Picket Report - San Francisco Org, 83 McAllister Street, AUG 18, 96
Hi Everyone,
Some of you may know that I have been picketing the S.F. mission for some time now. This past Sunday I decided to start picketing the S.F. ORG at 83 McAllister Street instead. I thought some of you might be interested in what happens out there. For those of you who would like to read my previous picket reports they are posted by Marina Chong on her web site. The URL is "http://www.icon.fi/~marina/1stpersn/". I post these reports so that you can see what I do and the kinds of things I run into. This way you can see what I try and what works and what doesn't work.
It's kind of interesting how I ALWAYS get "stage fright" as I approach my destination. However, once I see Scientology staff members notice me and I get a reaction out of them the fear magically fades and I instantly take on this "picketing" persona. If I were to listen to my initial fear, I would probably end up never picketing.
Anyway, this Sunday I arrived just after 12:00 noon. A lot of staff and paying public were out in front on their lunch break. I was carrying my usual fluorescent green sign which reads "in my opinion SCIENTOLOGY IS A SCAM".
One woman was perhaps taken by surprise when I suddenly showed up and she became quite upset. She came rushing over and asked in a very emotional tone of voice, "Have you even read any of Hubbard's books, have you even taken any of his courses? She points to my sign and says, " I am really offended by this." I just calmly looked straight at her and said, "You have every right to experience your reaction towards me. I'm here just peacefully voicing my opinion." I waited for a response from her but she just kind of fizzled out and had nothing more to say. She just turned around and went back to the group that she was with.
Within two minutes several staff members came out and started taking pictures of me. I was a bit surprised since they already know who I am and they already have pictures and videos of me because of the March 9th protest. Anyway, I posed for the first picture because I wanted them to have a clear view of the sign I was carrying. They took another profile shot of me a few minutes later. I didn't really appreciate that one because I don't really like my profile but I guess if that's what their supposed to do then I can deal with that. To me taking these pictures seemed kind of silly since they already know who I am, they know where I work and they know where I live.
I started pacing back and forth out on the front sidewalk. Within a couple of minutes I heard one of the staff members say out loud, "This guy must think he's really somebody special."
OOH, an ego hit! My ego's been bruised. I kind of expect comments like this every once in awhile so I quickly reminded myself that I'm not out there to have my ego stroked. I have a very clear intention for being out there. Within a few minutes I regain my focus and all is well again.
A short while later one of the group members starts telling funny stories because they all started laughing really loud. They appeared to be ignoring me or at least were trying to give me the impression that they were. If they think they can drive me away by doing some kind of an ego trip on me -- they're wrong. THEY are not my target audience so I really don't give a damn if they ignore me or if they think evil things about me. My target audience has always been the people on the street, the people who are interested in my sign and what my experiences of Scientology have been. I've made it a policy of mine to never talk to anyone unless THEY come up to me first. This approach has proven VERY effective for me. This way I don't end up harassing anyone and instead I can spend my time on the people who are really interested in what I have to say.
At the ORG there is a little less foot traffic than at the mission but there is definitely a lot more room. At the ORG a hundred people could picket without disturbing anyone. At the mission I discouraged quite a few from joining me because of the disruption that it might cause to surrounding businesses and the bus stop. A one-person picket is perfect outside the mission. The ORG, on the other hand, is perfect for a large picket. Besides, the police department is virtually across the street. Those guys at the police department know me very well. Those guys are the greatest. We've had many talks over the past few months because I wanted them to know who I was, why I was out there and to make sure that I wasn't inadvertently doing anything illegal.
Some of my experiences outside the ORG were quite a bit different than they were outside the mission. Some things, however, don't change. Fortunately so many people have already heard of Scientology. Just like at the mission drivers would honk their horns and give me the thumbs-up sign or shout out their window their support. I did have one car go by where a young girl inside saw my sign and then shouted out her window, "SHUT UP." Sometimes out on the street things happen so sudden and fast that it's difficult to really know for sure what happened. I figure in this one case it was a family that was involved in Scientology and the little girl in the back seat wanted to express her opinion to me. That's cool. I'm out there to communicate and communication certainly happens out there on the street.
During the three hours I was there quite a few people did stop me to ask why I thought Scientology was a scam and to hear my story. One guy said he saw my fluorescent green sign from across the street and said he just HAD to come over and hear what I had to say. He said my sign really grabbed his attention. It's quite amazing how much impact those couple of bucks I spent on my sign a few months back are still making. Good investment.
As the afternoon progressed I noticed a pattern. I would pace for about 10 minutes and then a small group of 2 or 3 would gather around me. We would talk for a while and then disband. Ten minutes later another group would form. This continued all afternoon. It was great, especially since out there I don't have to worry about blocking foot traffic like I did at the mission. Now I can put all my attention on both what I and the other person has to say.
If you see me out there I often look like I'm having fun (which I am). Don't let that fool you though. After what happened to me and after witnessing what happened to so many others -- I take my message VERY SERIOUSLY. I learned very early on in my picketing that if I stay very friendly (even joking around) -- but sincere -- that my message goes across so much better. If I let myself get really serious or emotional I just end up looking like a fanatic and most people get turned off.
At this posting time if any of you want to peacefully express your views or experiences in Scientology you are certainly welcome to join me. Even if you want to just stop by and say HI, that would be great. E-mail me and I'll let you know when I plan my next picket. BART stops virtually at the ORG's front door so that might make transportation even easier for some of you. You don't really need to worry about any Scientologists retaliating against you. Based on my experiences they won't. Anyway, if they go after anyone it will be ME. You're safe! If you carry a picket sign they might take your picture, but hey, it's just a picture. They've taken mine several times and I'm still here.
Stay tuned. There's more to come. These guys REALLY don't want me out there. They've certainly made that known to me.
Wayne Whitney
