10 Mysterious Secret Communities That Still Exist
5610 Mysterious Secret Communities That Still Exist
10. Under New York
Homelessness across western countries is an ever-growing issue, but despite plenty of appearances in the media and the occasional heartwarming story, things aren’t really getting better. One example of this would be the city of New York. New York has always had a large homelessness problem, and the homeless people of new york have always been ingenious in dealing with the situation. In the early 20th century, in the midst of the great depression, you had Hooverville. Now we have the Freedom Tunnel.
Honestly, not many people still live in Freedom Tunnel after Amtrak decided to start running trains through the area again, but once upon a time, there was a whole underground community living there. A group of homeless people that had managed to carve out a home for themselves under neat the very streets of New York City itself. Back in 1990, there were around a hundred people living in the stretch of the tunnel. Some of them went to work, and the under-city was, by all means, a fairly nice place to be.
9. The Skull & Bones
The Order, Order 322, the Sull and Bones. This is an undergraduate senior secret society based at the Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, and is probably one of the least secret society of the secret societies that we’re going to talk about today.
It was founded in 1832, following an argument between the Yale debating societies over the seasons Phi Beta Kappa awards. The main hall for the secret society is known as The Tomb, a building that was finished construction in 1912. Here new initiates, Bonesmen, are brought into the society, and is also the place where meetings are held.
Membership of the Skull and Bones is always the elite of the elite and has only recently begun to include women. As of the 1970s, the names of its members haven’t been kept a secret. Some of the members are even presidents, like both George Bush’s. We don’t know much about the secret societies operations though, nor what happens in their meetings, though as always seems to be the case with secret societies, most people think it’s all to do with a global conspiracy of behind the seems global domination and control.
8.Scientologists
Okay so yes, Scientology is technically a religious sect which revolves around the soul of every human being some kind of immortal and alien being known as a Thetan. But really, the church of Scientology is much more like a secret society than a religious order.
The first church was opened up in December 1953 in Camden, New Jersey, and quickly swelled from there. It was based around the goal of civilization without insanity, criminals or war. Where the able can prosper and honest beings can have rights. Where man is free to rise to great heights. A little bit of ablism, a little bit of eugenics, and a whole lot of feeling like a secret society.
These days there are Scientology churches all over the world, and while the goal stays the same, the church of Scientology has seen its fair share of controversy. Described by some as a cult, and others as a commercial enterprise it’s clear to see that not all may be as it seems with the church of Scientology. Figuring out how many people belong to the religion is… difficult, though in 2007 a german magazine called Der Spiegel reported that there were an estimated 8 million members worldwide.
7. Under China
Dixia Cheng, the underground city of Beijing, is a cold war era bomb shelter that has been repurposed as accommodation for many. It was built during the height of the tensions between China and the Soviet Union, constructed as a reaction to the border conflict over the Zhenbao Island in the Heilongjiang River. Designed to withstand nuclear, biochemical and conventional attacks, this complex would have protected Beijing’s population if the city had ever been attacked.
The people who live in these tunnels are known as Shuzu or the Rat Tribe. They are mostly young arrivals to the city, hoping to kick start their lives in the most important city of the country. From actors to street sweepers, hair stylists and newlyweds, anyone can find themselves as a member of the Rat Tribe.
These rooms are barebones, to say the least, and the municipal authorities of Beijing have tried to get people out of them for years. Some people, though, believe that given the growing density of cities across the world, Dixia Cheng underneath Beijing could be seen as a bit of a precursor to a global future, with people living in warrens of tunnels deep below the surface of cities.
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