Scientology Leaders Allegedly Tortured Whistleblower

This is one of those things you read and think “What the fuck? This can’t be true.” Village Voice’s editor-in-chief Tony Ortega reported Wednesday on the alleged ritualistic humiliation and assault of alleged homosexuals in the Scientology community, specifically of former Church of Scientology executive Debbie Cook. Cook recently wrote an email denouncing the fund-raising practices of the church’s current leadership, says the International Business Times.

But Ortega’s story is much more disturbing. Homophobia is a well-known aspect of Scientology, Ortega writes, and founder L. Ron Hubbard called it a “perversion” in “Dianetics,” the book on which the church is founded. Ortega quotes the blog of Marty Rathbun, a former Scientology executive, about what happened to Cook when she tried to intervene on behalf of two members who had been beaten by other “prisoners” in a desert location known as “The Hole” in order to get them to confess to a homosexual relationship. The other prisoners decided “Debbie must be a lesbo.”

Rathburn writes, “For the next twelve hours Debbie was made to stand in a large garbage can and face one hundred people screaming at her demanding a confession as to her ‘homosexual tendancies’. While this was going on water was poured over her head. Signs were put around Debbie’s neck, one marked in magic marker ‘LESBO’ while this torture proceeded. Debbie was repeatedly slapped across the face by other women in the room during the interrogation. Debbie never did break.”

But now the news has. Stay tuned. We will.