Scientology front groups are those groups named or operated in such a way as to disguise their association with the
Church of Scientology (COS). COS uses
front groups to promote its interests in politics, to make itself appear legitimate, and to recruit. The Times published, "[The church attracts] the unwary through a wide array of front groups in such businesses as publishing, consulting, health care and even remedial education." Many of the groups are founded on
pseudoscience, named disingenuously, and underplay their links to Scientology.[1][2]
There are four types of front groups:
those groups which are part of the
Scientology network of corporations and are managed directly within the Church of Scientology but bear names disguising the connection,
those operated under "secular" subsidiary corporations but still managed or overseen within the Church of Scientology,
groups or projects made up of volunteer Scientologists while still overseen and guided the organization, and
companies owned by Scientologists and operated using Scientology principles of management and administration under licenses from Scientology.
According to
Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, "The majority of activities conducted by Scientology and its many fronts and subsidiaries involve the marketing of secular products such as the "Clear" program, Sterling Management Systems executive training, and self-improvement in scholastics."[3] Some Scientology products are defined as religious in one setting but secular in another. For example,
Study Technology is sold in Churches of Scientology but is also taught in some schools under claims of being secular and non-religious.[3]
Scientology is unique among religions for its quantity of front groups, which has been part of its policy since its beginnings and was outlined by Hubbard in his 1960 document "Special Zone Plan".[3] Along with their own front groups, Scientology engages in infiltration of civil society groups and government agencies.[3][1] Their front businesses are a major source of income for Scientology and are used as a way of obtaining funds from government and charity sources.[3] Per Beit-Hallahmi, "This use of fronts has been a major part of the organization's activities, and it indicates an acknowledgement of having something (or more than just something) to hide."[3]
History
Documents obtained in the
FBI's 1977
raids on Scientology's Los Angeles and Washington DC premises[4][5] included an undated memo entitled "PR General Categories of Data Needing Coding". This memo listed what it called "Secret PR Front Groups" which included the group Alliance for the Preservation of Religious Liberty (APRL), later renamed Americans Preserving Religious Liberty.[6]
The
Cult Awareness Network (CAN) was an organization that provided information on cults, receiving the most number of inquiries about Scientology and one other group.[8] CAN, founded in 1978, considered Scientology to be "the most dangerous, rapacious, and destructive cult in contemporary America".[7]: 149 In 1996, CAN was forced into bankruptcy by a series of frivolous lawsuits orchestrated by the Church of Scientology.[9][7]: 149–50 In a bizarre twist, the Church of Scientology acquired CAN's assets including files on Scientology, and
re-opened CAN under Scientologist leadership, becoming a front group for Scientology.[10][11]
The following commercial groups have as their goal either recruitment to make new Scientologists, or the spreading of L. Ron Hubbard principles and methods into society. The groups vary in the amount of disclosure they provide to the general public about their affiliation with Scientology or Hubbard. These organizations are licensed to sell "secular" Scientology products and services.
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abcdefDowntown Medical, Foundation for Advancements in Science and Education, HealthMed, International Academy of Detoxification Specialists, International Association of Detoxification Specialists, and New York Rescue Workers Detoxification Project are interrelated. [28][29][30]