Jon Frum
The Island of Tanna in the Island nation of Vanuatu (once known as the New Hebrides) is the home to an historical oddity. A genuine "Cargo Cult" that you may have heard of at various times. They arose after the Second World War after the US forces (who had brought in so very much cargo, hence the name) left. The members of the Jon Frum cult believe Americans will return – with a lot of cargo for the believers.
The Jon Frum movement celebrated the 50th anniversary of its founding yesterday with a lavish feast in which village men dressed up as US soldiers and marched in front of a giant Stars and Stripes flag on a bamboo pole.
Miniature American flags festooned trees lining the black sand parade ground which forms the focus of Lamakara village, the headquarters of the cult, on the jungle island of Tanna.
Older men dressed as officers marshalled the crowd of several thousand cult devotees, while 50 young men shouldered their bamboo rifles and came to attention in a perfectly orchestrated drill.
The letters USA were daubed across their chests and backs in red paint as they paraded beneath a relentless tropical sun, a drill sergeant barking orders in Bislama, Vanuatu pidgin English.
A tin band and small boys with bamboo flutes played The Star Spangled Banner against a background of roars from nearby Mount Yasur, a live volcano in which the spirit of Jon Frum is said to live. "For us, America is very good," said village chief Isaac Wan, 67, the leader of the cargo cult, barefoot but dressed in a smart American naval officer's uniform and sitting under a large US flag.
Not everyone in the world is anti-American, it seems. Here's a wonderful article from the Smithsonian Magazine where I first read about the Jon Frum cult.
History, Religion, World news | Gaius February 17, 2007
By Chet, February 17, 2007 @ 11:40 am
Not everyone in the world is anti-American, it seems.
If you think they’re proclaiming their support for the United States, then you don’t understand how a cargo cult works.
In fact, it’s their position that the white people of the USA hold unfair domination over the various divine artifacts (Coca-cola, televisions, Cheetos) that were manufactured by the gods and intended for these indigenous peoples.
To raise the attention of the gods, and incur the divine blessings they see Americans enjoy, they ape the things they saw Americans do in WWII that “attracted” cargo from planes – they manufacture mock airstrips, complete with air traffic controllers wearing wooden “headphones.”
Honestly it’s a hilarious example of how religions are generated; behaviors that are viewed to have some effect, like dancing before a rainstorm or praying for a sick relative – are ritualized, enshrined, and repeated.
By Gaius, February 17, 2007 @ 11:49 am
Thanks for projecting your own beliefs and indoctrination onto an interesting, non-political story.
By Bleepless, February 17, 2007 @ 11:57 am
Alas, I am not certain that this is true: During WWII, some cargo cultists were scrutinizing a US air base and saw stacks of cylindrical objects which they concluded were airplanes’ eggs. They wanted a plane of their own, so they snuck onto the base and stole one of the objects. At home, they put it over a fire in hopes that it would hatch. It did. Several people died in the explosion.