Scientology 101 - Suppressive Persons

Suppressive Person, often abbreviated SP, is a term used in Scientology to describe the "antisocial personalities" who, according to Scientology's founder L. Ron Hubbard, make up about 2.5% of the population. Another 18% are PTS (Potential Trouble Source), as a result of the SPs. A statement on a Church of Scientology website describes this group as including notorious historic figures such as Adolf Hitler and Genghis Khan as well as others who "are less obviously seen." The term is often applied to those whom the Church of Scientology perceives as its enemies, i.e. those whose "disastrous" and "suppressive" acts are said to impede the progress of individual Scientologists or the Scientology movement.

So what is a Suppressive Person and how do you get to be one?  It is really easy to be Declared.  Especially these days.  It seems that all you have to do is get on David Miscavige's bad side, or rally on the bad side of any exec.  But what were the qualifications according to Hubbard?  Here are a few of them.  According to policy, HCOPL 23 December 1965 Suppressive Acts Suppression of Scientology and Scientologists The Fair Game Law:

Such Suppressive Acts include public disavowal of Scientology or Scientologists in good standing with Scientology Organizations; public statements against Scientology or Scientologists but not to Committees of Evidence duly convened; proposing, advising or voting for legislation or ordinances, rules or laws directed toward the Suppression of Scientology; pronouncing Scientologists guilty of the practice of standard Scientology; testifying hostilely before state or public inquiries into Scientology to suppress it; reporting or threatening to report Scientology or Scientologists to civil authorities in an effort to suppress Scientology or Scientologists from practicing or receiving standard Scientology; bringing civil suit against any Scientology organization or Scientologist including the non-payment of bills or failure to refund without first calling the matter to the attention of the Chairman at Saint Hill and receiving a reply; demanding the return of any or all fees paid for standard training or processing actually received or received in part and still available but undelivered only because of departure of the person demanding (the fees must be refunded but this Policy Letter applies); writing anti-Scientology letters to the press or giving anti-Scientology or anti-Scientologist evidence to the press; testifying as a hostile witness against Scientology in public; continued membership in a divergent group; continued adherence to a person or group pronounced a Suppressive Person or Group by HCO; failure to handle or disavow and disconnect from a person demonstrably guilty of Suppressive Acts; being at the hire of anti-Scientology groups or persons; organizing a splinter group to use Scientology data or any part of it to distract people from standard Scientology; organizing splinter groups to diverge from Scientology practices, still calling it Scientology or calling it something else; calling meetings of staffs or field auditors or the public to deliver Scientology into the hands of unauthorized persons or who will suppress it or alter it or who have no reputation for following standard lines and procedures; infiltrating a Scientology group or organization or staff to stir up discontent or protest at the instigation of hostile forces; 1st degree murder, arson, disintegration of persons or belongings; mutiny; seeking to splinter off an area of  Scientology and deny it properly constituted authority for personal profit, personal power or “to save the organization from the higher officers of Scientology”; engaging in malicious ‘rumor-mongering to destroy the authority or repute of higher officers or the leading names of Scientology or to “safeguard” a position; delivering up the person of a Scientologist without defense or protest to the demands of civil or criminal law; falsifying records that then imperil the liberty or safety of a Scientologist; knowingly giving false testimony to imperil a Scientologist; receiving money, favors or encouragement to suppress Scientology or Scientologists; sexual or sexually perverted conduct contrary to the well being or good state of mind of a Scientologist in good standing or under the charge of Scientology such as a student, a preclear, a ward or a patient; blackmail on Scientologists or Scientology organizations threatened or accomplished—in which case the crime being used for blackmail purposes becomes fully outside the reach of Ethics and is absolved the fact of blackmail unless repeated.

I want you to look at the first red line very carefully.  This means that if you have a friend, lover, husband wife, father mother, son or daughter that has been declared a Suppressive Person and you want to stay in the good graces of the ''church", you must disconnect from that person, or risk being declared yourself.  I know several people who have had their families ripped apart because of this.

Now look at the second red highlighted area.  It is a high crime to splinter off an area of Scientology, even if it is to save the organization from the higher officers of Scientology.  What does this mean?  Even if you had evidence that the very top person in the church of Scientology was guilt of crimes and all you wanted to do was to protect your church by either removing the officer, or removing the church from that officer, you would be declared a Suppressive Person and removed from the church.  And so would anyone who openly agreed with you.

Hubbard goes on to say:

Suppressive Acts are clearly those covert or overt acts knowingly calculated to reduce or destroy the influence or activities of Scientology or prevent case gains or continued Scientology success and activity on the part of a Scientologist. As persons or groups that would do such a thing act out of self interest only to the detriment of all others, they cannot be granted the rights and beingness ordinarily accorded rational  beings and so place themselves beyond any consideration for their feelings or well being.

What did he say?  He said, and meant, that if you have been declared, no Scientologist should ever consider your well being or feelings.  He said, and meant that as far as Scientology is concerned, you have no rights.  This includes people who have never been in the church who just see the wrongness of what is happening in the church and dare to speak out about it publicly.  It also includes writers, newspapers, and attorneys   who fall into the bad graces of the "church".

And lastly, Hubbard says it again in stronger terms:

A truly Suppressive Person or Group has no rights of any kind as Scientologists and actions taken against them are not punishable under Scientology Ethics Codes.

Any Scientologist in good standing has the right to do anything to you, the suppressive, without any fear of repercussion from Scientology management.

I hope this has cleared things up for you.  Thank you so much for being here with me today.  Come back soon for another episode.  As always your questions and comments are most welcome.