Inside the ‘pandemic of abuse’ surrounding Duggar family ‘cult’
nypost.comDuggar docuseries say they were “shocked” by the “far-reaching quality” of the infamous family’s controversial church.“Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets” claims to “expose the truth” about how The Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) negatively affected the extensive reality TV family.Guided by parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, the children were raised with IBLP’s strict teachings — such as women should be obedient to their husbands, and everyone should avoid dating, listening to music with drums, and following pop culture.The religious organization that became IBLP was founded by 88-year-old minister Bill Gothard in 1961.
He has since been forced out under allegations of abuse — accusations he has denied.Docuseries executive producer Olivia Crist told People that those who worked on this project discovered “how far and wide the IBLP ideology went.”“It went into our police system.
It went into the military. And I think also, just how far and wide, like I said, the ideology spread,” Crist claimed. “You can speak to a family who is part of IBLP Australia or part of IBLP and live in Tennessee, and you’re going to see the same exact thing happen in terms of really just this pandemic of abuse that Gothard’s teachings inhabit,” she continued.
The Post reached out to IBLP and Duggar reps for comment.Executive producer Julia Willoughby Nason admitted she was surprised by how the church’s ideology is “so ingrained in our modern-day culture.”“That’s shocking to me.
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