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Since its inception in 1954, the
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
has been involved in a number of controversies, including its stance on psychiatry, Scientology's legitimacy as a religion, the Church's aggressive attitude in dealing with its perceived enemies and critics, allegations of mistreatment of members, and predatory financial practices; for example, the high cost of religious training:191 and perceived exploitative practices. When mainstream media outlets have reported alleged abuses, representatives of the church have tended to deny such allegations.


Secrecy

The church maintains strict control over the use of its symbols, names and religious texts. Although U.S. intellectual property law allows for "
fair use Fair use is a doctrine in United States law that permits limited use of copyrighted material without having to first acquire permission from the copyright holder. Fair use is one of the limitations to copyright intended to balance the interests ...
" of material for commentary, parody, educational purposes, etc., critics of the church such as Gerry Armstrong have argued the church unfairly and illegally uses the legal system to suppress "fair" uses, including suppressing any mention of the space opera aspects of the religion, including the story of
Xenu Xenu (), also called Xemu, is a figure in the Church of Scientology's secret "Advanced Technology", a sacred and esoteric teaching. According to the "Technology", Xenu was the extraterrestrial ruler of a "Galactic Confederacy" who brought bil ...
.:371-383 One example critics cited is a 1995 lawsuit against the ''
Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...
'' newspaper '' et al.'' The
Religious Technology Center The Religious Technology Center (RTC) is an American non-profit corporation Letter by the Internal Revenue Service to Flemming Paludan, Regional Director, Danish Tax-Office, Washington, D.C., USA, December 22, 1993 that was founded in 1982 by th ...
(RTC), the corporation controlling L. Ron Hubbard's copyrighted materials, sued to prevent a ''Post'' reporter from describing church teachings at the center of another lawsuit, claiming copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and the circulation of their "advanced technology" teachings would cause "devastating, cataclysmic spiritual harm" to those not prepared. In her judgment in favor of the ''Post'', Judge
Leonie Brinkema Leonie Helen Milhomme Brinkema (born June 26, 1944) is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Early life and education She was born as Leonie Milhomme in Teaneck, New Jersey. She ...
noted:


Public absence of Michele Miscavige

Actress Leah Remini, a former Scientologist and vocal critic of the organization, filed a missing person report regarding Michele Miscavige, wife of David Miscavige, with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) in 2013. According to a story in ''The Los Angeles Times'' based on information from an anonymous LAPD source, the LAPD contacted Miscavige and subsequently closed the case.


Scientology and psychiatry

There have been a number of controversies between Scientology and psychiatry since the founding of the
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
in 1952. Scientology is publicly, and often vehemently, opposed to both
psychiatry Psychiatry is the specialty (medicine), medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psych ...
and
psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...
. Scientologists view psychiatry as a barbaric and corrupt profession and encourage alternative care based on
spiritual healing Energy medicine is a branch of alternative medicine based on a pseudo-scientific belief that healers can channel "healing energy" into a patient and effect positive results. Practitioners use a number of names including various synonyms for ...
. According to the Church of Scientology, psychiatry has a long history of improper and abusive care. The group's views have been disputed, criticized and condemned by experts in the medical and scientific community and been a source of public controversy. The Church of Scientology's objection to secular ideas about mental health are religious in nature, based on the conviction that humans are essentially divine beings who have been marred by negative experiences acquired over several lifetimes. Scientology also purports that the secular perception of what is mentally normal is not based on science, a contradiction to the claims of psychiatry and psychology. The Church founded an
anti-psychiatry Anti-psychiatry is a movement based on the view that psychiatric treatment is often more damaging than helpful to patients, highlighting controversies about psychiatry. Objections include the reliability of psychiatric diagnosis, the questionabl ...
organization called
Citizens Commission on Human Rights The Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR) is a nonprofit organization established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and psychiatrist Thomas Szasz, headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Its stated mission is to "eradicate ...
(CCHR), which operates a museum in
Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...
, called Psychiatry: An Industry of Death. The museum is dedicated to criticizing what it describes as "an industry driven entirely by profit". It has a variety of displays and exhibits that highlight physical psychiatric treatments, such as
restraints Physical restraint refers to means of purposely limiting or obstructing the freedom of a person's bodily movement. Basic methods Usually, binding objects such as handcuffs, legcuffs, ropes, chains, straps or straitjackets are used for thi ...
,
psychoactive drug A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, psychoactive agent or psychotropic drug is a chemical substance, that changes functions of the nervous system, and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behavior. ...
s,
electroconvulsive therapy Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a psychiatric treatment where a generalized seizure (without muscular convulsions) is electrically induced to manage refractory mental disorders.Rudorfer, MV, Henry, ME, Sackeim, HA (2003)"Electroconvulsive th ...
and psychosurgery (including
lobotomy A lobotomy, or leucotomy, is a form of neurosurgical treatment for psychiatric disorder or neurological disorder (e.g. epilepsy) that involves severing connections in the brain's prefrontal cortex. The surgery causes most of the connections t ...
, a procedure abandoned in the 1960s).


"Attack the Attacker" policy

Scientology has a reputation for hostile action toward anyone who criticizes it in a public forum; executives within the organization have proclaimed Scientology is "not a turn-the-other-cheek religion". Journalists, politicians, former Scientologists and various anti- cult groups have made accusations of wrongdoing against Scientology since the 1960s, and Scientology has targeted these critics—almost without exception—for retaliation, in the form of lawsuits and public counter-accusations of personal wrongdoing. Many of Scientology's critics have also reported they were subjected to threats and harassment in their private lives. The organization's actions reflect a formal policy for dealing with criticism instituted by L. Ron Hubbard, called "attack the attacker". Hubbard codified this policy in the latter half of the 1960s in response to government investigations into the organization. In 1966, Hubbard wrote a criticism of the organization's behavior and noted the "correct procedure" for attacking enemies of Scientology:


''Scientology and Me''

In 2007 a
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
documentary on Scientology by reporter John Sweeney came under scrutiny by Scientologists. Sweeney alleged "While making our BBC Panorama film ''
Scientology and Me ''Scientology and Me'' is a television documentary first broadcast on 14 May 2007 as part of the BBC's ''Panorama'' series. In it, reporter John Sweeney visited the United States to investigate whether the Church of Scientology was becoming mor ...
'' I have been shouted at, spied on, had my hotel invaded at midnight, denounced as a 'bigot' by star Scientologists, brain-washed—that is how it felt to me—in a mock up of a
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
-style torture chamber and chased round the streets of Los Angeles by sinister strangers". This resulted in a video being distributed by Scientologists of a shouting match between Sweeney and Scientology spokesman Tommy Davis. The church has reportedly released a DVD accusing the BBC of organising a demonstration outside a Scientology office in London, during which "terrorist death threats" were made against Scientologists. The BBC described the allegations as "clearly laughable and utter nonsense". Sandy Smith, the BBC programme's producer, commented the church of Scientology has "no way of dealing with any kind of criticism at all".


Fair Game

Hubbard detailed his rules for attacking critics in a number of policy letters, including one often quoted by critics as "the Fair Game policy". This allowed those who had been declared enemies of the Church, called "
suppressive person Suppressive Person, often abbreviated SP, is a term used in Scientology to describe the "antisocial personalities" who, according to Scientology's founder L. Ron Hubbard, make up about 2.5% of the population. A statement on a Church of Scientolog ...
s" (SPs), "May be deprived of property or injured by any means...May be tricked, sued or lied to or destroyed". (taken from HCOPL October 18, 1967 Issue IV, ''Penalties for Lower Conditions'') The aforementioned policy was canceled and replaced by HCOPL July 21, 1968, ''Penalties for Lower Conditions''. The wordings "May be deprived of property or injured by any means... May be tricked, sued or lied to or destroyed", are not found in this reference. Scientology critics argue only the term but not the practice was removed. To support this contention, they refer to "HCO Policy Letter of October 21, 1968" which says, "The practice of declaring people FAIR GAME will cease. FAIR GAME may not appear on any Ethics Order. It causes bad public relations. This P/L does not cancel any policy on the treatment or handling of a SP." According to a book by Omar Garrison, HCOPL March 7, 1969, was created under pressure from the government of New Zealand. Garrison quotes from the HCOPL, "We are going in the direction of mild ethics and involvement with the Society". Garrison then states, "It was partly on the basis of these policy reforms that the New Zealand Commission of Inquiry recommended that no legislative action be taken against Scientology".Garrison, Omar ''PLAYING DIRTY The Secret War Against Beliefs'' Ralton-Pilot, Los Angeles, 1980 pg 172-173 The source of Omar Garrison for this is most likely the Dumbleton-Powles Report, additional data and quotations are found in this report. In 1977, top officials of Scientology's "Guardian's Office", an internal security force run by Hubbard's wife, Mary Sue Hubbard, admitted that fair game was policy in the GO. (''U.S. v. Kember'', Budlong Sentencing Memorandum – Undated, 1981). In separate cases in 1979 and 1984, attorneys for Scientology argued the Fair Game policy was in fact a core belief of Scientology and as such deserved protection as religious expression.


"Dead agenting"

In the 1970s, Hubbard continued to codify the policy of "attacking the attacker" and assigned a term to be used frequently within Scientology: "dead agenting". Used as a
verb A verb () is a word (part of speech) that in syntax generally conveys an action (''bring'', ''read'', ''walk'', ''run'', ''learn''), an occurrence (''happen'', ''become''), or a state of being (''be'', ''exist'', ''stand''). In the usual descri ...
, "dead agenting" is described by Hubbard as a technique for countering negative accusations against Scientology by diverting the critical statements and making counter-accusations against the accuser; in other words, to "attack the attacker". Hubbard defined the PR (
public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...
) policy on "dead agenting" in a 1974 bulletin: The phrase comes from a misunderstanding of the chapter on espionage in ''
The Art of War ''The Art of War'' () is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the Late Spring and Autumn Period (roughly 5th century BC). The work, which is attributed to the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu ("Master Sun"), is com ...
''. The Scientology-sponsored website religiousfreedomwatch.org features depictions of so-called "anti-religious extremists", most of them critics of Scientology. Featuring photos of the critics and claimed evidence of their personal wrongdoing (sometimes very vague; for example: "Documentation received by Religious Freedom Watch shows that
risti Risti may refer to: *Risti, Nepal, village development committee in Tanahu District, Gandaki Zone, Nepal *Risti, Estonia, small borough in Lääne-Nigula Parish, Lääne County, Estonia **Risti Parish, former municipality in Estonia *Risti, Hiiu Cou ...
Wachter paid an individual to carry out a specific project for her, and also instructed this individual to lie about what he was doing in case he was caught"). The "Religious Freedom Watch" site is often cited by
alt.religion.scientology The Usenet newsgroup alt.religion.scientology (often abbreviated a.r.s or ARS) started in 1991 to discuss the controversial beliefs of Scientology, as well as the activities of the Church of Scientology, which claims exclusive intellectual propert ...
users as a contemporary example of "dead agenting". Dead agenting has also been carried out by flier campaigns against some critics—using so-called "DA fliers".
Bonnie Woods Bonnie Woods is an American former Scientologist and critic of the Church of Scientology. Woods resides in Britain. She was a member of the Sea Org within Scientology, and left in 1982. She and her family were monitored by a private investigator ...
, an ex-member who began counseling people involved with Scientology and their families, became a target along with her husband in 1993 when the Church of Scientology started a leaflet operation denouncing her as a "hate campaigner" with demonstrators outside their home and around East Grinstead. After a long battle of libel suits, in 1999, the church agreed to issue an apology and to pay £55,000 damages and £100,000 in
legal costs Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
to the Woods.


R2-45

"R2-45" is the name given by
L. Ron Hubbard Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (March 13, 1911 – January 24, 1986) was an American author, primarily of science fiction and fantasy stories, who is best known for having founded the Church of Scientology. In 1950, Hubbard authored '' Dianeti ...
to what he described as "an enormously effective process for exteriorization but its use is frowned upon by this society at this time". In Scientology doctrine, exteriorization refers to the separation of the
thetan In Scientology, the concept of the thetan () is similar to the concept of self, or the spirit or soul as found in several belief systems. The term is derived from the Greek letter Θ, theta, which in Scientology beliefs represents "the source of l ...
(soul) from the body. According to the author Stewart Lamont, Hubbard defined R2-45 as a process by which exteriorization could be produced by shooting a person in the head with a .45 revolver. While no "R2-45 letters" have been published, orders to use R2-45 on specific individuals were published in a prominent Scientology magazine. On March 6, 1968, Hubbard issued an internal memo titled "Racket Exposed", in which he denounced twelve people as "Enemies of mankind, the planet and all life", and ordered "Any
Sea Org The Sea Organization (also known as the Sea Org) is a Scientology organization, which the Church of Scientology describes as a " fraternal religious order, comprising the religion’s most dedicated members". All Scientology management organizatio ...
member contacting any of them is to use Auditing Process R2-45." The memo was subsequently reproduced, with another name added, in the Church of Scientology's internal journal, ''The Auditor''. Another four people were named in a second R2-45 order published in ''The Auditor'' later in 1968.


Criminal convictions of members

Much of the controversy surrounding Scientology is reflected in the long list of legal incidents associated with the organization including the criminal convictions of core members of the Scientology organization. In 1978, a number of Scientologists, including L. Ron Hubbard's wife
Mary Sue Hubbard Mary Sue Hubbard (née Whipp; June 17, 1931 – November 25, 2002Profile
marysuehubbard.com; accessed A ...
(who was second in command in the organization at the time), were convicted of perpetrating what was at the time the largest incident of domestic
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
in the history of the United States, called "
Operation Snow White Operation Snow White was a criminal conspiracy by the Church of Scientology during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder, L. Ron Hubbard. This project included a series of infiltrations into and thefts from 136 ...
". This involved infiltrating, wiretapping, and stealing documents from the offices of Federal attorneys and the Internal Revenue Service. The judge who convicted Mary Sue Hubbard and ten accomplices described their attempt to plead
freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freed ...
in defense: Eleven church staff members, including Mary Sue Hubbard and other highly placed officials, pleaded guilty or were convicted in federal court based on evidence seized in the raids and received sentences from two to six years (some suspended). Other noteworthy incidents involving criminal accusations and prosecutions against the Church of Scientology include: * On January 4, 1963, more than one hundred
E-meter The E-meter, originally the electropsychometer, is an electronic device for displaying the electrodermal activity (EDA) of a human being. It is used for auditing in Scientology and divergent groups. The efficacy and legitimacy of Scientology's ...
s were seized by
U.S. marshals The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforce ...
at the "Founding Church of Scientology" building, now known as the L. Ron Hubbard House, located in Washington, D.C. The church was accused of making false claims that the devices effectively treated some 70 percent of all physical and mental illness. The FDA also charged that the devices did not bear adequate directions for treating the conditions for which they were recommended. Upon appeal, the E-meters were returned, with the direction that they should be used only in "bona fide religious counseling", and that all meters and referring literature must include a label disclaiming any medical benefits. In the decision, the court gave recognition to Scientology's "constitutional right to protection from the government's excessive entanglement with religion" as written by James R. Lewis, in ''Scientology''. * In 1978, L. Ron Hubbard was convicted ''
in absentia is Latin for absence. , a legal term, is Latin for "in the absence" or "while absent". may also refer to: * Award in absentia * Declared death in absentia, or simply, death in absentia, legally declared death without a body * Election in ab ...
'' by French authorities of engaging in
fraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...
, fined 35,000
francs The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th centu ...
, and sentenced to four years in prison. The head of the French Church of Scientology was convicted at the same trial and given a suspended one-year prison sentence. * The FBI raid on the Church's headquarters revealed documentation that detailed Scientology actions against various critics of the organization. Among these documents was a plan to frame
Gabe Cazares Gabriel Cazares (January 31, 1920 – September 29, 2006) was a mayor of Clearwater, Florida, a Pinellas County commissioner, a civil rights advocate, and a critic of the Church of Scientology. He died September 29, 2006 in Clearwater at the ...
, the mayor of Clearwater, Florida, with a staged hit-and-run accident. Also, plans were made to discredit the skeptical organization
CSICOP The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is a program within the US non-profit organization Center for Inquiry (CFI), which seeks to "prom ...
by spreading rumors that it was a front for the
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
, and a project called "
Operation Freakout Operation Freakout, also known as Operation PC Freakout, was a Church of Scientology covert plan intended to have the U.S. author and journalist Paulette Cooper imprisoned or committed to a psychiatric hospital. The plan, undertaken in 1976 follo ...
" which aimed at ruining the life of
Paulette Cooper Paulette Cooper (born July 26, 1942) is an American author and journalist whose writing against the Church of Scientology resulted in harassment from Scientologists. An early critic of the church, she published ''The Scandal of Scientology'' in ...
, author of ''The Scandal of Scientology'', an early book that had been critical of the movement.Original (18M)
* In 1988, the government of Spain arrested Scientology president
Heber Jentzsch Heber Carl Jentzsch (born November 30, 1935) is an American Scientologist who served as the president of the Church of Scientology International from 1982 to around 2010. Jentzsch is listed as missing, and the Church of Scientology International w ...
and ten other members of the organization on various charges including illicit association, coercion, fraud, and labor law violations. Jentzsch
jumped bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required. In some countrie ...
, leaving Spain and returning to the United States after Scientology paid a
bail bond Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required. In some countrie ...
of approximately $1 million, and he has not returned to the country since. Scientology fought the charges in court for fourteen years, until the case was finally dismissed in 2002. * The Church of Scientology is the only religious organization in Canada to be convicted on the charge of breaching the public trust: ''The Queen v. Church of Scientology of Toronto, et al.'' (1992) * In France, several officials of the Church of Scientology were convicted of embezzlement in 2001. The Church was listed as a "dangerous cult" in a parliamentary report. In May 2009, a trial commenced in France against Scientology, accusing it of organised fraud. The case focused on a complaint by a woman who says that after being offered a free personality test, she was pressured into paying large sums of money. The church is regarded as a sect in France. The result of the trial was that two branches of the organization and several of its leaders have been found guilty of fraud and fined. Alain Rosenberg, the group's head in France, received a two-year suspended jail sentence. * The Church of Scientology long considered the
Cult Awareness Network The Cult Awareness Network (CAN) was an anti-cult organization created by deprogrammer Ted Patrick that provided information on groups that it considered to be cults, as well as support and referrals to deprogrammers. It was founded in the wak ...
(CAN) as one of its most important enemies, and many Scientology publications during the 1980s and 1990s cast CAN (and its spokesperson at the time, Cynthia Kisser) in an unfriendly light, accusing the cult-watchdog organization of various criminal activities. After CAN was forced into bankruptcy and taken over by Scientologists in the late 1990s, Scientology proudly proclaimed this as one of its greatest victories. *In Belgium, after a judicial investigation since 1997, a trial against the organization was due to begin in 2008. Charges include formation of a criminal organization, the unlawful exercise of medicine, and fraud. *In the United Kingdom the church has been accused of "grooming" City of London Police
officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...
with gifts worth thousands of pounds. *In Australia, Scientology has been temporarily banned in the 1960s in three out of six states; the use of the
E-meter The E-meter, originally the electropsychometer, is an electronic device for displaying the electrodermal activity (EDA) of a human being. It is used for auditing in Scientology and divergent groups. The efficacy and legitimacy of Scientology's ...
was similarly banned in Victoria. In Victoria, Scientology was investigated by the state government. In the conclusion to his report written as part of this investigation, Kevin Victor Anderson, Q.C. stated "Scientology is a delusional belief system, based on fiction and fallacies and propagated by falsehood and deception". The report was later overturned by the High Court of Australia, which compelled the states to recognize Scientology as a religion for purposes of payroll taxes, stating "Regardless of whether the members of are gullible or misled or whether the practices of Scientology are harmful or objectionable, the evidence, in our view, establishes that Scientology must, for relevant purposes, be accepted as 'a religion' in Victoria." *In 2009, a Paris court found the French Church of Scientology guilty of organized fraud and imposed a fine of nearly . The prosecution had asked for the Church to be banned, but a recent change in legislation made this impossible. The case had been brought by two ex-members who said they had been pressured into spending large amounts of money on Scientology courses and other services. Commenting on the verdict, the plaintiffs' attorney said, "It's the first time in France that the entity of the Church of Scientology is condemned for fraud as an organized gang". A Scientology spokesperson likened the judgment to "an Inquisition for modern times" and said the Church would appeal.


Treatment of members

In 2007, a 25-year-old woman from
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
was charged with murdering her father and sister and seriously injuring her mother. Her parents had prevented her from seeking the psychiatric treatment she needed because of their Scientology beliefs. In 2012, Debbie Cook, who ran the "spiritual Mecca" for seventeen years, came forward and accused the church of repeated accounts of "screaming, slapping" and being "made to stand in a trash and water's poured over you" in efforts to confess her sins. This was all done in " The Hole", located at Scientology's International base in Hemet, California. She claims that she was taken there against her will and forced to stay for seven weeks. The church states that she "voluntarily" participated in their program of "religious discipline". '' Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath'' is a 2016–2017 A&E
documentary series Television documentaries are televised media productions that screen documentaries. Television documentaries exist either as a television documentary series or as a television documentary film. *Television documentary series, sometimes called d ...
that investigates abuses of the Church of Scientology by interviewing of former members.


Death of Lisa McPherson

The most widely publicized death of one of the organization's members was that of 36-year-old
Lisa McPherson Lisa McPherson (February 10, 1959 – December 5, 1995) was an American member of the Church of Scientology who died of a pulmonary embolism while under the care of the Church's Flag Service Organization (FSO) in Clearwater, Florida. Following ...
while in the care of Scientologists at the Scientology-owned Fort Harrison Hotel, in Clearwater, Florida, in 1995. McPherson, at the time, was displaying symptoms suggesting she was struggling with
mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...
; in one case, she removed all of her clothes after being involved in a minor traffic accident, later remarking she had done so in hopes of obtaining counseling. The Church, however, intervened to prevent McPherson from receiving psychiatric treatment and to keep her in Church custody. Records show that she was then placed in a Scientology program, the
Introspection Rundown The Introspection Rundown is a controversial Church of Scientology auditing process that is intended to handle a psychotic episode or complete mental breakdown. Introspection is defined for the purpose of this rundown as a condition where the p ...
, which was forced isolation used to handle a psychotic episode. Weeks later, she was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital. The autopsy identified multiple hematomas (bruises), an abrasion on the nose, and
lesions A lesion is any damage or abnormal change in the tissue of an organism, usually caused by disease or trauma. ''Lesion'' is derived from the Latin "injury". Lesions may occur in plants as well as animals. Types There is no designated classifi ...
that were consistent with "insect/animal bites". An autopsy showed that she had died of a
pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream ( embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include shortness of breath, chest pain particularly upon breathin ...
. Florida authorities filed criminal charges against the Church of Scientology, who denied any responsibility for McPherson's death and vigorously contested the charges. The prosecuting attorneys ultimately dropped the criminal case. After four years, a $100 million civil lawsuit filed by Lisa McPherson's family was settled in 2004. The suit resulted in an injunction against the distribution of a film critical of Scientology, '' The Profit'', which the Church claimed was meant to influence the jury. The terms of the settlement were sealed by the court.


Death of Elli Perkins

Another crime that received substantial news coverage involved the death of Elli Perkins. This included an installment on the
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
investigative news program '' 48 Hours''. Perkins was a mother of two, a professional glass artist, and a
Scientologist Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It has been variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religious movement. The most recent published census data in ...
who lived in Western New York. She was a senior auditor at the
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
in
Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...
. When her then 24-year-old son Jeremy began to show strange and disturbing behavior, Elli did not seek out psychiatric care but used treatment in accordance with Scientology.
Scientologists Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It has been variously defined as a cult, a Scientology as a business, business, or a new religious movement. The most recent ...
believe that psychiatry "doesn't work." First, the family sent Jeremy to Scientology's
Sea Org The Sea Organization (also known as the Sea Org) is a Scientology organization, which the Church of Scientology describes as a " fraternal religious order, comprising the religion’s most dedicated members". All Scientology management organizatio ...
in California. He returned home some months later because Sea Org had not helped. Found trespassing outside the
University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 18 ...
on August 14, 2001, Jeremy was arrested and remanded to a local hospital after a court-ordered psychiatric exam confirmed that he had a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Elli Perkins later convinced the court to release her son into her custody so she could seek alternatives to psychiatry. She also refused any treatment with anti-psychotic medications. Defense attorney John Nuchereno said that Jeremy's condition declined over the summer of 2002. He was no longer able to work in the family business. The Church of Scientology ceased efforts to cure Jeremy and classified him as a level III "Potential Trouble Source". In the fall of 2002, the family consulted Dr. Conrad Maulfair, an osteopathic medicine in the United States, osteopathic physician and Scientologist. Maulfair concluded that Jeremy needed to be purged of certain chemical toxins in his body. Maulfair said he needed to be "energized" through vitamin therapy. Jeremy became suspicious of his mother; he thought the vitamins were poisoning him. In February 2003, Elli took Jeremy to see Albert Brown, a self-taught "natural healer". Elli planned to send Jeremy to live with Brown for treatment. He was to leave for Brown's on March 13, 2003, but days beforehand began to act more aggressively. On the 13th, after a shower he retrieved a steak knife and tried to slit his wrists. Unsuccessful, Jeremy found his mother in the kitchen and attacked her as she spoke to a friend on the phone. Autopsy reports showed that Elli Perkins was stabbed 77 times. Jeremy was charged with second degree murder but found not responsible by reason of mental disease. On January 29, 2004, after NY State Office of Mental Health exams, he was assessed "Dangerously Mentally Ill" and committed to a secure facility. Jeremy is on psychotropic medications, which court psychiatrists state have not cured him, but have stabilized his condition. In March 2006, an advertisement in ''LA Weekly'' blamed the Church of Scientology for Perkins' violent death. The '' 48 Hours'' segment on Perkins' death aired on October 28, 2006. Afterward, CBS reported they had received complaints from Scientologists.


Death of Noah Lottick

Noah Lottick was an American student of Russia, Russian studies who committed suicide on May 11, 1990, by jumping from a 10th-floor hotel window, clutching his only remaining money in his hands. After his death, a controversy arose revolving around his parents' concern over his membership in the
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
. Noah Lottick had taken Scientology courses, for which he paid .Richard Behar,
Scientology: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
, ''Time (magazine), Time'', May 6, 1991, see article: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
Lottick's friends and family remarked that after taking these courses he began to act strangely. They stated to ''Time'' magazine that he told them that his Scientologist teachers were telepathy, telepathic, and that his father's myocardial infarction, heart attack was purely psychosomatic. His parents said that he visited their home five days before his death, claiming they were spreading "false rumors" about him. Lottick's suicide was profiled in a ''Time (magazine), Time'' cover story that was highly critical of Scientology, "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power", which received the Gerald Loeb Award, and later appeared in ''Reader's Digest''.October 1991, ''Reader's Digest''
"A Dangerous Cult Goes Mainstream"
/ref> Lottick's father, Dr. Edward Lottick, stated that his initial impression of Scientology was that it was similar to Dale Carnegie's techniques. However, after his son's death, his opinion was that the organization is a "school for psychopaths". He blamed Scientology for his son's death, although no direct connection was determined. After Dr. Lottick's remarks were published in the media, the Church of Scientology haggled with him over that Noah had allegedly paid to the Church and not utilized for services. The Church claimed Lottick had intended this to be a donation. The
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
sued Richard Behar and ''Time'' magazine for $416 million. Dr. and Mrs. Lottick submitted affidavits affirming "the accuracy of each statement in the article", and stating that Dr. Lottick had "concluded that Scientology therapies were manipulations". They said that no Scientology staff members attended the funeral of their son.''Church of Scientology v. Time and Richard Behar''
92 Civ. 3024 (PKL), Opinion and Order, Court TV library Web site., retrieved 1 October 2006.
All counts against Behar and ''Time'' were later dismissed."Judge Dismisses Church of Scientology's $416 Million Lawsuit Against Time Magazine"
, Business Wire, July 16, 1996.
Lottick's father cited his son's suicide as his motivation for researching cults, in his article describing a survey of physicians that he presented to the Pennsylvania State Medical Society.Survey Reveals Physicians' Experience with Cults
Dr. Edward Lottick, ''Cultic Studies Review, Cult Observer'', Volume 10, Number 3, 1993.
The Church of Scientology issued a press release denying any responsibility for Lottick's suicide. Spokesperson Mike Rinder was quoted in the ''St. Petersburg Times'' as saying that Lottick had an argument with his parents four days before his death. Rinder stated, "I think Ed Lottick should look in the mirror ... I think Ed Lottick made his son's life intolerable."


Brainwashing

The Church of Scientology is frequently accused by critics of employing brainwashing. The controversy about the existence of cultic brainwashing has become one of the most polarizing issues among cult followers, academic researchers of cults, and cult critics. Parties disagree about the existence of a social process attempting coercive influence, and also disagree about the existence of the social outcome—that people become influenced against their will. One alleged example of the Church's possible brainwashing tactics is the Rehabilitation Project Force, to which church staff are assigned to work off alleged wrongdoings under conditions that many critics characterize as degrading. Some of these allegations are presented in Stephen Kent's ''Brainwashing in Scientology's Rehabilitation Project Force (RPF)''. Articles that claim to rebut those charges include Juha Pentikäinen's The Church of Scientology's Rehabilitation Project Force. L. Ron Hubbard is believed to have authored ''Brain-Washing (book), The Brainwashing Manual''.


The Anderson Report

The final results of the Anderson Report in 1965 declared:
The Board is not concerned to find that the scientology techniques are brainwashing techniques as practiced, so it is understood, in some communist-controlled countries. Scientology techniques are, nevertheless, a kind of brainwashing...The astonishing feature of Scientology is that its techniques and propagation resemble very closely those set out in a book entitled ''Brain-washing'', advertised and sold by the Hubbard Association of Scientologists International, HASI.
Report of the Board of Enquiry into Scientology
', by Kevin Victor Anderson, Q.C., Published 1965 by the State of Victoria, Australia.


Disconnection

The Church of Scientology has been criticized for their practice of "disconnection (Scientology), disconnection" in which Scientologists are directed to sever all contact with family members or friends who criticize the faith. Critics including ex-members and relatives of existing members say that this practice has divided many families. The disconnection policy is considered by critics to be further evidence that the Church is a cult. By making its members entirely dependent upon a social network entirely within the organization, critics assert that Scientologists are kept from exposure to critical perspectives on the church and are put in a situation that makes it extremely difficult for members to leave the church, since apostates will be shunned by the Church and have already been cut off from family and friends. The Church of Scientology acknowledges that its members are strongly discouraged from associating with "enemies of Scientology", and likens the disconnection policy to the practice of shunning in religions such as the Amish. However, there is a consensus of religious scholars who oppose Scientology's practice: "I just think it would be better for all concerned if they just let them go ahead and get out and everyone goes their own way, and not make such a big deal of it, the policy hurts everybody." J. Gordon Melton, Institute for the Study of American Religion, Santa Barbara, California. "It has to do with feeling threatened because you're not that big. You do everything you can to keep unity in the group." F.K. Flinn, Washington University in St. Louis. "Some people I've talked to, they just wanted to go on with their lives and they wanted to be in touch with their daughter or son or parent. The shunning was just painful. And I don't know what it was accomplishing. And the very terms they use are scary, aren't they?" Newton Maloney, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California.


Use of donations and preferential treatment of Scientologist celebrities

Andre Tabayoyon, a former Scientologist and
Sea Org The Sea Organization (also known as the Sea Org) is a Scientology organization, which the Church of Scientology describes as a " fraternal religious order, comprising the religion’s most dedicated members". All Scientology management organizatio ...
staffer, testified in a 1994 affidavit that money from not-for-profit Scientology organizations and labor from those organizations (including the Rehabilitation Project Force) had gone to provide special facilities for Scientology celebrities, which were not available to other Scientologists:
A Sea Org staffer...was taken along to do personal cooking for Tom Cruise and David Miscavige, Miscavige at the expense of Scientology not for profit religious organizations. This left only 3 cooks at Gold Base, Gold to cook for 800 people three times a day... apartment cottages were built for the use of John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Edgar Winter, Priscilla Presley, and other Scientology celebrities who are carefully prevented from finding out the real truth about the Scientology organization ... Miscavige decided to redo the meadow in beautiful flowers; Tens of thousands of dollars were spent on the project so that Cruise and Nicole Kidman, Kidman could romp there. However, Miscavige inspected the project and didn't like it. So the whole meadow was plowed up, destroyed, replowed and sown with plain grass.
Tabayoyon's account of the planting of the meadow was supported by another former Scientologist, Maureen Bolstad, who said that a couple of dozen Scientologists including herself were put to work on a rainy night through dawn on the project. "We were told that we needed to plant a field and that it was to help Tom impress Nicole... but for some mysterious reason it wasn't considered acceptable by Mr. Miscavige. So the project was rejected and they redid it".


Legitimacy of Scientology as a religion

The nature of Scientology is hotly debated in many countries. The
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
pursues an extensive
public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...
campaign arguing Scientology is a ''Good faith, bona fide'' religion. The organization cites a number of studies and experts who support their position. Critics point out most cited studies were commissioned by Scientology to produce the desired results. Many countries (including Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Mexico, Russia, the United Kingdom), while not prohibiting or limiting the activities of the Church of Scientology, have rejected its applications for tax exemption, tax-exempt, charitable status or recognition as a religious organization; it has been variously judged to be a commercial enterprise or a dangerous cult. Scientology is legally accepted as a religion in the United States and Australia, and enjoys the constitutional protections afforded to religious practice in each country. In October 1993, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service Tax status of Scientology in the United States#Negotiations and the resolution of the dispute, recognized the Church as an "organization operated exclusively for religious and charitable purposes". The Church offers the tax exemption as proof that it is a religion. (This subject is examined in the article on the
Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...
). In 1982, the High Court of Australia ruled the State Government of Victoria (Australia), Victoria lacked the right to declare the Church of Scientology was not a religion.. The Court found the issue of belief to be the central feature of religion, regardless of the presence of charlatanism: "Charlatanism is a necessary price of religious freedom, and if a self-proclaimed teacher persuades others to believe in a religion which he propounds, lack of sincerity or integrity on his part is not incompatible with the religious character of the beliefs, practices and observances accepted by his followers." Other countries to have recognized Scientology as a religion include Spain, Portugal, Italy, Sweden, and New Zealand. The debate continues until today, with a new generation of critics continuing to question Scientology's legitimacy as a religion.


L. Ron Hubbard and starting a religion for money

While the oft-cited rumor Hubbard made a bar bet with Robert A. Heinlein he could start a cult is unproven, many witnesses have reported Hubbard making statements in their presence starting a religion would be a good way to make money. These statements have led many to believe Hubbard hid his true intentions and was motivated solely by potential financial rewards. Editor Sam Merwin, for example, recalled a meeting: "I always knew he was exceedingly anxious to hit big money—he used to say he thought the best way to do it would be to start a cult." (December 1946) Writer and publisher Lloyd Arthur Eshbach reported Hubbard saying "I'd like to start a religion. That's where the money is." Writer Theodore Sturgeon reported Hubbard made a similar statement at the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society. Likewise, writer Sam Moskowitz reported in an affidavit during an Eastern Science Fiction Association meeting on November 11, 1948, Hubbard had said "You don't get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, you start a religion." Milton A. Rothman also reported to his son Tony Rothman he heard Hubbard make exactly that claim at a science fiction convention. In 1998, an A&E Network, A&E documentary titled ''Inside Scientology'' shows Lyle Stuart reporting Hubbard stated repeatedly to make money, "you start a religion." According to ''The Visual Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'', ed. Brian Ash, Harmony Books, 1977:
...[Hubbard] began making statements to the effect that any writer who really wished to make money should stop writing and develop [a] religion, or devise a new psychiatric method. Harlan Ellison's version (''Time Out'', UK, No 332) is that Hubbard is reputed to have told John W. Campbell, [John W.] Campbell, "I'm going to invent a religion that's going to make me a fortune. I'm tired of writing for a penny a word". Sam Moskowitz, a chronicler of science fiction, has reported that he himself heard Hubbard make a similar statement, but there is no first-hand evidence.
An article by Professor Benjamin Beith-Hallahmi documents the secular aspects of Scientology from Scientology's own writings.


Free Zone suppression

The Church has taken steps to Suppressive Person, suppress the Free Zone, the term for a variety of groups and individuals who practice Scientology outside the strictures of the Church of Scientology proper, and shut down dissenters when possible. The CoS has used copyright and trademark laws to attack various Free Zone groups. Accordingly, the Free Zone avoids the use of officially trademarked Scientology words, including 'Scientology' itself. In 2000, the
Religious Technology Center The Religious Technology Center (RTC) is an American non-profit corporation Letter by the Internal Revenue Service to Flemming Paludan, Regional Director, Danish Tax-Office, Washington, D.C., USA, December 22, 1993 that was founded in 1982 by th ...
unsuccessfully attempted to gain the Web domain www.scientologie.org from the World Intellectual Property Organization, in a legal action against the Free Zone. ''Skeptic (U.S. magazine), Skeptic Magazine'' described the Free Zone as: "...a group founded by ex-Scientologists to promote L. Ron Hubbard's ideas independent of the COS [Church of Scientology]." A ''Miami Herald'' article wrote that ex-Scientologists joined the Free Zone because they felt that Church of Scientology leadership had: "...strayed from Hubbard's original teachings." One Free Zone Scientologist identified as "Safe" was quoted in ''Salon.com, Salon'' as saying: "The Church of Scientology does not want its control over its members to be found out by the public and it doesn't want its members to know that they can get scientology outside of the Church of Scientology."


Litigation as harassment of critics

In the past many critics of Scientology have claimed they were harassed by frivolous litigation, frivolous and vexatious litigation, vexatious lawsuits.
Paulette Cooper Paulette Cooper (born July 26, 1942) is an American author and journalist whose writing against the Church of Scientology resulted in harassment from Scientologists. An early critic of the church, she published ''The Scandal of Scientology'' in ...
was falsely accused of felony charges as she had been framed by the Church of Scientology's Guardian's Office. Furthermore, her personal life had been intruded upon by Scientologists who had attempted to kill her and/or draw her to suicide in a covert plan known as
Operation Freakout Operation Freakout, also known as Operation PC Freakout, was a Church of Scientology covert plan intended to have the U.S. author and journalist Paulette Cooper imprisoned or committed to a psychiatric hospital. The plan, undertaken in 1976 follo ...
brought to light after FBI investigations into other matters (See
Operation Snow White Operation Snow White was a criminal conspiracy by the Church of Scientology during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder, L. Ron Hubbard. This project included a series of infiltrations into and thefts from 136 ...
). A prominent example of litigation of its critics is the Church of Scientology's $416 million libel lawsuit s:Church of Scientology v. Behar against Time Warner as a result of their publication of a highly critical magazine article "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" by Richard Behar. A public campaign by the Church of Scientology accordingly ensued in an attempt to defame this Time Magazine publication. (See Thriving cult of greed and power#Post-publication, Church of Scientology's response) Gareth Alan Cales is being harassed by the Church of Scientology, including false charges against him and his friends. Similarly, the Church of Scientology's legal battle with Gerry Armstrong in ''Church of Scientology v. Gerald Armstrong'' spanned two decades and involved a $10 million claim against Armstrong.


Personality tests

In 2008, the Death of Kaja Ballo, 20-year-old daughter of Olav Gunnar Ballo, a Norwegian member of parliament, had taken a personality test organized by Scientologists in Nice, and received very negative feedback from it. A few hours later she committed suicide. French police started an investigation of the Scientology church. In the wake of the Ballo suicide linked to the personality test, the spokesman for the church in Norway called the link at accusation deeply unfair, and pointing out that the daughter had previously suffered eating disorders and psychiatric troubles. The personality test has been condemned by the psychologist Rudy Myrvang. He called the test a recruitment tool, aimed at breaking down a person so that the Scientologists can build the test-taker back up.Police probe suicide linked to Scientologists
Aftenposten, April 16, 2008


Treatment of Scientologists in Germany

Based on the 1993 IRS decision granting Scientology tax-exempt status, the United States Department of State, U.S. Department of State formally criticized Germany for discriminating against Scientologists and began to note Scientologists' complaints of harassment and discrimination in its annual United States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Human Rights Reports, starting from the 1993 report. Since then, the U.S. Department of State has repeatedly expressed its concerns over the violation of Scientologists' individual rights posed by "sect filters", whereby potential employees are required to divulge any association with Scientology before they are considered for a job.Germany, America and Scientology
''Washington Post'', February 1, 1997
Frantz, Douglas (1997-11-08)

''New York Times''
It has also warned that companies and artists associated with Scientology may be subject to "government-approved discrimination and boycotts" in Germany. Past targets of such boycotts have included Tom Cruise and jazz pianist Chick Corea. In 1997, an open letter to then-German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, published as a newspaper advertisement in the ''International Herald Tribune'', drew parallels between the "organized oppression" of Scientologists in Germany and
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
policies espoused by Germany in the 1930s. Schmid, John (1997-01-15)
German Party Replies To Scientology Backers
''International Herald Tribune''
The letter was signed by Dustin Hoffman, Goldie Hawn, and a number of other Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood celebrities and executives.Bonfante, Jordan; van Voorst, Bruce (1997-02-10).
Does Germany Have Something Against These Guys?
, ''Time (magazine), Time''
Commenting on the matter, a spokesman for the United States Department of State, U.S. Department of State criticized Germany's treatment of Scientologists and said that Scientologists were indeed discriminated against in Germany, but condemned any comparisons of this treatment to the Nazis' treatment of Jews as extremely inappropriate, an opinion echoed by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights. German officials sharply rejected the accusations. They said that Germany guarantees the
freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freed ...
, but characterized Scientology as a Business, profit-making enterprise, rather than a religion, and emphasized that precisely because of Germany's Nazi past, Germany took a determined stance against all "radical cults and sects, including right-wing Nazi groups", and not just against Scientology. According to a 1997 ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine article, most Germans consider Scientology a subversive organization, with pollsters reporting 70% popular support for banning Scientology in Germany. In late 1997, the United States granted Right of asylum, asylum to a German Scientologist, Antje Victore, who claimed she would be subject to religious persecution in her homeland. In 2000, the German ''Stern (magazine), Stern'' magazine published a report asserting that several rejection letters which the woman had submitted as part of her asylum application—ostensibly from potential employers who were rejecting her because she was a Scientologist—had in fact been written by fellow Scientologists at her request and that of the Office of Special Affairs and that she was in personal financial trouble and about to go on trial for tax evasion at the time she applied for asylum. On a 2000 visit to Clearwater, Florida, Ursula Caberta of the Scientology Task Force for the Hamburg Interior Authority likewise alleged that the asylum case had been part of an "orchestrated effort" by Scientology undertaken "for political gain", and "a spectacular abuse of the U.S. system".Tobin, Thomas C. (2000-07-26)
"German visitor takes on Scientology"
''St. Petersburg Times''
German expatriate Scientologists resident in Clearwater, in turn, accused Caberta of stoking a "hate campaign" in Germany that had "ruined the lives and fortunes of scores of Scientologists" and maintained that Scientologists had not "exaggerated their plight for political gain in the United States". Mark Rathbun, a top Church of Scientology official, said that although Scientology had not orchestrated the case, "there would have been nothing improper if it had".


Scientology and Wikipedia

In an effort to adhere to Wikipedia policy, the Arbitration Committee (English Wikipedia), Arbitration Committee of the English Wikipedia decided in late-May 2009 to restrict editing from Church of Scientology IP addresses, to prevent self-serving edits by editors within CoS-administered networks. A "host of anti-Scientologist editors" were topic-banned as well. The committee concluded that both sides had "gamed policy" and resorted to "battlefield tactics", with articles on living persons being the "worst casualties".


Church of Scientology's response to criticism

Scientology's response to accusations of criminal behavior has been twofold; the church is under attack by an organized conspiracy, and each of the church's critics is hiding a private criminal past. In the first instance, the Church of Scientology has repeatedly stated that it is engaged in an ongoing battle against a massive, worldwide conspiracy theory, conspiracy whose sole purpose is to "destroy the Scientology religion." Thus, aggressive measures and legal actions are the only way the church has been able to survive in a hostile environment; they sometimes liken themselves to the early Mormons who took up arms and organized militia to defend themselves from persecution. The church asserts that the core of the organized anti-Scientology movement is the psychiatry, psychiatric profession, in league with deprogramming, deprogrammers and certain government bodies (including elements within the FBI and the government of Germany.) These conspirators have allegedly attacked Scientology since the earliest days of the church, with the shared goal of creating a docile, mind-controlled population. As an official Scientology website explains: :To understand the forces ranged against L. Ron Hubbard, in this war he never started, it is necessary to gain a cursory glimpse of the old and venerable science of psychiatry-which was actually none of the aforementioned. As an institution, it dates back to shortly before the turn of the century; it is certainly not worthy of respect by reason of age or dignity; and it does not meet any known definition of a science, what with its hodgepodge of unproven theories that have never produced any result-except an ability to make the unmanageable and mutinous more docile and quiet, and turn the troubled into apathetic souls beyond the point of caring. That it promotes itself as a healing profession is a misrepresentation. Its mission is to control. On the other hand, L. Ron Hubbard has proclaimed that all critics of Scientology are criminals. Hubbard wrote on numerous occasions that all of Scientology's opponents are seeking to hide their own criminal histories, and the proper course of action to stop these attacks is to "expose" the hidden crimes of the attackers. The Church of Scientology does not deny that it vigorously seeks to "expose" its critics and enemies; it maintains that all of its critics have criminal histories, and they encourage hatred and "bigotry" against Scientology. Hubbard's belief that all critics of Scientology are criminals was summarized in a policy letter written in 1967: :Now get this as a technical ''fact'', not a hopeful idea. Every time we have investigated the background of a critic of Scientology we have found crimes for which that person or group could be imprisoned under existing law. We do not find critics of Scientology who do not have criminal pasts. Over and over we prove this. -- ''Critics of Scientology'', "Hubbard Communications Office Policy Letter", 5 November 1967. Scientology claims that it continues to expand and prosper despite all efforts to prevent it from growing; critics claim that the Church's own statistics contradict its story of continuing growth. The Church of Scientology has published a number of responses to criticism available online. Analyses of Scientology's counter-accusations and actions against its critics are available on a number of websites, including the critical archive Operation Clambake. On January 22, 2013, attorneys for the organization, as well as some of its members, reacted toward the CNN News Group, threatening legal action for its airing of a story covering the release of a book published by Lawrence Wright, entitled Going Clear (book), ''Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief'', published earlier the same year. CNN News Group then chose to publish the correspondence, with confidential information redacted, on its web site. The threats were not followed up by lawsuits.


See also

* ''Bare-Faced Messiah'' (book) * ''Believe What You Like'' (book) * ''Brain-Washing (book), Brain-Washing'' (book) * ''Going Clear (film), Going Clear'' (film) * ''Inside Scientology: How I Joined Scientology and Became Superhuman, Inside Scientology'' (book) * ''L. Ron Hubbard: Messiah or Madman?'' (book) * ''My Scientology Movie'' (film) * ''
Scientology and Me ''Scientology and Me'' is a television documentary first broadcast on 14 May 2007 as part of the BBC's ''Panorama'' series. In it, reporter John Sweeney visited the United States to investigate whether the Church of Scientology was becoming mor ...
'' (TV documentary) * ''Scientology: The Now Religion'' (book) * ''The Mind Benders (book), The Mind Benders'' (book) * ''The Scandal of Scientology'' (book) * Auditing (Scientology)#Controversy, Auditing controversies * Bibliography of books critical of Scientology * Church of Scientology v. Gerald Armstrong * Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath (TV series) * Mike Rinder, former Scientology executive and outspoken critic * Project Chanology * Scientology and psychiatry * Scientology and the Internet * Scientology and the legal system * Scientology beliefs and practices


References


Notes

*Hubbard, L. Ron. ''Attacks on Scientology'', "Hubbard Communications Office Policy Letter", February 25, 196
EFF "Legal Cases - Church of Scientology" Archive
(16 January 1998)


External links

*[https://www.xenu.net/ "Operation Clambake"] (a comprehensive archive of critical material on Scientology)
archive
(Chronological list of publications on Scientology)
scientologists freezone"
(A comparative study on the Church's and the Freezone's activity)

Skeptic's Dictionary entry on dianetics
"Death of a Scientologist"
''Chicago Reader'' feature about the suicide of an OT7 Scientologist {{DEFAULTSORT:Scientology Controversies Scientology Scientology-related controversies, Abuse of the legal system Criticism of Scientology