Cult Awareness and Information Centre
Encyclopedia
The Cult Awareness and Information Centre is an organization based in Brisbane
, Australia
that provides resources and information on groups they identify as cult
s and other controversial groups. The organization was founded by Jan Groenveld
, an exit counselor with a background in psychology
.
, based in Brisbane
, Australia
. The Cult Awareness and Information Centre website was launched in 1991.
Due to Groenveld's reputation, the organization soon became listed as a resource in secondary publications on the subject matter. Cult Awareness and Information Centre was listed along with Groenveld, as a resource in Marlene Winell's book, Leaving the Fold. In September 1993, the Cult Awareness and Information Centre organized a conference on "cult-busting" at Queensland University.
, in 2003, and Fish's Not Taught!, in 2006. In June 2006, Australia's The Courier Mail cited the Cult Awareness and Information Centre on the cult "The Family" that was at the time under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation
. The Cult Awareness and Information Centre was also cited as a resource in the Canadian Security Intelligence Service
report: "Doomsday Religious Movements".
sent the Cult Awareness and Information Centre a Cease and desist
letter, requesting that it stop hosting a Pièces à Conviction
documentary
on the company's actions in France, entitled: Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus
. Similar letters had been sent to Google Video
, Youtube
, and Internet Archive
, and the story was picked up worldwide by the Reuters
newsservice. According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation
, the Cult Awareness and Information Centre had continued to host the documentary while Landmark Education's copyright campaign was ongoing in the United States. Landmark Education later dropped its Copyright subpoenas against Google and an anonymous poster of the video. Landmark had previously sought subpoenas in Federal court in California, under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
. In 2007, the Cult Awareness and Information Centre allowed Landmark Education to post a "Reply to Posting of France TV3 Program", on their Web site, in a subsection of their page on the documentary, which included links to Landmark Education's Web site.
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
that provides resources and information on groups they identify as cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s and other controversial groups. The organization was founded by Jan Groenveld
Jan Groenveld
Jan Groenveld was a former member of the LDS Church and the Jehovah's Witnesses. She spent a total of fifteen years in these organizations before leaving them in 1975...
, an exit counselor with a background in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
.
History
The Cult Awareness and Information Centre was founded in 1990, by Jan GroenveldJan Groenveld
Jan Groenveld was a former member of the LDS Church and the Jehovah's Witnesses. She spent a total of fifteen years in these organizations before leaving them in 1975...
, based in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Cult Awareness and Information Centre website was launched in 1991.
Due to Groenveld's reputation, the organization soon became listed as a resource in secondary publications on the subject matter. Cult Awareness and Information Centre was listed along with Groenveld, as a resource in Marlene Winell's book, Leaving the Fold. In September 1993, the Cult Awareness and Information Centre organized a conference on "cult-busting" at Queensland University.
Cited by contemporary works
The Cult Awareness and Information Centre continues to be listed as a resource by authors of associated works, including Carter's Amway Motivational Organizations in 1999, Evert, Bundschuh and Finley in 2001, Kaplan's Millennial Violence, in 2002, Snow's Deadly Cults: The Crimes of True BelieversDeadly Cults
Deadly Cults: The Crimes of True Believers is a book on the subject of cults by Robert L. Snow. It was published November 30, 2003 by Praeger Publishers in hardcover format...
, in 2003, and Fish's Not Taught!, in 2006. In June 2006, Australia's The Courier Mail cited the Cult Awareness and Information Centre on the cult "The Family" that was at the time under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
. The Cult Awareness and Information Centre was also cited as a resource in the Canadian Security Intelligence Service
Canadian Security Intelligence Service
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service is Canada's national intelligence service. It is responsible for collecting, analyzing, reporting and disseminating intelligence on threats to Canada's national security, and conducting operations, covert and overt, within Canada and abroad.Its...
report: "Doomsday Religious Movements".
Cease and desist from Landmark Education
In November 2006, the American company Landmark EducationLandmark Education
Landmark Education LLC is a personal training and development company which offers educational programs in approximately 115 locations in more than 20 countries worldwide....
sent the Cult Awareness and Information Centre a Cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....
letter, requesting that it stop hosting a Pièces à Conviction
Pièces à Conviction
Pièces à Conviction is a monthly French investigative journalism TV program that airs on France 3. Elise Lucet has hosted the program since 2000.-In Depth News Show:...
documentary
Documentary
A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...
on the company's actions in France, entitled: Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus
Voyage Au Pays Des Nouveaux Gourous
Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous , a controversial television-documentary, presented an investigation of the activities of Landmark Education...
. Similar letters had been sent to Google Video
Google Video
Google Videos is a video search engine, and formerly a free video sharing website, from Google Inc. Before removing user-uploaded content, the service allowed selected videos to be remotely embedded on other websites and provided the necessary HTML code alongside the media, similar to YouTube...
, Youtube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, and Internet Archive
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
, and the story was picked up worldwide by the Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
newsservice. According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is an international non-profit digital rights advocacy and legal organization based in the United States...
, the Cult Awareness and Information Centre had continued to host the documentary while Landmark Education's copyright campaign was ongoing in the United States. Landmark Education later dropped its Copyright subpoenas against Google and an anonymous poster of the video. Landmark had previously sought subpoenas in Federal court in California, under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization . It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures that control access to...
. In 2007, the Cult Awareness and Information Centre allowed Landmark Education to post a "Reply to Posting of France TV3 Program", on their Web site, in a subsection of their page on the documentary, which included links to Landmark Education's Web site.
External links
- CultHelp.info – official website