20 wives say goodbye to husband and a way of life
 
By Chris Ayres
UK Times
 
The lifestyle of America’s largest polygamist sect is in jeopardy after the death of its leader, a child rape case and economic hardship.

Rulon T. Jeffs, 93, president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, died last week leaving 19 or 20 widows, about 60 children and hundreds of grandchildren. Five thousand followers attended his funeral and at least 33 of his sons were pallbearers.

The church, which has an estimated 10,000 members, will have to endure a lengthy succession battle. The two main candidates are Fred Jessop, 92, a church bishop, and one of Mr Jeffs’s sons, Warren, 45. But the complex process of deciding on a new prophet, understood by few, could take months, even years.

The death of Mr Jeffs followed last month’s conviction for child rape of Tom Green, a Mormon from the neighbouring state of Utah, who impregnated his 13-year-old “spiritual wife” in 1986. He was 37 at the time. Mr Green was jailed for five years, the first polygamist to be prosecuted in Utah in half a century. He lived with his five wives and 29 children in a cluster of trailer homes in the western Utah desert.

The mainstream Mormon Church agreed to ban polygamy in the 1890s as a condition for Utah gaining statehood. Many fundamentalists refused to accept that edict and fled into the desert, where they founded secretive, inward-looking communities such as Colorado City. That was where Mr Jeffs, the eighth “prophet” or leader, lived in an opulent home overlooking a valley containing the ever-expanding homes of about 4,000 other polygamist Mormons.

The church dominates the town. Visitors often feel as if they have stumbled into the 19th century — the women and girls wear long, braided hair, ankle-length skirts and dresses, while the boys wear short hair, long trousers and buttoned-up, long-sleeved shirts. Make-up and jewellery are shunned. So are alcohol, newspapers and television.

Colorado City was built across the Utah-Arizona border, allegedly so that its inhabitants could escape raids by either state’s authorities. It suffered several raids in the mid-20th century, including one that saw police cars squealing into Colorado City at 4am, only to find the town’s forewarned citizens gathered together singing God Bless America. Thereafter it was largely left alone, but that is beginning to change.

The recent child rape case drew attention to the church and growing criticism of polygamist lifestyles. The fundamentalists’ dependence on public funding to support their families has further eroded tolerance. Many are given parcels of land by the church, which owns about 85 per cent of the property in and around Colorado City and the neighbouring town of Hildale.

If a family moves away or falls out with the church, the land is passed on to another family. But the area has failed to develop any economic infrastructure: the only commercial businesses are a small restaurant, a clothes shop and a petrol station. As a result, about 78 per cent of residents receive food stamps, compared with an 18 per cent average for Arizona state.

Supporters of the church argue that Colorado City is a role model for other American communities. They point to the town’s strong families, community spirit and volunteerism as evidence of “good old-fashioned” values. But critics say that the church is a virtual dictatorship run by a small religious elite. They say that girls are taught from infancy to be submissive, to marry whoever they are told to or face eternal damnation, and to have little other ambition than to raise children. There are tales of men being driven from the town for minor misdemeanours simply to “thin down” the male population and of loyal church officials being rewarded with beautiful teenage brides.

A couple of years ago the church pulled its children out of America’s secular public school system, and there was speculation that it was preparing for the end of the world. Now it seems the church is more concerned about the end of Colorado City’s way of life.

AMERICA’S largest polygamist sect faces an uncertain future following the death of its leader, a child rape case and economic hardship.

Rulon T. Jeffs, 93, president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, died last week leaving 19 or 20 widows, about 60 children and hundreds of grandchildren. Five thousand followers attended his funeral and at least 33 of his sons were pallbearers.

The church, which has an estimated 10,000 members, will have to endure a lengthy succession battle. The two main candidates are Fred Jessop, 92, a bishop in the church, and one of Mr Jeffs’s sons, Warren, 45. But the complex process of deciding on a new prophet, understood by few, could take months, even years.

The death of Mr Jeffs followed last month’s conviction for child rape of Tom Green, a Mormon from the neighbouring state of Utah, who impregnated his 13-year-old “spiritual wife” in 1986. He was 37 at the time. Mr Green was jailed for five years, the first polygamist to be prosecuted in Utah in half a century. He lived with his five wives and 29 children in a cluster of trailer homes in the western Utah desert.

The mainstream Mormon church agreed to ban polygamy in the 1890s as a condition for Utah gaining statehood. Many fundamentalists refused to accept that edict and fled into the desert, where they founded secretive, inward-looking communities like Colorado City. That was where Mr Jeffs, the eighth “prophet” or leader, lived in an opulent home overlooking a valley containing the ever-expanding homes of about 4,000 other polygamist Mormons.

The church dominates the town. Visitors often feel as if they have stumbled into the 19th century — the women and girls wear long, braided hair, ankle-length skirts and dresses, while the boys wear short hair, long trousers and buttoned-up, long-sleeved shirts. Make-up and jewellery are shunned. So are alcohol, newspapers and television.

Colorado City was built across the Utah-Arizona border, allegedly so its inhabitants could escape raids by either state’s authorities. It suffered several raids in the mid-20th century, including one that saw police cars squealing into Colorado City at 4am only to find the town’s forewarned citizens gathered together singing God Bless America. Thereafter it was largely left alone, but that is beginning to change.

The recent child rape case drew attention to the church and growing criticism of polygamist lifestyles. The fundamentalists’ dependence on public funding to support their families has further eroded tolerance. Many are given parcels of land by the church, which owns about 85 per cent of the property in and around Colorado City and the neighbouring town of Hildale.

If a family moves away or falls out with the church, the land is passed on to another family. But the area has failed to develop any economic infrastructure: the only commercial businesses are a small restaurant, a clothes shop and a petrol station. As a result, about 78 per cent of residents receive food stamps, compared with an 18 per cent average for Arizona state.

Supporters of the church argue that Colorado City is a role model for other American communities. They point to the town’s strong families, community spirit and volunteerism as evidence of “good old-fashioned” values.

But critics say the church is a virtual dictatorship run by a small religious elite. They say girls are taught from infancy to be submissive, to marry whoever they are told to or face eternal damnation, and to have little other ambition than to raise children. There are tales of men being driven from the town for minor misdemeanours simply to “thin down” the male population, and of loyal church officials being rewarded with beautiful teenage brides.

A couple of years ago the church pulled its children out of America’s secular public school system, and there was speculation the church was preparing for the end of the world. Now it seems the church was more concerned about the end of Colorado City’s way of life.
 
UK Times
Originally published September 17, 2002
 
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