A former Twelve Tribes member finds her voice through TikTok

Swanton — Tamara Mathieu starts all of her TikTok videos with a version of this introduction: “I’m a cult survivor. I lived for 14 years in the religious group called the Twelve Tribes, and I share videos about things that we were not allowed to do in this group.”

Some of the things she says she couldn’t do: Participate in some athletic competitions, celebrate her birthday and read texts other than the Bible or publications by the Twelve Tribes.

Last year, the Swanton resident published a memoir about her experience. Now, she’s taking to TikTok. Mathieu started sharing her videos in July.

She currently has 3,403 followers with each video receiving over 1,000 views.

“A lot of people have contacted me that were also in the Twelve Tribes,” she said, “or people that have family in the Twelve Tribes.” 

One viewer said they are devastated that a young family member joined the group. Another viewer commented, “Thank you for helping me understand what my granddaughter is going through being there for almost three years.”

Social media can play an important role in helping survivors of cults connect, said Megan Goodwin, senior editor for Religion Dispatches and co-author of “Religion is Not Done With You.”

“One of the most powerful parts of recovery is learning about people who have shared similar experiences,” Goodwin said. “In my research, I see it being empowering for a lot of people. The connection part of it is really positive.”

The Southern Poverty Law Center describes Twelve Tribes as “a Christian fundamentalist cult,” but Hadassah Hebert, a current member of the Twelve Tribes community in Plymouth, Massachusetts who grew up in the religious group describes it as “a selfless endeavour.”

“We all have a common goal to not live for ourselves, but to create a place where people can come and find love,” Hebert said.

Mathieu remembers first hearing about the religious group from her college boyfriend, whose relatives were in the Twelve Tribes. Mathieu met her boyfriend at the University of Vermont, where she majored in nutrition and food science.

During her junior year, she became pregnant and eventually decided to leave the university to care for her newborn. She remembers feeling lonely and isolated.

In 1998, Mathieu and her boyfriend got married. At her wedding reception, Mathieu first met members of the Twelve Tribes — her husband’s relatives, as well as other members from the community.

“The Twelve Tribes people stepped right in, kept order, and stayed to clean up,” Mathieu said.

She became interested in visiting the community. At first, Mathieu’s husband did not want to go, but after a year and a half, he agreed to visit the community in Hyannis, Massachusetts. They stayed for a week.

“When I visited, the culture and social life really drew me in,” Mathieu said. 

“I wanted to offer my child this vibrant, wholesome life. I kept thinking, ‘These Twelve Tribes women are so lucky.’”

Mathieu and her husband decided to join and moved their family to Hyannis.

But once Mathieu became a member, she realized life in the Twelve Tribes was not what she expected.

The community was “totally patriarchal,” Mathieu said, “You were never supposed to talk back to a man.”

“It’s absolutely clear in their teachings that man is the head of woman, and women are to be 100 percent submissive to their husbands,” she said.

According to Mathieu, free time was looked down upon in the Twelve Tribes. 

“You are under a rigorous day-to-day schedule,” Mathieu said. 

Mathieu said parents were expected to punish their children by spanking them if they did not obey. 

“If we were not quick to discipline our children on the first command, someone would talk to you about it,” she said. “Anyone who disagrees with a standard in the child training teaching, they are branded a weak, rebellious, or lazy parent.”

Hebert said that children were never abused and that the Tribe “believes that children should obey their parents and respect them.”

After 14 years with the group, Mathieu decided she’d had enough. In 2014, she, her husband, and four children left in the middle of the night.

Mathieu moved her family to a small community in Florida for a few months before relocating to Swanton.

Reintegrating into society after 14 years in the Twelve Tribes bubble was no small task, Mathieu said. She remembers the overwhelm of hearing a TV again and the thrill of getting a smartphone for the first time at 37.

Today, Mathieu works for Northwestern Counseling and Support Services in St. Albans. She returned to the University of Vermont to finish her degree in nutrition and food science, graduating in 2019.

And now, a decade after leaving the Twelve Tribes, Mathieu has found her voice.

In May 2024, she published a memoir called “All Who Believed.” She said the goal was to inform people about the Twelve Tribes and caution those considering joining religious groups like them.

Sharing her story on social media, particularly on TikTok, seemed like a natural continuation of this work. After publishing her memoir, Mathieu made a list of what she might talk about on TikTok with the help of her now 20-year-old daughter. 

The response from her TikTok videos has been mostly positive, Mathieu said. Most viewers share their gratitude for her willingness to share her story.

Some have questions: “What would happen if you didn’t follow the rules?” “What made you decide you were done?” and “When someone is in a cult, do they know they are in a cult?”

Others don’t seem to be concerned. “Some people respond to my videos, ‘Well, that’s not that bad,’” Mathieu said.

But for Mathieu, “Freedom is having the choice to live out by your convictions.”