes and laws about child sexual abuse were changing everywhere. It's not just the extreme patriarchalists who think girls who expose abusers are lying, or exaggerating, or just unstable and unreliable.

I am just really heartened at the way all of the lawsuits and criminal prosecutions have started to open things up out there, and I do believe based on news reports and memoirs and blogs that things are getting better in Colorado City & Hilldale. (though partly because a lot of people have been moved to other newer settlements or safehouses). Unfortunately "better" puts most of the women and girls just about as trapped as your typical hardcore QF patriarchalist family member - but it's still progress, and it was a hell of a lot of work by a lot of people on various fronts.

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I also wanted to claify my brother in law buying a house. His gradfather was FLDS, the kids and now grandkids have inherited land. The land is currently leased via the trust. He pays property taxes and has a 99 year lease and a legal option to buy for a very small sum. My husband also inherited land this way. His brother brought a half built house(lots of houses in colorado city are not finished to avoid taxes, I remember the first time I went there I was shocked at how many big nice but imcomplete houses there were) and moved it to his land. It was actually more expensive to move the house and to run power to the house then buy the house then to buy the house. A few years ago the real estate market was so out of control in southern Utah it was an option my brother in law choose to not be house poor.

I thought your brother-in-law bought a foreclosed house. This is very confusing. I'm going to bed.

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