Who had the biggest booth at the Black Caucus DC confab this month? Scientology, that’s who.

 
The Congressional Black Conference Foundation held its Annual Legislative Conference this month and Scientology was on hand to spread its message of hatred against psychiatry. The event draws over 30,000 attendees to Washington, DC.

Black politicians, clergy, activists and artists came together for three days to meet, discuss, and to honor those who have worked to improve conditions for the black community. Attendees included Revs. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, Senators and presidential candidates Corey Booker and Kamala Harris, Reps. Maxine Waters, John Lewis, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the singer-songwriter Maxwell and ballet dancer Misty Copeland.

But it’s the Event Hall that draws our attention. Corporations and nonprofits can rent space in booths in the hall to distribute literature and draw attention to their programs. There’s a marketplace for purchasing items from black owned businesses. The Center for Haitian Studies had a booth, as did the National Society for Black Engineers.

 
None surpassed Scientology’s booth which was larger than that of the NAACP or the Congressional Black Conference Foundation itself. We’ve added “CCHR” to the hall map, booth 236. The order form says this size of booth costs $18,000 for non-profits, a considerable discount from the $44,000 corporate rate. The Citizens Commission on Human Rights was on display in the hall’s largest booth with their “Industry of Death” exhibit, with emphasis on Scientology’s claim that the “psychs” target blacks and minorities.

Rev. Fred Shaw and Dr. Joseph Green opened the exhibition. Both have long been Scientology allies, involved in CCHR and raising money for the IAS. The booth proclaims that psychiatry is “oppressing blacks and minorities.” Scientology’s press release claims that psychiatry is racist because African-American men are diagnosed with serious mental disorders more frequently than whites.

 
It’s a very selective use of statistics. The incidence of mental illness is similar across ethnic groups in the U.S. What is not similar is the level of care each receives. Blacks and other minorities suffer more often from serious mental disorders because they receive less care. This may be due to lack of insurance, mental illness stigma in the community, language barriers and lack of ethnic diversity among providers.

Scientology’s claim that mental health providers target minorities for controversial and experimental psychiatric treatments is laughable on its face. It’s not hard to guess what incident they are trying to use to their advantage. It’s an attempt to smear mental health providers by indirectly referencing the Tuskegee syphilis experiment, in which black males were told they were receiving medical treatment from the U.S. Government. In fact they were untreated in an unethical attempt to gather data on the natural history of the disease. It’s a shameful incident in U.S. history and one that many if not all of the attendees know well. The dog-whistle reference to Tuskegee in a Scientology lie is an insult to the patients who suffered harm from their government.

— Rod Keller

 
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Bonus items from our tipsters

Actual caption from Scientology Pasadena: “Welcome our newest staff member, Andrew Wakley! He was on his auditor training when he decided to join staff. He’s a total rockstar! We’re so happy to have him on the team. Interested in joining staff? DM me for more information!”

 
The Columbus Ideal Org is completed, but its signage was still covered up before the start of this weekend’s East U.S. “Unity Conference.” It still strikes us odd that the org, which has yet to be graced by the presence of David Miscavige for a grand opening, would hold a convention in this state.

 
And last night, when the convention was supposed to be in full swing, the lights were on but there wasn’t much sign of life…

 
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Source Code

“The history of Guk should be known to you. For a long time we had been scouting for the one-shot Clear, whereby a person walks in, you take a hypodermic syringe and shoot it in his arm, he goes up against the ceiling and comes down Clear. And we had been talking about this for some time as something feasible. Around 15 July 1950 a chemical engineer (the ex-director of research at the Bloch Chemical Company) told us about an atropine derivative that might be used.” — L. Ron Hubbard, September 29, 1950

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“The Freezone is going to have to be unified so that we can establish orgs where families can go within easy reach. I have been saying this all along. There are no youngsters to train as auditors and when all us in our 50s+ are gone, who will audit anybody?”

 
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Scientology’s celebrities, ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and more!

We’ve been building landing pages about David Miscavige’s favorite playthings, including celebrities and ‘Ideal Orgs,’ and we’re hoping you’ll join in and help us gather as much information as we can about them. Head on over and help us with links and photos and comments.

Scientology’s celebrities, from A to Z! Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!

Scientology’s ‘Ideal Orgs,’ from one end of the planet to the other! Help us build up pages about each these worldwide locations!

Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society!

Scientology Lit: Books reviewed or excerpted in our weekly series. How many have you read?

 
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THE WHOLE TRACK

[ONE year ago] Inside Jesse Prince’s book about Scientology: Doing L. Ron Hubbard’s dirty work
[TWO years ago] Turning hurricane chaos into gold? Scientology might learn something from L. Ron Hubbard
[THREE years ago] ‘The Unbreakable Miss Lovely’ audiobook on sale, and we’re doing a Reddit AMA at noon
[FOUR years ago] O Canada: We’re in Vancouver today, getting our British Columbia on. Let’s talk Scientology!
[FIVE years ago] Jon Atack takes his presentation — ‘Scientology: The Cult of Greed’ — to Russia
[SIX years ago] Sunday Funnies: Nothing But Unstoppable Scientology Expansion in Every Direction!
[SEVEN years ago] Michael Lewis (Johnny’s Dad) Scheduled for Scientology Event Tonight
[EIGHT years ago] Scientology High School, Dating, and Super Powers! A Post-Countdown Roundup

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on September 29, 2019 at 07:00

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Our new book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is now on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. Our book about Paulette, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.

The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2018 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2018), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)

Other links: BLOGGING DIANETICS: Reading Scientology’s founding text cover to cover | UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists | GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice | SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts | Shelly Miscavige, 14 years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ

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Our non-Scientology stories: Robert Burnham Jr., the man who inscribed the universe | Notorious alt-right inspiration Kevin MacDonald and his theories about Jewish DNA | The selling of the “Phoenix Lights” | Astronomer Harlow Shapley‘s FBI file | Sex, spies, and local TV news | Battling Babe-Hounds: Ross Jeffries v. R. Don Steele