Two Million Children

Scientology makes extravagant claims about the number of individuals benefiting from its Study Technology [offsite] and educational programs. Teaching South African children is one such claim. In its booklet Fact vs. Fiction [outlink], the Church writes that 1.5 million children were taught to "read and learn"; a Church spokesperson put the number at 2.5 million; Scientology's PR book, What is Scientology? says 2 million. There is no evidence for any of these numbers, yet the Church perpetuates this Big Lie.

The Church is a vital force in education. Scientologists have taught some 1.5 million children in South Africa how to read and learn, based on the educational technology developed by L. Ron Hubbard.

-Fact vs. Fiction [outlink] (a reply to Time Magazine's article, The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power [outlink]).

Education Alive, for instance, the Applied Scholastics affiliate which delivers L. Ron Hubbard's study technology in South Africa and other parts of the continent, was established in 1975 and since then has trained more than 2 million students.

-Church of Scientology. What is Scientology? 1993.

A photograph of a classroom also appears in this edition (1993) of What Is Scientology?. The caption states "In South Africa, L. Ron Hubbard's study technology has been taught to 2 million underprivileged children."

Education Alive, the Applied Scholastics affiliate which utilizes L. Ron Hubbard's study technology in educational programs in South Africa and other parts of the African continent, was established in 1975, and since then more than two million students have been introduced to study tech through seminars and workshops.

-Church of Scientology. What is Scientology? 1998.

As in the previous edition, a photograph appears in this chapter: a group of (presumably) African children standing outside, some of whom are holding up what appears to be Hubbard's Learning How to Learn. The caption states "Since 1975, Education Alive has introduced more than 2 million African students such as these from Zimbabwe to L. Ron Hubbard's study technology." Notice how the Big Lie has been modified —"introduced" rather than "taught" and another country is mentioned—possibly to blunt the outrageousness of the claim.

Sometimes Scientologists spread the Church's propaganda by posting articles to the Usenet newsgroup alt.religion.scientology. The following is an example; it is lifted directly from What is Scientology?, quoted above. "Stan Hill" acts as official representative of the Church of Scientology, otherwise he would not be allowed to post copyrighted material.

From:
 stanhill@dxnet.com (stan hill)
Subject:
 APS: Teacher Training Programs
Date:
 2 Feb 1998 16:07:01 GMT
Message-ID:
 <6b4qv5$5ue$5@news3.microserve.net [offsite]>
Newsgroups:
 alt.religion.scientology

Note: Emphasis added.

Note: The screen-name "Stan Hill" is probably a play on the words "St. Hill", the Church's headquarters in England.

… Teachers throughout the world are today giving new meaning to what they do. Education Alive, for instance, the Applied Scholastics affiliate which delivers L. Ron Hubbard's study technology in South Africa and other parts of the continent, was established in 1975 and since then has trained more than 2 million students. Greatly helping to improve the deplorable educational standards for Blacks in that troubled land, Education Alive has also trained literally tens of thousands of teachers since its inception. In one teachers' college, for instance, the dropout rate for teacher trainees fell dramatically to only 2 percent after Education Alive services.

In South Africa, L. Ron Hubbard's study technology has been taught to 2 million underprivileged children.

In Church scripture PAB 119 of 1 Sep 1957, Hubbard states: "The South African native is probably the one impossible person to train in the entire world — he is probably impossible by any human standard."

When Mr. Hubbard visited South Africa in the early 1960s, he predicted a series of massive social upheavals and a severe rift between Black and White communities there. To avert disaster, he advised measures and provided the technology that would enable the country's large Black population to become literate.

… For more information go to the following URLs:

http://www.scientology.org [offsite]
http://www.lronhubbard.org [offsite]
http://www.dianetics.org [offsite]

(c) 1993,1998 Church of Scientology International.
All Rights Reserved.