Category:Jon Atack

Jonathan Caven-Atack
Born	(1955-06-05) June 5, 1955 (age 69) United Kingdom
Movement	Scientology critic

Jonathan Caven-Atack (born 5 June 1955) known as Jon Atack, is a British artist, published author and widely recognized as one of the most outspoken critics of the Church of Scientology.

Scientology

Background

Atack was a member of the Church of Scientology from December 1974 through to October 1983 and completed 24 of the 27 spiritual levels available, including the secret upper levels closely guarded by the church to this day.

Atack also completed a further eight auditing training courses, as well as courses in recruitment and administration, performed at Scientology Missions or Churches in Birmingham, Manchester and at the British headquarters at Saint Hill, near East Grinstead. He says that as a part of his "indoctrination" (the word used by Hubbard for training), he read more than 20 of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard's textbooks and listened to about 150 taped Hubbard lectures.

In January 1983, the Church of Scientology published a list of 611 people who had been "declared a Suppressive Person", including one of his employees. A Suppressive person order requires "disconnection" - forbidding Scientologists any contact with any declared person. For six months, Atack wrote letters questioning the "Suppressive Person declare" to the Master at Arms, or Ethics Officer, at Saint Hill, of the Special Unit, of the International Justice Chief, of the Executive Director International and ultimately of L. Ron Hubbard. He received nothing but evasive responses.

Atack begins investigation

Finally in September 1983 Atack made a decision. He was unhappy with Scientology's new "tough" and "ruthless" management, the 15 fold increase in training fees, and that he was "unwilling to have [his] communication controlled and my freedom of association denied", and as such he personally began investigating the Church of Scientology.

Atack assembled a large collection of Scientology and Hubbard related materials, interviewed over a hundred former members, including a number of former Hubbard aides, and read thousands of pages of Scientology related court rulings, government enquiry reports, affidavits and sworn testimony. This research culminated in 1990, with the publication of his book A Piece of Blue Sky, a history of Hubbard and his organizations.

A Piece of Blue Sky

A Piece of Blue Sky has been cited as a principal source of reference in academic papers by professor of sociology and history of religion Stephen A. Kent ("International Social Control by the Church of Scientology", presented at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, November 1991) and by professor of neuropsychiatry Louis Jolyon West ("Psychiatry and Scientology", presented as the "Distinguished Psychiatrist" lecture, American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting, Washington DC, 6 May 1992).

Atack is also the author of other works investigating the Church, such as The Total Freedom Trap.^[1]

Harassment by Scientologists

Scientologists with placards demonstrated outside Jon Atack's home for a week and returned after the police told them to leave. Allegations were made that Atack had received large sums of money to get someone to leave Scientology though Atack strenuously denies receiving money this way.

"It's a bald- faced lie. I've never charged anybody £6,000 for counselling. That's ridiculous." (Jon Atack)

This was allegedly part of general Scientology policy which was in the words of the founder states that, L. Ron Hubbard "suppressive" people:

"May be deprived of property or injured by any means by any Scientologist without any discipline of the Scientologist. May be tricked, sued or lied to or destroyed."

Jon Atack was one of those considered fair game and was accused of drug dealing despite having no convictions for it. Friends and relatives were apparently also considered fair game, Eugene Ingram, an employee of a U.S. legal firm that works for Scientology investigated a so called theft which the British Police were not prepared to investigate. Jon Atack’s mother aged 77 received a stressful visit over this on the day she had fetched her husband from hospital.^[2]

See also

• Fair Game
• Paulette Cooper
• Cult Awareness Network

Notes

External links

• www.jonatack.com - Official website
• Scientology: by Jon Atack
• Research by Jon Atack on Scientology, Dianetics and L. Ron Hubbard
• The Jon Atack Server
• Atack on OT III
• Scientology Book an Open Issue, Polly Sprenger, Wired News, May 5, 1999.
• TV Scientology debate in which Jon Atack makes an appearance RTÉ Late Late Show, 1995