end cults 5ever

they will guilt you and force you to attend every meeting and participate in every activity but one day you will be gone and they won't be able to control you anymore.

Women are now allowed to wear pants to meetings - But we are still not allowed to divorce abusive spouses. We are forbidden from having any position of authority within the congregation. We are still considered the "weaker sex" who must submit to their husband's. There is still the pressure to have sex with one's husband because it is a "marital duty."

Witnesses are now allowed to speak to disfellowshipped individuals - But only to try and convert them back. Not to reconnect with old friends or to even ask them how they are doing after losing everything. Witnesses still cannot talk to us as people, but only through the means of conversion.

Men can grow beards - but still lack basic autonomy over their bodies. Still no tattoos or piercings. Still no "flamboyant" attire that might label them as homosexual.

All in all, I see these changes as new manipulation tactics. As a way for the organization to say, look how progressive we are being! Look how welcoming and supportive we are! They are trying to deflect from the long list of constraints against the members. Trying to hide the irreversible pain and trauma that is still inflicted upon disfellowshipped individuals. These changes are breadcrumbs. They do nothing to reverse the institutionalized horrors of Jehovah's Witnesses

They view it as 'group that's super obsessed with something' and thus make jokes like "welcome to the [fandom] cult" and "[character] cult" jokes

And i cant say anything, especially in public spaces cause they'll either ignore me, don't understand/care, or worse, ask me why or do it deliberately to make me uncomfortable

And i know that most people who do this are ignorant rather than malicious. Many of the people who make these jokes are young and only know of cults through the 'satanic ritual cult' trope we see often in media