Title: "The Abbey Oaks News", Oakville, Ontario, 5/19/2000: Story about Gregg Hagglund
Author: Xenubat@primenet.com (Bat Child (Sue M.))
Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 03:55:40 GMT

Thanks to "Xenu-Xemu" (a lurker) for forwarding this article to me! 

Note:  The Abbey Oaks News doesn't have a web page.

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River Oaks resident wages monthly war with Scientologists
By Maria Kiervin

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Two police cruisers parked on Munn's Avenue near Sixth Line on
Saturday, May 13, to investigate a complaint by a homeowner.
Fifteen-year River Oaks resident Gregg Hagglund called about two
picketers in front of his home around 2 p.m.  The two women held
placards reading "Do you know your neighbor spreads hate propaganda?"

Hagglund, married 25 years with two grown children, says the picketers
visit his home on a regular basis and that they are from the Church of
Scientology (CSI).

One of the women with a placard, who has been with the church for 20
years but prefers to remain anonymous, claims Hagglund has posted
pictures of the children of Scientology parishioners on the internet
and that this is a "low blow."  The Church of Scientology office is in
Toronto, and responded to a phone call by having the picketer herself
call back.

The internet site which the woman believes is hate propaganda was
posted by Hagglund in 1997 and was critical of CSI.  The pictures are
head shots of the children of CSI parishioners and a picture of a two
youths, eight to 10 years old sitting at a table with material for
sale.

She admits she is "Not a spokesperson for the church.  It took me an
enormous amount of courage to do what I did Saturday afternoon."  The
woman, who lives in Mississauga with her two children, says, "I've
never picketed in a neighborhood on a suburban street in my life."

For Hagglund, an actor, writer and self proclaimed priest of a New Age
faith called Temple At'L'an, says the picketing by the two CSI
parishioners is just part of a "protracted campaign of harassment by
CSI" because he and several others have been picketing the church once
a month since May of 1997.

He says he shut down the offending web site in June of 1998 because he
could no longer maintain it.  He objects to CSI "getting kids involved
and proselytizing using kids" so he posted the pictures of children of
parishioners helping to sell Scientology wares like books and courses.

Acting detective Scott Mason of the Intelligence unit of the Halton
Regional Police does not believe Hagglund's activities fall within the
Criminal Code's definition of "Hate Propaganda."

"I'd say there is a huge line between hate propaganda and criticizing.
This is a free country.  You can criticize anyone you want."

When Timothy Appleby of "The Globe and Mail" spoke to Detective
Richard Kijewski of the Toronto Police Services  hate crimes unit
about Hagglund in February 1999, Kijewski agreed Hagglund's activities
involve criticism rather than hatred and that "both groups have a
right to demonstrate."

Hagglund wants to warn and educate others that "some of the practices
of Scientology are potentially harmful, even deadly.  "If there is a
sheet of ice and I'm the only one who can see a small hole, am I not
morally responsible to tell people about it and keep someone from
falling in?"

====================

(cc:  elrond1@home.com )

Sue, SP4(:), listed on the Scieno Sitter list 5 times!
--

"It will take a *long* time to find another enemy
with the combination of evil and incompetence
you see in Scientology."--Keith Henson