Advice for protesters of Scientology - How to protect yourself.

For those that protest Scientology, it can be a frightening experience. They tend to have a lot of muscle on hand, both muscularly and litigiously.

Confronting these people can seem confusing and frightening and this post aims to help as a reference to what you can do.

At the point where I hit "publish post" for the first time, this will not be a complete entry. I will be adding to this entry over time as an ever-evolving reference.

Hopefully, with this in hand, you will be better prepared for what they'll try and do to you.

The Contents of this article include: -

1 - Common Arguments against Protester's Activities.
2 - General Advice
3 - Pamphlets for handing out

Note - Where I have referenced news articles, I have opted to mirror them as over time they tend to be taken down from the original source.

1 - OK, first the basics. Expected confrontation types...

This will be a list of expected objections which will likely be perpetrated by Scientologists at your protest. They come in no particular order, being added as I find I need to.

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Calling Scientology a "Cult." - News Article Here
In May 2008, a young boy faced prosecution for calling Scientology a cult. He had taken part in a peaceful protest, made no threads and had been brought up on that charge alone.

The officer told him that it was down to Section 5 of the Public Order Act; which I have duplicated below.

5 Harassment, alarm or distress
(1) A person is guilty of an offence if he—
	(a)	uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, or disorderly behaviour, or
	(b)	displays any writing, sign or other visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting,
within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress thereby.
(2) An offence under this section may be committed in a public or a private place, except that no offence is committed where the words or behaviour are used, or the writing, sign or other visible representation is displayed, by a person inside a dwelling and the other person is also inside that or another dwelling.
(3) It is a defence for the accused to prove—
	(a)	that he had no reason to believe that there was any person within hearing or sight who was likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress, or
	(b)	that he was inside a dwelling and had no reason to believe that the words or behaviour used, or the writing, sign or other visible representation displayed, would be heard or seen by a person outside that or any other dwelling, or
	(c)	that his conduct was reasonable.
(4) A constable may arrest a person without warrant if—
	(a)	he engages in offensive conduct which [a] constable warns him to stop, and
	(b)	he engages in further offensive conduct immediately or shortly after the warning.
(5) In subsection (4) “offensive conduct” means conduct the constable reasonably suspects to constitute an offence under this section, and the conduct mentioned in paragraph (a) and the further conduct need not be of the same nature.
(6) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.
NOTES
Initial Commencement
	To be appointed To be appointed: see s 41(1).
Appointment
	Appointment: 1 April 1987: see SI 1987/198, art 2, Schedule.
Amendment
	Sub-s (4): word in square brackets in para (a) substituted by the Public Order (Amendment) Act 1996, s 1.

Now, pay attention to the part where it says that it is a defence if: "his conduct was reasonable."

It was. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary lists five different definitions of the word "cult."[13]

1. Formal religious veneration
2. A system of religious beliefs and ritual; also: its body of adherents;
3. A religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious; also: its body of adherents;
4. A system for the cure of disease based on dogma set forth by its promulgator;
5. Great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement, or work (as a film or book).

Scientology qualifies as all five of these definitions.

Which means that any person has reasonable grounds to call Scientology a Cult. It's official...it IS one.

The youth's case was dropped and he was declared innocent. The boy won by citing 1984 judgment given by Mr. Justice Latey in the Family Division of the High Court of Justice of Her Majesty's Courts of Justice of England and Wales, in which Latey called Scientology a "cult" and said it was "corrupt, sinister and dangerous". In the actual 1984 judgment made by Judge Latey, he stated: "Scientology is both immoral and socially obnoxious. [...] In my judgement it is corrupt, sinister and dangerous. [...] It is dangerous because it is out to capture people, especially children and impressionable young people, and indoctrinate and brainwash them so that they become the unquestioning captives and tools of the cult, withdrawn from ordinary thought, living and relationships with others."

Damning words and this provides you all with a precedent. Cite the result of the May 2008 court case and the 1984 ruling of Justice Latey.

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"You don't have permission to protest/film here!"

In the US and in the UK, you usually have to give notice of a public demonstration. So long as you've done that, you're good to go. As long as you remain on public property, you're safe. You're also granted Freedom of Expression under human rights laws.

As for filming? You're allowed to film anything in public so long as you are on public property and it is in the public interest. What is public interest and where does this fit in to the law?

In general under the law of the United Kingdom one cannot prevent photography of private property from a public place, and in general the right to take photographs on private land upon which permission has been obtained is similarly unrestricted. However a landowner is permitted to impose any conditions they wish upon entry to a property, such as forbidding or restricting photography. Two public locations in the UK, Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square have a specific provision against photography for commercial purposes, as do Royal Parks (as private land).

Photography of individuals is unrestricted where the subject has a reasonable expectation of being photographed, such as on the street or at a tourist attraction. Photography without consent of someone in a place where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy, could be considered to be against the European convention on human rights, however in general there is no right to privacy under UK law, and photograph of individuals may be used for any purposes. In addition persistent or aggressive photography of a single individual may come under the legal definition of harassment.

OFCOM have also weighed in with this ruling on the actual broadcasting of such footage: -

The Ofcom broadcasting code requires any infringement of privacy to be 'warranted'. Public interest is one justification, where it outweighs the right to privacy. Surreptitious filming is warranted if:

* there is prima facie evidence of a story in the public interest;
* there are reasonable grounds to suspect that further evidence could be obtained; and
* it is necessary to the credibility and authenticity of the programme.

If footage involves 'vulnerable people' then consent must be obtained unless 'it is warranted to proceed without consent' and an 'appropriate and timely' opportunity to respond to allegations of wrongdoing or incompetence is offered.

So what counts as "Public Interest" exactly? Well, there have been two definitions by teo different organisations.

Definition of the Public Interest (1)

Resolution 129 at the 2001 Annual Delegate Meeting of the National Union of Journalists

1. The Public interest includes
a) Detecting or exposing crime or a serious misdemeanor.
b) Protecting public health and safety.
c) Preventing the public from being misled by some statement or action of an individual or organisation.
d) Exposing misuse of public funds or other forms of corruption by public bodies.
e) Revealing potential conflicts of interest by those in positions of power and influence.
f) Exposing corporate greed.
g) Exposing hypocritical behaviour by those holding high office.
2. There is a public interest in the freedom of expression itself.
3. In cases involving children, journalists must demonstrate an exceptional public interest to over-ride the normally paramount interests of the child.


Definition of the Public Interest (2)

Editors' Code of Practice, 2004 - framed by the newspaper and periodical industry and ratified by the Press Complaints Commission on 28 April 2004

1. The public interest includes, but is not confined to:
i) Detecting or exposing crime or serious impropriety.
ii) Protecting public health and safety.
iii) Preventing the public from being misled by an action or statement of an individual or organisation.
2. There is a public interest in freedom of expression itself.
3. Whenever the public interest is invoked, the PCC will require editors to demonstrate fully how the public interest was served.
4. The PCC will consider the extent to which material is already in the public domain, or will become so.
5. In cases involving children under 16, editors must demonstrate an exceptional public interest to override the normally paramount interest of the child.

The full Editors code can be found on the PCC website http://www.pcc.org.uk/cop/cop.asp

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"You're in contravention of the Racial and Religious Hatred Act of 2006!"

So long as you do not use threatening behaviour and language, you're not. According to the original law, anything which protesting any kind of religion could come under this law, but in an amendment by the House of Lords the legislation was limited to "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening... if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred".

This removed the abusive and insulting concept, and required the intention - and not just the possibility - of stirring up religious hatred.

So as long as you're peaceful about it, you're OK.

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2 - General Advice

If you have written permission to protest at a particular location, why not get it blown up to the same size as your other placards? That way your right and permission to protest is as clear cut as your "OMGWTF a Cult!" cards
It may also be good practise to do the same for any legal precedent citations so that everything is nice and clear. And nothing is clearer than text the size of your own head...

Another good idea is to have pamphlets ready with your rights and all of the above on it.

Also, have a separate set of pamphlets or fliers with information on about the very thing you're protesting. It's no good simply shouting things at a protest. You need to win hearts and minds and you have to do that through informed debate. If anyone asks for information, have it on hand. If you don't you simply look ignorant and it harms the case.

On a related note...know your stuff.

If you look stupid, we all look stupid.

Be well behaved. If you do anything to make yourself look bad, it makes us all look bad and that ultimately harms our case.
I know the Scientologists use muscle to harm, harass and frighten us. Sadly they get away with it because they're stealthy and influential. You can't fight on their level so just keep it peaceful.

Don't mention Xenu to Scientologists!
I say this because lower level members don't actually believe in Xenu and the alien malarkey.
You may already know this but I will reiterate. Lower level members aren't told about Xenu until they've proven themselves and paid enough to get to the highest OT level. This is also because up until this point they will still have enough wits to doubt it when confronted with this story.
Only people who have become naive enough to "handle" it are told it and by this point they're willing to lie and do anything for the "church."

So either way members will deny it, some because they genuinely don't believe and others for more cynical reasons. Because the information is withheld from lower level members by higher ones, they can't openly admit the story. It's an unfortunate and ridiculous rut they've got themselves in to but trust me, you will not benefit from mentioning Xenu.

Besides, with their human rights violations and what-not you shouldn't need to. The Xenu thing makes them look funny...which makes them look harmless to the uninformed.


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3 - Pamphlets

I've prepared a rudimentary flier which spells out the harshest facts about Scientology to be handed out at protests. They're designed to spell out the immediate danger to people that otherwise don't take Scientology seriously or don't care and it doesn't even need to mention their religious beliefs...and so dosn't.

I hope they help.

Flier 1 - .pub format.
Flier 1 - .png format.

This one is formatted as two A5 fliers on an A4 sheet. Cutting will be involved ^_^


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That's all I've got for the moment. If I've missed anything I urge you to let me know. I don't just want corrections, we all need them. We need this information to be accurate so feel free to weigh in and tell me when I screw up and I'll change or add stuff pronto.

I'm sorry if this so far seems a little UK centric. I'm researching and uncovering laws and citations as I go but I come across the UK-based stuff more, at the moment.

Well, that's all from me so far. See you on the other side.

HMR