When Dawn Smith was born in 1978, the evangelical fundamentalist group known as The Assembly, started by her father and lead by her grandfather, was already in full swing. They were living in communes separated by gender, and given schedules to account for each minute of the day, mostly spent in prayer. Things like dating, television, science, nail polish, piercings, and dancing were all forbidden (wife-training was a thing). Meanwhile, accounts of abuse continued to go unaddressed by a sinister group of leaders hell bent on maintaining power and control; until the victims started sharing their stories, bringing Dawn closer than ever to the truth. Eventually Dawn left The Assembly with her sister, husband and new baby - introduced to things like movies, and television for the first time. and finding her footing in a new exciting world. In this episode you'll hear why Dawn says that "as hard as leaving was, the hardest day of freedom is better than the best day in a cult."
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