Nora Crest dazzled attendees at the Toronto Scientology conference organized by Jon Atack last month, and now you’re going to get a taste of her storytelling talents with the video she’s allowing us to debut here today.
We told you earlier that Nora was starting a series of her own about what it’s like to grow up in Scientology and work in its restrictive Sea Org. Today, she’s launching her series, “Growing Up Scientology: From Cradle to Slave,” with a piece about her own experiences learning about the organization’s attitudes about sex.
As Nora explains, Sea Org members are taught that there’s a hierarchy of sexual transgressions in Scientology, and that only heterosexual sex — in the missionary position, and between married adults — is actually permitted. But as for everything else, there’s a descending scale of venality, and she lays out those rules here and has a lot of fun doing it. give it a look!
We asked Nora for some words about her project, and she sent us this…
Growing up in Scientology is a lot like my tattoos. I got my first one from a relatively famous tattoo artist. He had a reputable, well established shop. I thought very long about what I wanted to get. I found a picture of what I wanted and I sent it to him. I thought he was going to put his artistic twist on what I had suggested and that it would be a unique and wonderful creation. When I got to his shop I was terrified. It wasn’t what I thought at all. It was dark and frankly scary. There was a life size Pennywise staring down at me from the ceiling. But I decided to go through with it. I really wanted this tattoo from this artist. It was going to be great. It hurt like hell. I was sweating and very uncomfortable the whole time. I thought that this is what getting a tattoo was supposed to be like so I just gritted my teeth and went with it. I tried to engage him while he was tattooing me. He was more interested in the shop shenanigans that were going on than in me. After I looked at the finished product I was disappointed. It was sorta what I had wanted but not really. I spent MONTHS convincing myself that it was what I had asked for. The more I looked at it, this permanent picture on my body, the more flaws I saw in it and the more disappointed I grew with my choice. I started beating myself up. Was my choice too trendy? Did I not tell him what I really wanted well enough? Why didn’t I go with my gut feeling and leave? But it was too late now. I literally had to live with this tattoo that covered most of my left forearm.
Then I decided to get another Tattoo. Not from him. I researched and really looked into tattoo artists and found one locally. I spoke to her at length beforehand about what I wanted. She was ECSTATIC about the idea and couldn’t wait to sketch it out. What she put together was EXACTLY what I had envisioned. The tattoo took 10 times as long as the first one I had gotten but hurt WAY less. She apologized when I was in pain and was very friendly and open when we talked. Now that I had this fantastic Tattoo I looked at my first one. Sitting there looking pathetic and just not good. A reminder of my past and of not being true to myself. A permanent reminder of letting someone control me. So I spoke to my new artist. I told her I wanted to change that into something beautiful. She said no problem. Again we worked together and she did the most brilliant coverup. The original tattoo is under there. Unseen. The world now sees what I want. What I created. What I truly am. And I know what is under there. It is still a part of me, but it doesn’t define me.
That is what growing up in and leaving Scientology is like. You have permanent marks but they aren’t the whole story. My channel, Growing Up Scientology: From Cradle to Slave will allow former child slaves to tell their story. To take back their story and to help them be free of the past by getting the whole truth out there. I have now put together an IndieGoGo campaign. Growing Up Scientology: From Cradle to Slave.
Why do we need funding? I mean there are videos up already. CLEARLY I know how to make a video and I have some equipment. Yes. I am pretty decent at making videos. I made mine on a Canon Camera. We possess one microphone right now. We would need a bit more equipment to ramp up production on these videos but MOSTLY we need to be able to get to all of the people who have stories to tell. There are hundreds of us out there. And traveling all over the US and in some cases other countries, costs lots of $$$$ that I don’t currently have yet. (WHERE is my winning lottery ticket?) So raising this money will allow us to get out and about to a few of the people and get some more stories on tape so that we can get them out to the world.
The campaign can be seen here
Yes my story in its entirety is coming to the channel along with the hundreds of others that I will interview and put them up as well. The stories will come out in the form of Webisodes. Each person’s story will air in its entirety in small segments of about 5 to 10 minutes long in a series with their name as the title.
If you would like to contribute to each webisode you can do that here at Patreon.
Any and all contributions are appreciated and honestly if you can’t give money just tweeting the link to the video will be wonderful. I am giving this project my all because it deserves it and it is vital. It is vital to help these former slaves recover, as I have, through getting their stories out and it is vital to prevent, even ONE more child from being enslaved by Scientology.
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Where’s the Twin Cities love?
We’re close to nailing down venues and sponsoring groups for our September visits to Cleveland, Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver. But so far, we’ve gotten nowhere with Minneapolis/St. Paul. Are there no active skeptics groups up there? Is no one interested in suggesting a good venue for some Scientology talk? And here we thought the Twin Cities was a fervent hive of freethinking Bunker readers. Hm.
If you know of a group like Center for Inquiry or humanists or skeptics who might like to hold an event with a full room, make sure they get in touch with us, please!
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BOOK NOTES
We didn’t get a chance to include photos in our book, so we’ve posted them at a dedicated page. Reader Sookie put together a complete index and we’re hosting it here on the website. Copies of the paperback version of ‘The Unbreakable Miss Lovely’ are on sale at Amazon. The Kindle edition is also available, and shipping instantly.
Tony Ortega’s upcoming appearances (and check out the interactive map to our ongoing tour)…
July 29: Paris, Le Bistrot Landais, 19:00 (with Jonny Jacobsen)
August 4: London, Conway Hall, 19:30, (with John Sweeney)
August 24: Boston, Boston Skeptics in the Pub, 7 pm (with Gregg Housh)
Sept 15: Barrett the Honors College, Arizona State University, ASU in Downtown Phoenix campus
Sept 23: Cleveland, Parma Heights Library, 7pm sponsored by Center for Inquiry – Northeast Ohio
Sept 24: Minneapolis
Sept 27: Portland
Sept 28: Seattle
Sept 29: Vancouver, BC, Seven Dining Lounge, 7 pm
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Posted by Tony Ortega on July 28, 2015 at 05:00
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Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…
BLOGGING DIANETICS: We read Scientology’s founding text cover to cover with the help of LA attorney and former church member Vance Woodward
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
PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | Scientology’s Private Dancer
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
Our Guide to Alex Gibney’s film ‘Going Clear,’ and our pages about its principal figures…
Jason Beghe | Tom DeVocht | Sara Goldberg | Paul Haggis | Mark “Marty” Rathbun | Mike Rinder | Spanky Taylor | Hana Whitfield
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