Newsweek

For Sale: Cult Shoes, Never Worn

Twenty years after the Heaven’s Gate suicides, you can buy the victims’ discontinued Nike sneakers, with a big markup.
Dick Joslyn, former member of the Heaven's Gate cult, displays his black Nike sneakers at a news conference on April 18, 1997 in San Diego. Joslyn said the shoes were worn by the 39 cult members, who all committed suicide because of the shoe company's motto, "Just Do It."
04_14_Cult_01

What’s the proper dress code for a mass suicide? Obviously, the occasion calls for some level of formality, but one doesn’t want to overdress. It’s a death ritual, not a fashion show.

Twenty years ago, the Heaven’s Gate UFO cult chose health goth. Considering the current athleisure trend, it was a remarkably fashion-forward choice. When the bodies of 39 members were found in a suburban mansion in San Diego, they were wearing matching outfits: heads shaved, bodies covered in purple shrouds, black shirts and sweatpants, patches

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from Newsweek

Newsweek1 min read
Point Scoring
Hunters assess their haul on the first day of shed hunt season on May 1. Many camped overnight to set off early into the forest to search for many-pointed deer, elk and moose antlers, which shed naturally each spring. While some will be mounted onto
Newsweek8 min read
A Life of Crime: America’s Migrant-Smuggling Teens
AMERICAN TEENS ARE SMUGGLING MIGRANTS illegally into the United States at alarming rates. And law enforcement officials told Newsweek that money is the No. 1 reason that juveniles are entering into transnational crime. Human smuggling is defined by t
Newsweek8 min read
Japan's Call To Arms
MORE THAN A DOZEN TIMES, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida uses the word “peace” as he discusses his country’s momentous decision to undertake its largest buildup of military capabilities since World War II. “Since I became prime minister, we hav

Related Books & Audiobooks