First Josh, now Joseph. The Duggars are building quite an unfortunate reputation for themselves. They started as an example for their community and wound up an example of what not to be. Oof. And yet… they still have a lot of power in their community — how?!
Following Joseph’s child molestation arrest last month for alleged abuse that happened in Florida in 2020 against a 9-year-old, he and his wife Kendra were charged with four counts of child endangerment and false imprisonment in their home state of Arkansas. It’s been a truly awful mess, and it just points to how dark things have been behind closed doors.
Related: How Kendra Paid For Husband Joseph’s $600K Bond
Breaking their silence on the secret truth about the TLC family, insiders spoke with Us Weekly on Thursday. One source close to the Duggars claimed this feels like history repeating itself:
“This doesn’t surprise me. I have the mindset that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and in this instance, I believe it is generational sin that has been passed on. That’s not a normal issue that most people have.”
Before things went south, the family was praised in their very controversial Christian community known as the Institute in Basic Life Principles, which is founded on strict gender rules, patriarchal authority, and conducts homeschooling through the Advanced Training Institute (ATI).
Former IBLP member Heather Heath explained:
“They were ATI-famous way before they were TLC-famous. They were the model family. Everybody wanted to be them. Everybody wanted to have their kids in matching clothes like them. They were the example.”
And yet, they first made waves in their so-called cult when they signed up for 19 Kids and Counting:
“We couldn’t believe they were going to have a reality show. You’re not allowed to watch TV, but you’re going to put yourself in front of the whole world? It was one of the first times people started talking about the hypocrisy.”
Not only did they have a show, but they went on to do 10 successful seasons AND a spin-off after Josh’s controversy first broke out. But even since they were ripped from the small screen, their peers aren’t sure how to feel, a second insider said:
“The community is kind of split. There are people who support them and people who don’t.”
But the head of the family, Jim Bob Duggar, still has a lot of sway:
“I would say that Jim Bob has a lot of influence. People don’t want to get on his bad side.”
Before he became a reality star, Jim Bob served in the Arkansas House of Representatives, later running for Senate in 2021. The family also has a big portfolio of businesses and real estate — which includes rentals, house-flipping, and a car lot — so, yeah, they’ve got power in their community. The first source explained:
“They’re jacks of all trades. They have a lot going on. I wouldn’t say they’re billionaires, but they’re definitely multimillionaires.”
Money and fame are a powerful combo, and it’s why the first confidant thinks so many locals are still drawn to the family:
“They don’t really have to make themselves known. … They have volleyball, a basketball hoop — it’s basically a hosting oasis. A lot of the time, parties would start somewhere else and then migrate to the Duggar house.”
But there’s always a price to pay. A third insider claimed the Duggars are “very controlling,” noting:
“They want their family to live under their rules. They keep an eye on everyone and everything, and it is extremely hard to break free from that.”
They “can be very secretive,” as well, the first source added, pointing to Josh as “the perfect example.” When Jim Bob and Michelle first learned of their son’s crimes in 2002, they neglected to go to the authorities, keeping it quiet and holding a church-based intervention instead. But as the years went on and more allegations were made, they couldn’t help but get police involved — though even then, it still wasn’t made public at first:
“They did not disclose anything to the church until people had already found out. And even then, when everyone knew, they pointed fingers, pinning everyone against each other. They were more concerned about their reputation.”
But the way they handled this was apparently nothing new for the group, the second source argued:
“A lot of the families around them would handle it the same way they did. It’s common to work things out between the family or in the church. They don’t want other people [knowing their business].”
The third source agreed:
“Unfortunately, [abuse] is extremely common in the [IBLP] community. I can tell you hundreds, literally hundreds of stories of things I know happened that were completely dismissed, where nothing was ever done about it.”
So terrible.
The mindset within the community, as was exposed during Josh’s 2015 scandal, showed generations were raised to blame the victim for sexual assault. Girls were taught to protect their brothers and male family members from sinning, Heath shared:
“It was their fault. What did they do to tempt their brothers? Were they wearing nightgowns that were too thin? Did they walk through the hall in a towel? It’s literally in our teachings, like how not to cause your family members to sin. If your brother is getting these thoughts and feelings, you have to protect him from any actions that might happen. They put it in your mind that: ‘Oh, if I have these thoughts, it’s my sister’s fault.’ They plant that.”
Messed up!
And so with all that, any problems are usually kept under wraps:
“I’ve been very closely adjacent to situations like this. [When the news came out about Josh] I was like, Oh, [the Duggars are] just like every other ATI family, right? It’s not just this one location, in this one church. It’s pretty broad, and the way that they handled it was the way we were taught to handle it, and the way that fathers were taught to handle it.”
It’s only when abuse goes beyond a family that it’s harder to keep quiet:
“If it’s not a sibling, that’s a bigger deal. Because you can’t just keep it within your house.”
That’s truly so sickening. Just think of how many victims may not be getting justice. Horrible.
As for dark secrets surrounding this new legal trouble, the first source claimed there’s always been a lot of tension between the Duggars and Kendra’s family, the Caldwells:
“[Paul] didn’t get wrapped up in the whole fame of the Duggars. Last I heard, he was pretty upset with Jim Bob because he treats marriages like business deals. After Kendra married Joseph, one of Jim Bob’s sons was interested in his other younger daughter. [Jim Bob] asked Paul if [his son] could date her, and he said no.”
Despite all the issues and these stomach-churning allegations, it’s highly unlikely that Kendra and Joseph will split amid this legal trouble. Not only has she been standing by her man’s side via supportive communications in jail and paying his pricey bond, but according to Heath:
“We were taught divorce is a sin. If your husband wants forgiveness, then that’s your job; divorce doesn’t happen. I would be shocked and very proud if [Kendra and Joseph] divorced, but I don’t know that anyone expects it to happen.”
Oof.
Our thoughts are with the victims in this case.
Thoughts? Let us know (below).
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.
If you have sincere cause to suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org.
[Image via Washington County Sheriff’s Office/MEGA/WENN & The Duggars/The Little Duggar Family/Instagram]
