The Family Survival Trust

The Family Survival Trust (FST) is a charity registered in the United Kingdom, established in order to support and offer counselling for members of abusive cults, religions, and similar organizations, and their families members.[1]

The Family Survival Trust
Formation1976
TypeAnti-cult organization
HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
Membership
500 plus
Chairman
Honorable Tom Sackville
Websitethefamilysurvivaltrust.org

It evolved out of the work of FAIR (Family, Action, Information, Rescue/Resource), Britain's main anti-cult group in November 2007.

History

The Family Survival Trust evolved from FAIR (Family, Action, Information, Rescue), Britain's first anti-cult group.[2][3] FAIR was founded in 1976 by MP Paul Rose, as a support group for friends and relatives of "cult" members,[2] with an early focus on the Unification Church, although in the years following this focus expanded to include other new religious movements (NRMs) or what it referred to as "cults".[3] In the late 1970s, it started to publish FAIR News to provide information and reports on new religious movements.

FST is a member of FECRIS.[4]

Family, Action, Information, Rescue

Family, Action, Information, Rescue (FAIR) was founded by MP Paul Rose in 1976 to address enquiries from constituents and complaints from parents about their adult children joining NRMs.[3] Its membership includes many committed Christians; however, FAIR regarded itself and its outlook as non-religious.[4] However, NRM scholar George D. Chryssides pointed out at the time that "[a]lthough FAIR officials [rejected] the term 'anti-cult', FAIR's main strategy seems designed to hamper the progress of NRMs in a variety of ways."[5] It also publicly disapproved of activities like "Moonie bashing".[6] Yet Elisabeth Arweck adds that FAIR's "commitment to raise cult awareness was tempered by repeated warnings against witchhunts".[7]

The organization renamed itself as "Family, Action, Information, Resource" in 1994[8] in order to denote a concern "more with the place of these cults in public life and governments than with the issues of recruitment and brainwashing, although these remain[ed] important."[9]

FAIR was initially perceived as supporting "deprogramming", but then publicly distanced itself from it,[10][11] citing such reasons as high failure rates, damage to families and civil liberty issues. In 1985, FAIR co-chairman Casey McCann said that FAIR neither recommended nor supported coercive deprogramming and disapproved of those practicing it, considering "coercive deprogramming a money-making racket which encouraged preying on the misery of families with cult involvement."[11]

FAIR's applications for government funding were not successful; such funding instead gone to INFORM (Information Network Focus on Religious Movements), set up in 1988 by the sociologist Eileen Barker, with the support of Britain's mainstream churches.[12] Relations between FAIR and INFORM have at times been strained, with FAIR accusing INFORM of being too soft on cults.[13] FAIR chairman Tom Sackville as MP and Home Office minister abolished government funding for the INFORM in 1997 but funds was reinstated in 2000.[14]

In 1987, an ex-FAIR committee member, Cyril Vosper, was convicted in Munich on charges of kidnapping and causing bodily harm to German Scientologist Barbara Schwarz in the course of a deprogramming attempt.[11][15]

Cultists Anonymous
Main article: Cultists Anonymous

In 1985 ex-members of FAIR who believed that the group had become too moderate created a splinter group called Cultists Anonymous.[11] The hardliner Cultists Anonymous group was short-lived and rejoined FAIR in 1991.[16]

Activities

The Family Survival Trust provides a confidential helpline for individuals and families effect by cult involvement and organizes national conferences.[17][18]

See also

References
  1. "OpenCharities".
  2. Arweck, Elisabeth (2006). Researching New Religious Movements: Responses and Redefinitions. Routledge. pp. 111–112.
  3. George D. Chryssides, "Britain's anti-cult movement," in New Religious Movements: Challenges and Response, eds. Bryan R. Wilson and Jamie Cresswell, 257–73. London: Routledge, 1999. ISBN 0-415-20050-4. p. 260
  4. Elisabeth Arweck, "Anti-Cult Movement: FAIR, Cult Information Centre (CIC)," in Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements, ed. Peter B. Clarke, 35–8. London and New York: Routledge, 2006.
  5. Chryssides, George D. "Britain's Anti-cult Movement". In New religious movements: challenge and response, edited by. Brian R. Wilson and Jamie Cresswell. Routledge, 1999. pp. 260–261
  6. Arweck, Elisabeth (2006). Researching New Religious Movements: Responses and Redefinitions. Routledge. p. 119.
  7. Arweck, Elisabeth (2006). Researching New Religious Movements: Responses and Redefinitions. Routledge. pp. 124–125.
  8. Chryssides, "Britain's anti-cult movement," 263.
  9. Clarke, Peter Bernard. New religions in global perspective: a study of religious change in the modern world. Routledge, 2006. Page 52
  10. Woodhead, Linda, Kawanam & Fletcher. Religions in Modern World: Traditions and Transformations. Routledge, 2004. Pg. 322
  11. Arweck, Elisabeth (2006). Researching New Religious Movements: Responses and Redefinitions. Routledge. pp. 130–131.
  12. Arweck, Elisabeth (2006). Researching New Religious Movements: Responses and Redefinitions. Routledge. pp. 147–148, 188.
  13. Arweck, Elisabeth (2006). Researching New Religious Movements: Responses and Redefinitions. Routledge. pp. 147–148.
  14. Telegraph staff (2000-07-31), "Cult advisers in clash over clampdown", The Daily Telegraph, retrieved 19 December 2009
  15. Victor, Peter (1994-10-09). "Anti-cult groups riven by schism and bitter feuds: Many despise rivals more than sects they monitor". Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-06-18. Retrieved 20 December 2009.
  16. Chryssides, George D. "Britain's Anti-cult Movement". In New religious movements: challenge and response, edited by. Brian R. Wilson and Jamie Cresswell. Routledge, 1999. pg. 266
  17. "fair-cult-concern.co.uk". www.fair-cult-concern.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  18. "Operation Clambake present: Alt.Religion.Scientology Week In Review". www.xenu.net. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
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