Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief Page #13

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what scientology does.

I started getting

all this communication

Because of that video.

You know,

"you saved my family."

You know, "you've--

i finally had the courage

"to leave

after i watched your thing."

You know?

I mean, like,

there's blood and tears.

And then

i started to find out,

You know, all the stuff

that was really happening.

You know, i lost money,

i got f***ed,

But then i found out

about the abuse

in the sea org.

And i felt like, "f*** me,

i gotta do somethin' about it."

And i finally

tracked down marty rathbun.

Everybody thought

he was dead.

He was in f***in' mexico.

And i went down there,

And i basically

convinced him to talk.

And, like,

"we gotta do somethin'."

And then he started his blog.

There was

a beating every day.

And if it wasn't him doin' it,

It was from him inciting others

to do it to others.

I think that it's a cult.

I'm doin' my own thing,

i want to get on with my life.

I am telling the truth.

Suddenly i heard

senior members of the church

Were speaking out,

So i started to look,

and i started to read.

And then i started

to reach out to people.

Two of my daughters are gay,

and told me

How they'd been treated

within the church.

I didn't know.

Paul haggis's daughters

were openly harassed

By church members

for being gay.

Investigating further,

haggis discovered

That church doctrine

viewed homosexuality

as a disease

That only hubbard's teachings

could cure.

And a california

chapter of scientology

Had supported a ban

on gay marriage.

I can't be part

of an organization

That doesn't support

Human rights for everyone.

So i sent a letter

to 25 friends in the church

That i was resigning.

And i'd hoped

they'd read this letter

And be horrified

by the things i'd found out.

A few days later,

i drive home.

There have to be 10 people

standing in my front yard.

I recognize them.

They're my friends.

They said, "paul,

we need you to tear up

this letter.

"and we need you

to get all the copies

and tear them up,

"and resign quietly."

I said, "i don't do that."

you know?

"i'm sorry.

I don't do that."

I sent a copy

to marty rathbun.

He put it on his blog,

one page on a day,

And didn't reveal my name

until the friday.

Monday morning, i woke up.

600 of the top newspapers

of the world had it.

You know,

it was in bulgaria.

i mean, it was reprinted

in seven languages.

I went, "oh my god,

what have i done?"

I mean-- it did garner

a lot of interest.

People will judge you,

one way or the other.

I figured

people would judge me

as really stupid.

But then,

i was really stupid.

I was a part of this

for 30 years before

i spoke out.

I felt deeply ashamed.

Why didn't i do it earlier?

Why didn't i look earlier?

People are so indoctrinated,

And have been in scientology

a really long, long time.

Or they've grown up in it,

and they don't know

anything else.

It's so scary to them

to have to start all over,

And it takes

a really strong person

To stand up to them

and say no.

In 2009,

My son was on staff

at the church.

And "the truth rundown"

came out in the

"st. Pete times,"

Exposing what was going on

With the beatings,

people in the hole.

The church was very mad

at my son,

Because he knew

it was going to happen,

And he didn't tell them.

And he didn't tell them

because he had a good friend

That became friends

with mike rinder

And marty rathbun,

And he believed

what they were saying

in "the truth rundown."

The church was threatening,

That he was gonna get declared

a suppressive person

If he didn't disconnect

from his friend.

My son, he was raised

a scientologist,

You know,

and he'd been on staff.

He made 30 bucks a week.

He headed up

their boy scout troop.

He was like

this consummate youth

of scientology.

The continental justice chief

called him on the phone.

And it was after that

the declare came down,

And he was just devastated.

The church told his friends

everything they could find

In his pc folder

to ruin his reputation.

I wrote this petition.

I tried to put in everything

good that my son had done.

"dear sarah,

thank you for the letter

"that you sent

regarding the situation

with nick lister.

"i cannot approve

that you continue

your connection with nick."

No one's gonna tell me

when i can and can't

speak to him.

No one, but me.

"your committee

of evidence findings

and recommendations

"recommended you

be labeled suppressive,

"engaging in malicious

rumor mongering

"to destroy the authority

or repute of higher officers

"or the leading names

of scientology."

My husband

was charged with that one,

Because he was telling me

What he read on the internet

about david miscavige.

They say,

"don't go on the internet,

don't read.

"don't go to these sites."

From the time

that i got in,

For 30 years, i never read

one critical thing

about scientology.

When i finally decided

to open my eyes and look,

I was shocked,

just shocked.

But if you're a member

of the church of scientology,

And someone in your family,

or a friend, or your spouse,

Is skeptical or critical

of the church of scientology,

You are supposed to disconnect

yourself from that person...

Tommy davis,

who was the spokesperson

for the church,

He's being asked about

the policy of disconnection.

Anything that's characterized

as disconnection

Or this kinda thing,

it's just-- it's just not true.

There isn't...

I confronted him

about this.

And i said,

"tommy, i don't need

to search outside to ask for--

"to check research

and see if other--

"this has happened

to other people.

This happened to my wife.

"you asked her and me

to disconnect from her parents

"because of something trivial

they did years ago."

My wife disconnected from me,

My daughter,

my son, my brother,

My sister, my mother,

All of my nieces

and nephews.

And that is the only family

that i have.

You know, you label

these people suppressive

So that, you know,

everybody automatically--

They're discredited,

and they must disconnect

from them.

And that's how you keep

people in a bubble.

And that's what they do.

I mean, my son was declared

Because he wouldn't disconnect

from his friend.

I was declared,

and my husband was declared

Because we wouldn't

disconnect from my son.

And now guess what happened?

Everyone connected to us

just scatters to the wind.

Through all of this time,

I have a daughter

who's very much

into the church.

I have a granddaughter

Who's the love of my life,

and who loves her nana.

I was planning on talking

to my daughter,

And trying to tell her

what was really happening.

She hugged me,

she told me she loved me.

She said, "i have to

disconnect from you."

So, um...

I just was concentrating

on smelling her hair

And seeing the way she felt,

Touching her skin

on my face.

That's the last time

i saw them.

It really is the crux

Of how controlling

is any religion

Over its adherents,

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