Inside a Secretive Group Where Women Are Branded

NYT ^ | 17 Oct 2017 | Barry Meier

[Rummyfan]

ALBANY — Last March, five women gathered in a home near here to enter a secret sisterhood they were told was created to empower women.

To gain admission, they were required to give their recruiter — or “master,” as she was called — naked photographs or other compromising material and were warned that such “collateral” might be publicly released if the group’s existence were disclosed.

The women, in their 30s and 40s, belonged to a self-help organization called Nxivm, which is based in Albany and has chapters across the country, Canada and Mexico.

Sarah Edmondson, one of the participants, said she had been told she would get a small tattoo as part of the initiation. But she was not prepared for what came next.

Each woman was told to undress and lie on a massage table, while three others restrained her legs and shoulders. According to one of them, their “master,” a top Nxivm official named Lauren Salzman, instructed them to say: “Master, please brand me, it would be an honor.”

[Rummyfan]

These women are INSANE!

[Army Air Corps]

A bit of a nit to pick - Since the leader is female, she should be addressed as Mistress.

[SteveH]

albany is a cesspool.

enough written.

[BenLurkin]

NYT is recruiting for them

[Leaning Right]

To my surprise, this Nxivm group has a Wikipedia page.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NXIVM

[wheresmyusa]

"a secret sisterhood they were told was created to empower women"

"To gain admission, they were required to give their recruiter — or “master,” as she was called — naked photographs or other compromising material and were warned that such “collateral” might be publicly released if the group’s existence were disclosed."

Sounds legit.

[Huntress]

I want nothing to do with any organization that would request this type of “collateral” from me.

[Army Air Corps]

What is so terribly stupid is that they voluntarily surrendered this information to strangers. What next, they give their bank information to people who they meet on the street?

[moovova]

Charlie Manson would be envious.

[NorthMountain]

“Master, please brand me, it would be an honor.”

[Army Air Corps]

Ping.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

That’s just what I was thinking. It’s shocking how much grammatical norms have degenerated, in recent times. Shocking! Just shocking I say!

Everything else in the article seems to be pretty much within the norm, for the times.

[Pearls Before Swine]

Pick that nit and you get two A Brandenburg ni

[Veto!]

What’s terrifying is how dark and warped their minds are.

But as my dad told me a million times, “Most people are stupid.”

[Pearls Before Swine]

Pick that nit and you get two brands. Ouch, mistress.

[Cecily]

I guess joining the Junior League, the garden club or some other worthwhile civic organization is old hat these days. Better to join a group of weirdos for “empowerment.”

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

Yep. Sick.

[C19fan]

In the article the founder is a weird looking dude.

[Michael.SF.]

Lesbians. Many identify as the male, thus prefer “Master”

[Army Air Corps]

From the article:

In the spring, the sorority grew as women joined different circles. Slaves added compromising collateral every month to Dropbox accounts, and a Google Document was used to list a timetable for recruiting new slaves, several women said.

Oh yeah, that's secure. /s