This TikTok Commune Ate a Cat Now People Think They're a Cult

The @treeisalive TikTok account stocks videos of lifestyles on a commune, however many TikTok customers think Treeisalive is in fact a cult. What is the truth?

We love TikTok movies which might be out of the extraordinary and the most recent craze is the @treeisalive TikTok page. It began out as an blameless account sharing videos of 100 p.c sustainable dwelling in an eco-friendly neighborhood, however TikTok customers briefly equated their abnormal lifestyle to being a cult.

Many people began asking Treeisalive questions on TikTok and reading into their answers. Treeisalive is if truth be told representing on TikTok a group known as The Garden, a “leaderless (leaderful)” commune “propagating a culture of sharing, freedom, and cooperation" located in Lafayette, Tenn. on the fringes of Nashville. They are completely off-the-grid as far as utilities go, but does that mean they are a cult?

Many people think that the Treeisalive TikTok account is a cult.

Treeisalive posts videos on how to live sustainably by recycling waste, using rainwater for showers, and living off of the land and some chickens. While this looks like an easy form of escapism — just imagine no rent, no bills to pay, no job, and an end to climate change — it’s clear the members of this commune don’t have it so easy. 

They have to work all day in order to get the basics — food, water, and shelter — by making it happen themselves. They also sleep in tiny shared bunks with other people. Because they all live together and need to do unpaid labor in order to live there, many TikTokers believe that they are a cult.

Not only that, but they were recently under fire for eating a stray cat, claiming that the cat killed their chickens so they killed the cat. Without wanting the cat to go to waste, they ate it. One TikToker, thomasedisonhatepage, has now dedicated her page to pointing out the discrepancies in the Treeisalive group. Another TikToker claims that they are using cult techniques such as mind-numbing activities, encouraging new member recruitment, and living together.

While the Treeisalive TikTok can be concerning at times, it does not seem to be a cult by the standard definition.

According to a Rolling Stone piece detailing the difference between cults and communes, Treeisalive is definitely a type of communal living, but they're not necessarily a cult. It can be easy to mix up the two, but there are two main differences. The first main difference is that a cult has a leader. Many TikTok comments have compared them to Jonestown and the Manson Family, which both famously have leaders. Treeisalive has no leader and makes decisions as a group to come to a consensus.

The other main difference is that a cult follows some sort of belief system on a path to enlightenment. Many cults follow their leaders in order to reach a certain level. For instance, with NXIVM, the cult members were encouraged to reach leader Keith Raniere’s level of wearing a white sash. In the case of Treeisalive, they say they welcome everybody, which is normal, but don’t seem to follow one set of beliefs. 

Just because the Treeisalive TikTok may not be a cult does not mean that they are all good.

In the same way that not all communes are cults, not all communes are good. It is definitely a different type of living that can be exploitative. It’s true that they may be painting a prettier picture on TikTok than the harsh realities of day-to-day living. Not only that but one TikTok user, okayhawkins, who lives near the commune, claims through hearsay that they seem disingenuous. 

While most people who join a commune do it for political reasons to move away from capitalism, or for green reasons to truly connect with nature and make for a more sustainable world, this commune seems to attract people for short amounts of time. People seem to go as a phase to do something they think is cool and be a modern-day hippie. This also might be why the Treeisalive account is trying to recruit through TikTok.

There are also many protection concerns concerning the Treeisalive TikTok. Their lawn is it sounds as if situated next to so-called sunset towns, that are puts which might be notoriously unsafe for BIPOC after sunset. And the commune’s signal studying “Violence-Free” is, unfortunately, an invitation to violent people to assault an unarmed, disconnected neighborhood. A an identical model in Denmark referred to as Christiania is regularly regarded as unsafe after dark for similar causes.

Maybe it is a just right idea to stay away from this one and go for a hike after we're craving nature as a substitute.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pbXSramam6Ses7p6wqikaKhfqb%2BmscismKWhppp6tbXKraakZZOqubU%3D