How did Charles Manson brainwash people?

Answer 1

Manson brainwashed the gullible young people that lived with him and called themselves 'the family'. Like any good cult leader he stripped them of the worldly posessions, isolated them from the other family and friends, drilled his view of the world into their heads 24/7, ect. Brainwashing doesn't happen overnight but the methods worked very well. The lucky ones were not asked to participate in the Tate-LaBianca and Hinman murders. But for Tex Watson, Patricia Krenwinkle, Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, Leslie Van Houton and Bobby Beausoleil, Manson's influence was too strong. At the time of the murders these people said they would have gladly died for Manson. They almost did. California's death penalty law was struck down in 1972, all death sentences were reduced to life. They are all elegible for parole, including Manson himself.

Answer 2

He used classic methods of mind control such as isolation of the subject, intimidation or fear combined with drugs of many different kinds. I have always felt that the young people that killed for him were in a way, victims themselves. That doesn't mean they are any less guilty of their acts. It is interesting to note that the only person that refused to kill on Manson's orders was Linda Kasabian, the prosecution's star witness. She was relatively new to the 'Family' and had less exposure to Manson's mind rape.

Answer 3

It was more or less a two-pronged attack on his subjects. In the 1960's counter-culture LSD* was a very popular drug. Manson decided who got what, and how much they received as well. The appeal of LSD was the expansion of the mind. Family members, while under the control of this drug, left the door wide open into their minds. They were certainly more susceptible to suggestions.

By taking reduced amounts of the drug himself, it guarenteed that he stayed in control. With their reality blurred it was just a small leap for Manson to erase a lifetime of 'conscience' from his subjects, and replace it with his own values, which we already know was completely compromised by the criminal eliment that was Manson.

Coupled with his constant barrage of brainwashing techinques which included his claims that he was Jesus Christ and the devil, it was only too easy for Manson's total domination of their physcies.

*It should be noted that LSD was only one of many different kinds of drugs Manson gave his followers.