Independent journalist and Glen Arbor Sun publisher Jacob Wheeler initially wrestled with the idea of writing about the "Twin Flames Universe," the group near Suttons Bay described in national media as a cult.
After all, he reasoned, the group's founders are private citizens not yet charged with a crime, and investigations aren't really the kind of work his publication often runs.
But as the Netflix documentary and national outlets continued to shed light on Twin Flames, Wheeler decided it was a story.
"I felt that even though it wasn't officially a crime, what they've done — and I use the word 'yet' here — there's solid evidence that the twin flames universe is destroying people's lives," Wheeler said. "I think that sometimes ... we need to reflect society, but I think sometimes we also need to be the beacon, the lighthouse to lead the conversation."
And at the core of this conversation, he says, are people.
Wheeler hopes folks take note of this when they talk about the Twin Flames Universe and cult survivors.
"I hope we learn about what we as a community and any community can do to safeguard our neighbors, our people and people we love against coercive groups like this," he said. "But I also hope that there's an opportunity to kind of de-stigmatize and not victim blame ... a lot of people any of us could fall prey to something like this."
Jacob Wheeler hosts the National Writers Series conversation titled "Twin Flames: Burned! A Survivor and Cult Survivor Speak Out," at 7 p.m. on Thursday Feb. 22, inside the City Opera House in Traverse City.
Listen to his full conversation with IPR through the audio player on this page.
