Prince Harry’s recent memoir, Spare, has flown off the shelves, offering his perspective on royal life and his departure from it. His story highlights a recurring theme: individuals, once integral to an organization, sometimes turn and reveal its deepest secrets. This often happens due to personal grievances, a desire for truth, or even significant financial incentives.
Every so often, someone feels wronged by a group they once cherished. They decide to share their experiences, bringing to light information never meant for public consumption. Here are ten compelling examples of individuals who were part of secretive societies or organizations and chose to spill the beans.
10. John Robison—Freemasons
John Robison, a respected scientist in the British scientific community and a professor at Edinburgh University, was an expert in mathematics and optics. However, in the late 1700s, Robison also authored Proofs of a Conspiracy against all the Religions and Governments of Europe. This book delved into the extensive reach of the Freemasons, with a particular focus on the Illuminati, a Masonic cell that has fueled countless conspiracy theories. As a Mason himself, Robison possessed insider knowledge about the organization’s workings, which he detailed in his book. Unsurprisingly, the first edition sold out quickly and saw multiple reprints.
From his vantage point in Edinburgh, Robison observed the French Revolution, including the fall of the monarchy and the dispossession of the church. He attributed these monumental events to the Freemasons, suggesting that those involved in the revolution were merely chess pieces in a larger, more ambitious scheme. [1]
9. Ed Decker—Mormon Church
Born in 1935, Ed Decker was once a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS Church). He later became a key figure in Saints Alive in Jesus, a Christian group for ex-Mormons. Decker is considered highly influential regarding the discourse surrounding the Mormon Church. In collaboration with Dave Hunt, he wrote The God Makers, a book exposing the inner workings of the church.
Decker’s disillusionment with the Mormon Church grew after he encountered the views of groups critical of Mormonism. He ultimately decided he could no longer accept the premise that its founder, Joseph Smith, was divinely chosen to restore pure Christianity to the world. [2]
8. Stetson Kennedy—the KKK
Stetson Kennedy, a writer who chronicled life during the Depression era, authored a book that unveiled the internal mechanisms of the infamous Ku Klux Klan. His most recognized work, The Klan Unmasked, published in 1954, originated from his efforts in the 1940s to expose the organization and its campaign of terror against Black citizens in the South.
In his book, Kennedy revealed previously unknown details about the KKK, such as their folklore, secret handshakes, and passwords, while also satirizing their white sheet regalia. Using evidence gathered from the grand dragon himself, he supplied the IRS with sufficient information to pursue a $685,000 tax lien against the Klan. Kennedy also contributed to drafting a brief that led Georgia to revoke the Klan’s national corporate charter and testified in other Klan-related cases. He passed away at 94, after a lifetime spent challenging Klansmen. [3]
7. Heinrich Himmler—Nazis
Heinrich Himmler, the architect of the Holocaust and Adolf Hitler’s right-hand man, maintained a diary. These diaries, compiled by Himmler’s assistant, covered most of the war and were discovered in 2013. While Himmler didn’t “spill the beans” in the conventional sense, his writings offer a chilling account of one of history’s most monstrous individuals.
The diaries span over a thousand pages, documenting daily life, the execution of Nazi-allied officers in Poland who resisted orders, and other details leading up to the Final Solution. They provide deeper insight into Himmler’s character and the horrific acts he commanded. One such order was to equip Auschwitz concentration camp with new guard dogs capable of tearing prisoners apart. The diaries are personal but offer little insight into his emotional state or relationships—though perhaps such details are hardly necessary given the context. [4]
6. Jeannie Mills—People’s Temple
Jeannie Mills, her husband Al, and their two children departed the People’s Temple in 1974. Formerly known as Elmer and Deanna Mertla, they had held positions of responsibility within the church; Deanna was head of the Temple’s publication office, and Elmer was its official photographer. After leaving, the couple became outspoken critics, co-founding the Human Freedom Center, a refuge for other Temple defectors. Following the Jonestown tragedy, the center provided support for survivors.
In February 1980, the couple and their 15-year-old daughter were murdered in their Berkeley home. This sparked rumors of a death squad composed of former church members. Later evidence suggested that their son Eddie Mills, the sole survivor, might not have been as innocent as initially believed, somewhat calming fears about church-orchestrated death squads. [5]
5. Leah Remini—Scientology
Leah Remini, widely recognized for her role in the hit sitcom King of Queens, was also a member of the Church of Scientology. She was introduced to the church at age eight when her mother converted. Remini’s decision to leave was ultimately influenced by concerns for her own nine-year-old daughter. A month after her departure, Remini filed a missing person’s report for Shelly Miscavige, the wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige, who has not been seen publicly since 2007.
Since then, Remini has become a vocal critic of the church’s ideologies and actively supports legal cases against its members. She also produced a docuseries, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, which explored the inner workings of the religion. [6]
4. India and Catherine Oxenberg—NXIVM
Catherine Oxenberg and her daughter India enrolled in NXIVM classes, marketed as workshops for developing entrepreneurial skills. It was during these workshops that India was recruited into a secret society within NXIVM, a development that severely strained her relationship with her mother. It took seven years for them to break free from the sex cult. Catherine later wrote a memoir detailing her desperate, and initially futile, attempts to rescue her daughter from the cult-like group.
India eventually recognized the destructive nature of NXIVM. The group’s founder, Keith Raniere, was convicted of racketeering, sex trafficking, and possession of child pornography in connection with his activities within the organization. [7]
3. Janja Lalich—Democratic Workers Party
The Democratic Workers Party (DWP) was established in the U.S. during the 1970s by a women’s collective led by Marlene Dixon. The DWP represented one of the more controversial efforts to form a Marxist-Leninist party in the U.S., known for its sectarian stance towards other leftist factions. The organization dissolved in 1985, but not before cultivating a cult-like following around its rigid interpretation of Leninism and the Leninist party structure.
Janja Lalich, a former party member and defector, experienced firsthand the DWP’s controlling tactics. The party dictated her income, severed her ties with her family, ordered her to adopt a new name, and made her burn her personal belongings. She was even reprimanded for spending time with her dying mother. Lalich has since become a sociologist and author, writing extensively on cults and coercion, exposing how these organizations recruit and manipulate members. [8]
2. Joe Valachi—The Mafia (aka Cosa Nostra)
Joe Valachi, an American gangster who became a state informer in 1962, held a significant rank within the Mafia—equivalent to a sergeant—and was a member of Lucky Luciano’s crime family. After being convicted on drug-related charges and imprisoned, Valachi was allegedly marked for death by Vito Genovese. Gripped by panic, Valachi mistakenly killed a fellow inmate he thought was an assassin. In retaliation for the death threats, he disclosed the entire organization’s structure and operations to the U.S. Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the U.S. Senate.
Regarded as one of the most pivotal informants in the history of organized crime, Valachi aimed to dismantle the underworld that had betrayed him and placed a $100,000 bounty on his head. Having lost his wife and his mob family, and consumed by guilt, he relied on government protection until his death from a heart attack. [9]
1. Carlos Lehder—Medellín Drug Cartel
Carlos Lehder began his criminal career smuggling stolen cars into Canada and the American East Coast, which led to his imprisonment. There, he made connections that propelled him into the cocaine import business. He famously persuaded George Jung to use airplanes for drug transport. Years later, after rising through the ranks of the Medellín cartel, Lehder fell out of favor with the notorious Pablo Escobar. He was arrested soon after and received a life sentence.
Authorities offered to reduce Lehder’s sentence if he testified against Manuel Noriega, the former Panamanian leader who had ties with the Medellín cartel and permitted them to ship cocaine through Panama. Lehder agreed, was placed under witness protection, and was eventually released from prison after serving his reduced term. He was then deported to Germany, where he held citizenship through his father. [10]
These stories, while diverse, share a common thread: the decision to break silence can have profound and lasting consequences, both for the individual and the organization they expose. The allure of secrecy is powerful, but the drive to reveal what’s hidden can be even stronger.
What are your thoughts on these individuals and their revelations? Do you know of other similar stories? Leave your comment below and join the conversation!
