RECAP: Church of Scientology Protests Coverage - When is Enough Enough?

Published March 16, 2024

Photo of protester Tao Hyun and former Scientologist Lara Anderson on L. Ron Hubbard Way imitating one of the ubiquitous Church of Scientology van’s in Hollywood (GoPro Hero 11 Black).

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By Zachary Ellison, Independent Journalist

For the last couple months I’ve been following these protests closely which light up YouTube and the potentially banned TikTok nightly to tens of thousands of viewers. The Church of Scientology has blamed protestors for the near nightly deployment of Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles Fire Department resources both in response to actual incidents and in response to fake calls. Recently using the California Public Records Act, I’ve obtained 3 recordings of an unknown individual making these requests for service on the most preposterous, unlawful grounds.

Controversial in nature, condemned by the LAPD and critics as harassment against the Church and patrons of the La Poubelle Bistro & Bar, owned by a prominent Scientologist, in the Hollywood area have been a lightning rod in our culture wars. Strangely enough they both bring people together and divide them, even as confrontations, and many shared good times unfold. One thing I didn’t quite realize going into this story is just how large and vocal the ex-Scientologist community is and how marginalized they truly feel in being persecuted. This has largely been ignored by the mainstream media coverage whether in Rolling Stone or the Los Angeles Times, but it forms the underpinnings of what some might describe as mockery, and others as entertainment that ballooned these protests into the social media limelight.

Even as the LAPD has sought to arrest their way out of an otherwise generally lawful protest, those opposed to the Church of Scientology, condemned as “Squirrels” by founder L. Ron Hubbard and again repeated dutifully today in leaked communications discussing response to the protest, it has continued. People condemn it simply as being motivated by money, clickbait, but there’s more to it than that, and the questions that have been raised about how the Church operates both in courts and in public debate is an essential and timely one to be had. The questions about the Church’s relationship with LAPD are vexing, and particularly the idea that Chief Michel Moore might have had something to do with the response, which has seen charges made of conspiracy, unlawful use of tear gas, battery and criminal threats levied.

Some of those remain, and it’s important for the 1st Amendment that journalism does occur that is independent about this story because the mistrust of the mainstream media within the ex-Scientologist community is substantial. My attempts to engage the appropriate officials in the Mayor’s Office and the City Attorney’s office have gone un-responded to, but I look forward to doing further investigation and anticipate obtaining records relating to Chief Moore’s communications about the controversial Church. Moore may be gone, even “No More Moore” literally as Black Lives Matter - Los Angeles headlined, but the questions about his relationship with the Church as well as conduct alleged regarding Rick Caruso and lack of concern for the brutality of LAPD remain. Now Moore wasn’t all bad per say, for example, he required LAPD to remove Blue Lives Matter flags from stations and was otherwise well-regarded, but someone has to look into this legacy more closely. Do the dots really connect?

So I hope that Los Angeles will pay more attention to these issues, and that the protest will remain peaceful. I think there is a rightful public debate about these issues, and ever since coming forward as a whistleblower, and a journalist, I’ve so often had my very right to public participation questioned. Update, the LA Fed Tapes case to identify leaker “Honest-Finding-1581” believed to be against Santos Leon now remains with the District Attorney’s Office of George Gascón. We’ll see, but I stand-by my analysis of the money and power relationships exposed in the Tapes recording about USC’s response to both George Tyndall and Mark Ridley-Thomas investigations. I’m more worried than ever before about how USC responds to such issues on campus. About the investigation into MRT, LA City Councilmember Kevin de León crows on the Fed Tapes after speaking with Rick Caruso’s closest associate and USC’s Senior Vice President of University Relations Sam Garrison: “That what they’re doing has legs, just keep it going, just keep it going, just keep it going.”

What exactly that means remains in debate, but I do hope you’ll find it worthy of discussion even as so much has centered around the racism heard on those recordings. Who exactly it is calling on the Scientology 911 calls remains in dispute, but in releasing them LAFD redacted the name for privacy reasons even as they seemingly are ignoring that the recordings are themselves misconduct, a deliberate waste of public resources to intimidate public protests against the Church of Scientology. It’s not a large group of people doing this by LA standards, but they are cohesive, determined and are gaining resilience as the systems of power try to weaken and destroy their ability to have traction in the larger media space.

The allegations of abuse inside the Church of Scientology require investigation and accountability just as this abuse of our first responders does, and I hope amid ongoing litigation that the truth will come out, because I don’t like what I hear. Child trafficking? Working all week long like a slave for almost no pay? Scientology may work for some people, MAGA may work for others, but as we head into this most bizarre of years 2024, I hope that America will break free of cults of personality whether it’s David Miscavige or Donald Trump. I think this used to be a normal country? Now it’s just a wasteland, and as I’ve driven back through the streets of Los Angeles late at night you can’t help but wonder what’s going to happen next like it’s a show at the Circus Circus Hotel & Casino. So I hope you’ll stick with me, and I’d be lying if I said this journalism project didn’t badly need your financial support.

Recently, I’ve been accused of being a character assassin in relation to my coverage of developer Izek Shomof, of being unfair, and of not getting enough of the Scientologists side. The truth is that I couldn’t talk to the Scientologists really if I wanted to, they’re not allowed to, but surely when you publish a book and lie in it, whether it’s Dreams Don’t Die or Dianetics and profit off that lie, there should be some criticism, at least a book review? Investigative journalism isn’t simply there to crank out content on a regular four week schedule, good investigations can take years to get to a clear result, a smoking gun piece of evidence. A big thank you to everyone who has allowed me to share their story, and I hope that you’ll agree that politics, investigations and media require some extra coverage in Los Angeles.

People have a right to know, and even as this week alone I’ve pressed the pause buttons on two stories in order to make sure we’re getting things right, I’m going to continue to monitor, and I’m going to continue to speak out. For every person who tells me I’m not a journalist and biased all I can say is look at the results, whether it’s covering the “troubles in Hollywood” as I told activist William Gude, or exposing USC’s manipulation of the Title IX process, we are making progress in the good fight. Soon I hope to bring you more stories of resilience, redemption, and renown, because as the author Ralph Ellison wrote in Invisible Man: "Who knows but that, on the lower frequencies, I speak for you?" But is anyone really listening to what’s being said? 

Stories and Recordings:

Link: Part 68: Religion in Hollywood – Scientology and the LAPD vs. Social Media Influencers

Link: Part 71: On the Pavement Against Scientology in Hollywood – Can You Ever Really Leave a Cult?

Link: Part 74: Scientology as a Cult Movement – Rolling with the Squirrel Squad to End a Religion

Link: Part 76: Scientology and LAPD Corruption – The Violent Attack on Confident Chris in Hollywood

Link: Part 77: The Squirrel Squad Closes Down A Scientologist Bar – Activism Versus Corruption

Link: Part 79: The Squirrel Squad Gets Fair Gamed – The Scientologists and LAPD Strike Back Hard

Link: Part 82: False LAPD Narratives and Other Conspiracies – The Squirrel Squad Parties in Hollywood

Link: Part 87: Protesting the Church of Scientology in Hollywood – 911 Controversies and More Street Violence

Link: Scientology 911 Call Recordings

Please support my work with your subscription or for direct aid use Venmo

Zachary Ellison is an Independent Journalist and Whistleblower in the Los Angeles area. Zach was most recently employed by the University of Southern California, Office of the Provost from October 2015 to August 2022 as an Executive Secretary and Administrative Assistant supporting the Vice Provost for Academic Operations and the Vice Provost and Senior Advisor to the Provost among others. Zach holds a Master’s in Public Administration and a Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Policy and Planning from the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy. While a student at USC, he worked for the USC Good Neighbors Campaign including on their newsletter distributed university-wide. Zach completed his B.A. in History at Reed College, in Portland, Oregon and was a writer, editor, and photographer for the Pasadena High School Chronicle. He was Barack Obama’s one-millionth online campaign contributor in 2008. Zach is a former AmeriCorps intern for Hawaii State Parks and worked for the City of Manhattan Beach Parks and Recreation. He is a trained civil process server, and enjoys weekends in the great outdoors.