Lloyd Evans

Lloyd Evans, formerly John Cedars, (born ) is an ex-Jehovah's Witness writer, activist and filmmaker. He uploads videos dissecting the various teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses, as well as new developments in the religion.
==Personal life==
Lloyd’s father is an . Lloyd was born in Manchester, England, in 1979. He was baptized in December 1990, at the age of 11. He studied art at college for two years. After noticing contradictions in Jehovah's Witness literature, he began to doubt the religion. In 2001, Lloyd’s mother died of breast cancer, which led him to “push any lingering doubts as far back in [his] mind as [he] possibly could.” At the age of 25, he attended a Bible school. During the course, he was asked to put a line through some words in a book, which led him to question the religion. A year later, he travelled to Croatia, where he met his wife. They got married in 2007. In April 2008, Lloyd was appointed as an elder, and began to see more problems with his religion. .
When he criticised another elder’s overbearing behaviour, he was chastised for going about it in the wrong manner. He was kept as an elder, but stripped of certain privileges. His wife later discovered that Lloyd had been “fraternizing with girls on the internet in ways that [he] shouldn’t have done as a married man.” He expressed remorse, and “considers these actions to be very much a by-product of sexual repression in [his] formative years.” He stepped down as an elder by stuffing a resignation letter/confession letter under the door of an elder and thought it would be the end of the matter. Instead, after a series of Judicial Committees, he was publicly reproved in both the Bramhall and Wilmslow congregations and deleted as an elder. Shortly thereafter, Lloyd and his wife moved to Croatia. Lloyd began doubting his beliefs as he was exposed to less religious material due to a language barrier. This led him to do research, and find out about . In May 2011, he declared himself “inactive.” After further conflict and research, Lloyd proposed setting up a survey of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Lloyd left Jehovah’s Witnesses on December 29, 2013, after 23 years. Though it was standard practice by many former JW YouTubers to record their Judicial Committees, Lloyd did not. He also stated that a Branch Representative from the branch in Zagreb would be in attendance, which is highly irregular My judicial committee is tomorrow - Cedars' vlog no. 10 - YouTube. Only when there are legal issues do people from the branch attend. He was by all of his UK relatives. partially motivated by his wife’s pregnancy.
His first child, Jessica Liberty, was born on ). His second child, Julia Lesley Evans, was born on .
==Controversy==
On January 31, 2022, Kim Silvio, a former colleague who worked for Lloyd as a volunteer, began divulging information about Lloyd’s private life, related to sexual activity, in both written and video form, “much of which was entirely false.” according to Lloyd. However, on a livestream intended to debunk Silvio's accusations, Lloyd admitted to all of them, chief among them the fact he had been seeing sex workers roughly every 2-3 months for a period of 3-4 years. He also stated that his wife was "sexually incompatible" with him and that the marriage had failed The Lloyd Evans Sex Scandal IS our Business - YouTube. Lloyd sought legal protection in response to the situation. A number of former exJW YouTubers have been included on Lloyd's "Litigation List" for producing content based on the information he provided in his livestream Just got a letter from Lloyd Evans Attorney, I am to pay him 3,000 Euros & remove all Lloyd Content - YouTube. On March 1, 2022, Lloyd returned to YouTube after a two-month break. In the video announcing his return, he admitted to being unfaithful to his wife. In response to Lloyd's admissions and what they considered as him being compromised as an advocate for CSA victims, longtime Evans associates Javier Ortiz (The Truth About the Truth Documentary) and Mark O'Donnell (Writer at JW Watch) have cut ties with him. Ortiz has stated that Evans has been deleted from this documentary and asked to resign due to the conflict of interest with CSA survivors The Truth About The Truth on Twitter: "Project Update. https://t.co/as0Crvgb0C" / Twitter Public Statement of Mark O’Donnell .pdf - Google Drive. 
=== Marital Infidelities ===
Lloyd Evans has admitted to many marital difficulties in the past and present. Per his account in The Reluctant Apostate, Evans relates that due to his "sexual repression" as a JW, he developed a habit of cybersex, sexting and intimate chat sessions with girls he had met online. This had continued into his marriage. When he was caught by his wife with a sext from his online partner, it was mentioned by Evans it wasn't the first time she had caught him. Shortly thereafter they had left to Croatia, in part due to these activities and his public reproof in two separate Kingdom Halls of Jehovah's Witnesses. As Evans established a career as an activist/YouTuber, his wife was reticent to join him publicly on his videos. In an introductory thread introducing his wife on the JWN forum he mentioned that his wife was "a little reticent about posting" and would be more at ease exchanging recipes. Introducing Mrs Cedars... (jehovahs-witness.com). Due to Patron demand, eventually his wife, Dijana, participated in some Q&A with his viewers. Dijana: In Her Own Words - YouTube Dijana reacts to instructional video for JW parents - YouTube A conversation with Dijana - Bunker Interview #4 (my wife!) - YouTube. 
On 31 January 2022, former JW Watch Editor and Evans associate Kim Silvio confirmed that her moderator deleted post on xjw Reddit was authentic and that she had proof that Lloyd visited sex workers in Thailand. Statement regarding Lloyd evans - YouTube She also had been in contact with Dijana and had information regarding Lloyd's extramarital affairs. In interviews with exJW YouTubers Jonathan Berger and CappyTan, Silvio related some more background to this as Dijana had caught him in Texas taking selfies with sex workers through use of a shared iCloud A Conversation with Kim Silvio - YouTube The Lloyd Evans Rebuttal Video Hearing Kim Silvio's Side - YouTube. When he had gotten back to Croatia, his wife confronted him about it and Lloyd's response was to request an open marriage according to Silvio Kim Silvio Legal Response to Lloyd Evans Lawyer's Warning Letter - His Legal Team Didn't Respond - YouTube. After briefly agreeing to such an arrangement, Dijana changed her mind making Lloyd "infuriated". He then resolved to leave for Thailand immediately and was only talked into staying for Christmas through Silvio's and fellow collaborator Producer Bob's counsel. In an interview with Kameron Fader, Silvio relates that Lloyd threatens Dijana and her parents by talking about taking the children away or taking his own life. Silvio stated that she believes he is manipulating his wife by means of a prior traumatic event concerning her brother's death and has proof of these conversations This Is Why People Don't Like Lloyd Evans - YouTube.
=== Andrew Gold Interview ===
In response to the many exJW YouTubers such as altworldly , CappyTan , Jehovah's Witnesses Beliefs Discussed, Marc and Cora Latham, Mike and Kim Brooks, Coach Dee Free, Fateful Slave, The Vast Apostate Hour and others making videos regarding the scandal, Lloyd Evans sought to tell his side of the story for the first time since the infamous livestream. Former BBC journalist Andrew Gold and host of "On the Edge with Andrew Gold" had Lloyd on an earlier podcast and had agreed to have Lloyd on his show. The initial title was called "Trolls Drove Me to The Brink" Ex-Jehovah Lloyd Evans refuses to apologise for scandal & threatens to SUE me - YouTube, however after a disastrous live chat that was overwhelmingly against Lloyd, Gold informed him that he was going to do a follow-up interview with Kim Silvio Kim Silvio reacts to Lloyd Evans scandal after he threatens to sue me - YouTube. Gold later related how Lloyd threatened him on Twitter DM with a lawsuit if he interviewed Silvio in a separate rebuttal interview My side of the story | a strongly-worded rebuttal to Lloyd Evans scandal - YouTube. Andrew Gold later changed the title of the Lloyd interview to "Ex-Jehovah Lloyd Evans refuses to apologise for scandal & threatens to SUE me" .
=== Accusations of Narcissism and Bullying ===
Lloyd Evans has long been accused of bullying, doxxing, and arrogant/abusive behaviour on social media by former Jehovah's Witnesses. YouTuber and former Evans loyalist Kameron Fader released a video on 7 May 2022 entitled "This is Why People Don't Like Lloyd Evans" This Is Why People Don't Like Lloyd Evans - YouTube. In his video, Kameron interviewed the1bun (Asher), Kim Silvio, The Vast Apostate Hour (Joel) and Katie Kitten (Louise Goode). Serious allegations of transphobia Lloyd Evans Passively Aggressively rages with Crusader's documentary activist: Asher - YouTube, bullying a co-host Lloyd Evans Screams At JW Podcast Co Creator for Over An Hour - YouTube, initiating a harassment campaign against the estranged mother of one of his critics Lloyd Evans threatens to K!ll via phone calls - YouTube, as well as an established pattern of threats and manipulative abuse against his wife and in-laws Dijana tried to divorce Lloyd when he was in Thailand, but he came back early to stop it. - YouTube Lloyd says he will take away Dijana’s Two Children if she stands up for herself - YouTube were brought forth. Forensic Psychiatrist Dr. Sohom Das (A Psyche for Sore Minds) has labelled Evans a Psychopathic Narcissist Talk with ANDREW GOLD - threatened by Ex-Jehovah (Lloyd Evans) over scandal - YouTube and Andrew Gold has compared Evans to a cult leader .
=== Misuse of Patreon Funds ===
Evans has denied any misuse of funds, stating in his livestream that like a doctor, he is free to spend his wages as he pleases . However, his Patrons continue to decline to his dismay as related to Andrew Gold . From a high of 889 before his livestream, his Patron count is now down to 552 today (13.05.22) Lloyd Evans is creating videos about Jehovah's Witnesses, creationism and cults | Patreon. High tier patrons and former supporters have been vocal about why they have terminated support of Lloyd Evans on social media and YouTube. Former financial backer and supporter TruthSeeker Athiest related in his video the reason why he has pulled his support from Lloyd Evans. CSA survivor advocacy was a huge issue for him and he felt Lloyd could no longer be an effective activist with his illicit trips seeking sex in a highly sex trafficked country as Thailand Lloyd Evans - Why I Dropped My Financial Support - YouTube. 
==Activism==
In October 2011, Lloyd founded JWWatch.org, a website that gathers the opinions of current and former Jehovah’s Witnesses, under the pseudonym John Cedars. It was formerly known as JW Survey.
In April 2017, Lloyd was interviewed by the BBC on the . In September 2021, he was interviewed by the BBC about a report on child sexual abuse.
In June 2021, Lloyd was accepted as a regular rotational co-host on Talk Heathen.
In 2020, Lloyd assisted the 
In 2022, Lloyd Evans was asked to resign from The Truth About the Truth documentary by producer Javier Ortiz due to his sex vacation scandal in Thailand. He has declined to do so and has threatened a lawsuit. 
===Copyright claims===
In March 2021, Lloyd received a fraudulent copyright takedown request, supposedly from over a response he made to one of their videos. Lloyd’s response video was taken down, and he received a copyright strike. A Change.org petition was started to remove the strike. The strike was removed after around two days, and was revealed to be from the owner of an auto-repair business in Arizona.
==Books==
===The Reluctant Apostate===
Lloyd is the author of "The Reluctant Apostate," a book that chronicles his experiences growing up as a Jehovah’s Witness, and his deconversion. He began writing it in late 2012. The book’s release was supported by an Indiegogo campaign. It was published in January 2017, and has a foreword by Hemant Mehta.
===How to Escape From Jehovah's Witnesses===
How to Escape From Jehovah's Witnesses was published on April 25, 2018.
==Subscriber milestones==
*90,000 subscribers: June 22, 2021
*100,000 subscribers: November 15, 2021
==References==
Category:Commentary YouTubers
Category:English YouTubers
Category:Users who joined in 2012