I really gave this some thought since you posted it. I have a theory, based on my experiences as a…
rederiswrites:
elen-aranel:
rederiswrites:
I would love to understand how the Amish convinced everyone to see them as just quaint, devout Christians who work really hard, when they are absolutely and beyond a shadow of a doubt a high-control cult. One with well-documented practice of beating wives and children, even babies and toddlers. One with a long record of sexual abuse and child sexual abuse. Where leaving means taking a high risk of never talking to your family again, and being sexually assaulted as a woman or girl may mean getting shunned right alongside the person who assaulted you–because it’s your fault for tempting them.
The more I learn, the angrier I get, and the more baffled I am as to how the Amish are so generally positively regarded.
I’m not American and very ignorant about the Amish. But I wonder if they get away with it because they pre-date the concept of a cult?
Like they’ve been there for a long time so they’re “normal”.
And because they speak a language that’s not widely spoken in America
I’m sure that’s part of it. At least here in the US, I think there are blinders on cults that have been around for many generations. And of course the Amish are mostly out of sight, out of mind. You only see what they want you to see, and they close ranks hard when the “worldly” law gets involved, because ultimately they don’t really acknowledge the secular government as having authority over them.
I really gave this some thought since you posted it. I have a theory, based on my experiences as a rural person. Bear in mind, I actually have at least one living neighbor who has used horses for farmwork instead of tractors, because of the slope of the ground, here.
Ok, my theory. Up into the 1920s, the Amish weren’t living all that differently than the other rural people. LOTS of people didn’t not have home electric and used outhouses, for example, at that time. And, also, the abuse.
During the 30s and 40s, things shifted a LOT as far as electricity, running water, mechanization, etc. However, everybody had far bigger issues to worry about than the Amish. The Depression! The War!
Enter the 50s. By this point, everyday rural life was significantly different for Amish and non-Amish. HOWEVER! Most of the adults at that time could remember their parents or grandparents living without power or running water. It may have seemed charming, like going back to memories of childhood. [And, like, abuse of women is still legal(ish), non-Amish women couldn’t have bank accounts either, etc.]
I feel like that ‘wholesome’ image of the Amish came out of some romanticized memories of folks in the midcentury, and the willingness to overlook the nastiness and patriarchal authority was baked into both cultures.
Ideally, we’d have re-evaluated at some point.
https://ahedderick.tumblr.com/post/830949504567099392
#amish #based #experiences #like #however
#rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit
ahedderick.tumblr.com (Unofficial)
npub1xt…xt3mj
2026-10-20 02:06:06 UTC
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npub1xtv79xjmfwkjww8ddh50ujw376sates4zs2hyc2t04f5zafew9dqqxt3mjSeen on
wss://relay.primal.netPublished at
2026-10-20 02:06:06 UTCEvent JSON
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"content": "I really gave this some thought since you posted it. I have a theory, based on my experiences as a…\n\nrederiswrites:\nelen-aranel:\nrederiswrites:\nI would love to understand how the Amish convinced everyone to see them as just quaint, devout Christians who work really hard, when they are absolutely and beyond a shadow of a doubt a high-control cult. One with well-documented practice of beating wives and children, even babies and toddlers. One with a long record of sexual abuse and child sexual abuse. Where leaving means taking a high risk of never talking to your family again, and being sexually assaulted as a woman or girl may mean getting shunned right alongside the person who assaulted you–because it’s your fault for tempting them.\nThe more I learn, the angrier I get, and the more baffled I am as to how the Amish are so generally positively regarded.\nI’m not American and very ignorant about the Amish. But I wonder if they get away with it because they pre-date the concept of a cult?\nLike they’ve been there for a long time so they’re “normal”.\nAnd because they speak a language that’s not widely spoken in America\nI’m sure that’s part of it. At least here in the US, I think there are blinders on cults that have been around for many generations. And of course the Amish are mostly out of sight, out of mind. You only see what they want you to see, and they close ranks hard when the “worldly” law gets involved, because ultimately they don’t really acknowledge the secular government as having authority over them.\nI really gave this some thought since you posted it. I have a theory, based on my experiences as a rural person. Bear in mind, I actually have at least one living neighbor who has used horses for farmwork instead of tractors, because of the slope of the ground, here.\nOk, my theory. Up into the 1920s, the Amish weren’t living all that differently than the other rural people. LOTS of people didn’t not have home electric and used outhouses, for example, at that time. And, also, the abuse.\nDuring the 30s and 40s, things shifted a LOT as far as electricity, running water, mechanization, etc. However, everybody had far bigger issues to worry about than the Amish. The Depression! The War!\nEnter the 50s. By this point, everyday rural life was significantly different for Amish and non-Amish. HOWEVER! Most of the adults at that time could remember their parents or grandparents living without power or running water. It may have seemed charming, like going back to memories of childhood. [And, like, abuse of women is still legal(ish), non-Amish women couldn’t have bank accounts either, etc.]\nI feel like that ‘wholesome’ image of the Amish came out of some romanticized memories of folks in the midcentury, and the willingness to overlook the nastiness and patriarchal authority was baked into both cultures.\nIdeally, we’d have re-evaluated at some point.\n\nhttps://ahedderick.tumblr.com/post/830949504567099392\n\n#amish #based #experiences #like #however\n\n#rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit",
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