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Has there ever been a case where a kidnapee was able to brainwash his captors into freeing him/her? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Though the question sounds very narrow, I am actually trying to explore a theme. I was reading in a book about Brainwashing about how the Chinese Communists or Christian priests were trying to brainwash people who didn't believe in their ideology. Protestants trying to convenience Catholics and vice versa. Kidnappers being successful in brainwashing Patty Hearst who being a victim of Kidnapping herself, went on to rob a bank for her captors willingly as she had now believed in their ideology. etc.,.

So, I was wondering, has brainwashing ever worked in reverse where a person who is supposed to be a victim of brainwashing manages to outfox their captors and manages to change the mind of their captors or break free? Maybe a protestant priest managed to convert a catholic priest? You get the theme.

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[–] CetaceanNeeded 16 points 1 week ago

I'm not sure you could exactly call it brainwashing but Josefina Rivera was able to gain the trust of her abductor enough that he let her visit her family. As soon as she was free she called the police which led to his arrest and the freeing of the other abductees.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_M._Heidnik?wprov=sfla1