Is Will Smith a Scientologist?!

I was shocked to first hear that Will Smith had made a very large donation to the Scientology movement. Baffled, I went online and searched for more information on the matter, and I was surprised by what I found.

First, Will Smith spent $900,000 to open a private school for his two children, Jaden and Willow, and about 40 other students. The school is called New Village Academy and is located outside Malibu. The teachings are full of Scientology jargon. They say they are using new study technology developed by L.R. Hubbard, the creator of Scientology, and the textbooks are all based off writings of this man. Some teachers in New Village Academy are Scientologists themselves; however, the principle announced that they are a secular school and staff do not promote their own religion. Although Will and Jada say they are not Scientologists, evidence makes this debatable.
Click to see a video of Will Smith on the Tavis Smiley Show talking about what he generally believes in. He does not mention Scientology, but his beliefs are very Scientology-like.

Another tidbit I picked up was a little disturbing. Big movie stars tend to give the whole crew a "wrap-gift" at a wrap-party when shooting for a film is complete. For example, one time Keanu Reeves gave all his production people motorcycles. That was a very lavish gift, but guess what Will gave the staff of a recent movie! He gave them free personality tests that they could redeem at their local Scientology Center. The personality tests are given without charge at the center anyway, so they weren't really gifts in the first place. Weird!

Will Smith supports Tom Cruise and his beliefs. He often defends Cruise and calls the public ignorant for bashing Cruise when they don't know anything about Scientology. So I did some research on it and, now knowing more, I am more appalled. According to Smith, since I know more and I'm not being ignorant, I can say freely that I still disapprove of Scientology.

There have been numerous accounts from Hubbard's fellow science-fiction authors and researchers, notably Harlan Ellison, Neison Himmel, Sam Merwin, Sam Moskowitz, Theodore Sturgeon, Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, and Lyle Stuart, of Hubbard stating on several occasions that the way to get rich was to start a religion. This is referenced, among other places, in a May 1980 Reader's Digest article, which quotes Hubbard, "If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion." I have read numerous personal accounts of witnesses who heard Hubbard say this to them before creating Scientology.

The Church of Scientology and its many related organizations have amassed considerable real estate holdings worldwide, likely in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Scientology encourages existing members to "sell" Scientology to others by paying a commission to those who recruit new members. Scientology franchises, or missions, must pay the Church of Scientology roughly 10% of their gross income. On that basis, it is likened to a pyramid selling scheme. While introductory courses do not cost much, courses at the higher levels may cost several thousand dollars each.

Before Hubbard became a religious guru, he was a science fiction writer. And isn't it fishy that the story behind Scientology is so Sci-Fi-like, like perhaps it was created in Hubbard's sadistic, greedy mind?

I don't know how anyone can defend Scientology when there is substantial evidence that Scientology does not approve of homosexuals and is racist against African Americans. These are only but a few facts about Scientology. If you would like to know more, I would advise you to read up on it and create your own opinion, whether it be different than mine or not.