Occupy Wall Street is almost two months old, but last night was the first time the Voicehad noticed an odd-looking brown bus parked on Liberty across from Zuccotti Park. It kind of looked like a huge '70s-style RV. A sign on the door read "Welcome. Please come in!"
We did as suggested and encountered The Twelve Tribes, to our knowledge the first cult (or cult-ish group, at least) that is making an attempt to recruit people at the protest.
Upon entering the cozy wood-paneled bus, an older couple presented the Voice with a plate of brownies. We took one. (No, it wasn't a pot brownie.) There were about a dozen people on the bus, which looked like someone's rec room mixed with Frodo's house. A man named Emmett with a headband and tattooed arms came and sat beside us on one of the soft cushy seats and handed us a cup of tea. (It wasn't mushroom tea.)
To Emmett's credit, he waited a full two minutes before handing us literature relating to The Twelve Tribes, a messianic group that traces its origins to early 1970s Tennessee. They live on communes all over the U.S. and Europe. If you've ever seen a Yellow Deli or a Common Ground Café, that's these guys.
Some Twelve Tribes informational lit.
"We do everything together," Emmett, 35, said. "We raise our children together. There's no self-interest, no leader. We're kind of like the Amish," he said, a comparison strengthened by the floor-length skirts and modest blouses the women were wearing.
The group of nine had driven all the way from Tennessee in the bus and were only in the city for a few days. They don't have an official stance on Occupy Wall Street, according to Emmett. Tonight they'll be at Madison Square Garden outside the Furthur show. Occupier James Molenda, 32, told the Voice that he recognized the Twelve Tribes from Phish shows he has been to; apparently hanging out at jam band concerts is part of their proselytizing M.O.
The interior of the Twelve Tribes' tour bus.
By Rosie Gray Thu., Nov. 10 2011 at 11:56 AM
Take From The Village VOICE. BLOGS.
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