Conference: Understanding Cults and New Religious Movements -- Perspectives
of Researchers, Professionals, Former Members, and Families
Listed below are first the
presenters and their affiliations and then the presenters with one-paragraph
biographical sketches, when available.
Presenters with Affiliations
Carmen
Almendros,
Departamento de Psicología Biológica y de la Salud, Facultad de Psicología,
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Dr. Ferran Alonso, Caporal of Mossos d'Esquadra,
Barcelona, Spain
Nancy Ammerman, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology of
Religion, Boston University
David
Anderson, Author and
Webmaster, RightCyberUp.org, New York, NY
Dick
Anthony, Ph.D., Richmond, CA
Jose Barba, Ph.D.,
Researcher and Professor of Humanities, Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de
Mexico, Mexico City
Livia Bardin, M.S.W.,
Clinical Social Worker in private practice, Washington, D.C.
Eileen Barker, Ph.D. Professor of Sociology with Special Reference to the Study of
Religion, London School of Economics; Chairman of
the Board of Governors and Founder, INFORM, London, England
James A.
Beverley, Ph.D.,
Professor of Theology and Ethics, Tyndale Seminary, Toronto, Canada
Ron
Burks, Ph.D.,
Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center
José Antonio
Carrobles, Ph.D., Professor of
Personality, Assessment and Treatment and Director of the Biological and
Health Psychology Department, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Dianne Casoni, Ph.D.,
Professor, School of Criminology, University of
Montreal
David Clark,
Thought Reform Consultant; AFF Video
Education Committee Chair, Philadelphia, PA
Pere Cubero, M.D., Psychiatrist,
Hospital 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain
Anuttama Dasa,
National Director of Communications, ISKCON Communications
Zixian
Deng, Department
of Political Science, University of North Texas
Krishnakant Desai,
M.A., ISKCON Revival Movement,
Bangalore, India
Carol Diament,
Philadelphia, PA
Dianne DiNicola,
Executive Director, Opus Dei Awareness Network
Tammy DiNicola,
former numerary member of Opus Dei
Steve K. Dubrow
Eichel, Ph.D., ABPP, Psychologist
and Co-director of RETIRN, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philip Elberg, Esq., Partner in the New Jersey law firm, Medvin &
Elberg
Andrea Moore Emmett, Writer and journalist/researcher,
Salt Lake City, Utah
Steven
Gelberg, M.T.S., writer, fine-art photographer, former Director of
Interreligious Affairs for ISKCON
Peter Georgiades,
Esq. Graystone Legal Associates,
P.C., Pittsburgh, PA
Carol Giambalvo,
Director of Recovery Programs,
AFF; Thought Reform Consultant, Flagler Beach, FL
Lorna Goldberg,
M.S.W., L.C.S.W., Director, Child
& Adolescent Program, New Jersey Institute for Training in Psychoanalysis
William Goldberg,
M.S.W., L.C.S.W., Director,
Community Support Center, Rockland County (NY) Department of Mental Health
Steven Hassan, M.Ed.,
L.M.H.C., Cult Counselor;
Director, Freedom of Mind Resource Center, Inc., Somerville, MA
Rosanne Henry, M.A.,
L.P.C., Psychotherapist, Littleton, Colorado
Josep Jansà,
M.D., Medical Coordinator, Assessment and Information on Cults,
Barcelona, Spain
Joseph Kelly,
Thought Reform Consultant, Philadelphia,
PA
Stephen Kent, Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology, University
of Alberta
Dennis King,
Writer and expert on extremist groups, New York, NY
Mike Kropveld,
Executive Director, Info-Cult,
Montreal, Canada
Michael Langone,
Ph.D., Executive Director, AFF;
Editor, Cultic Studies Review
Paul Lennon, M.A., Director, Regain Network.
Ronald Loomis,
Cult Educational Consultant, New London, Connecticut
Arnold
Markowitz, C.S.W.,
Director, Cult Hotline & Clinic, Jewish Board of Family & Children’s
Services, New York City
Rod Marshall, Ph.D.,
Dean of Faculty of Applied Social Sciences and Humanities, Buckinghamshire
Chilterns University College, Wycombe, and FAIR, England
Paul Martin, Ph.D.,
Director, Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center,
Albany, Ohio
Marina Ortiz is editor of
www.ex-iwp.org,
a website which chronicles the origins and recent activities of the
International Workers Party.
Adriana Pacheco, Doctoral Student, Department of
Criminology, University of Montreal.
Rev. Robert Pardon,
Director, New England Institute of Religious Research and Meadowhaven
Transitional Home
Marie-Andree Pelland,
School of Criminology, University of Montreal
Miguel
Perlado, Psychologist
and Psychotherapist, Assessment and Information on Cults, Barcelona, Spain
E. Burke
Rochford, Ph.D.,
Professor of Sociology, Middlebury College, VT
Herbert Rosedale,
Esq., President, AFF; Senior
Counselor, Gilchrist & Jenkins Parker Chapin, New York City
Rabbi A. James Rudin,
DD.,
Senior Interreligious Adviser, The
American Jewish Committee; Visiting Professor, Saint Leo University, Florida
Patrick Ryan,
Thought Reform Consultant, Philadelphia,
PA
Alan Scheflin, J.D.,
L.L.M., Professor of Law, Santa
Clara University Law School, Santa Clara, California
Daniel Shaw, C.S.W., Psychoanalyst in private practice,
New York, NY
Shen Zhenyu,
Researcher, China Research Institution for Science and Technology
Amy Siskind, Ph.D., Adjunct Assistant Professor of Sociology,
Brooklyn College
Alexandra Stein, M.L.S., Department of
Sociology, University of Minnesota
Juan Jose Vaca, MS.Ed., M.Th, M.Ph., Adjunct
Professor of Psychology and Sociology, Mercy College
Erika Van Meir,
L.M.F.T., Psychotherapist in
private practice, Atlanta, GA
Wang Wenzhong, Ph.D.,
Associate Professor, Institute of
Psychology, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing
“Frank” Tian Xie, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of
Marketing, Bennett S. LeBow College of Business, Drexel University
Presenters' Biographical
Sketches
Carmen Almendros is a doctoral student in the
Clinical and Health Psychology Program at the Universidad Autónoma de
Madrid. She has received a public research grant and teaches a postgraduate
course in clinical psychology at the same university.
Dr. Ferran Alonso is responsible for the
totalistic groups unit of the Catalan police, Caporal of Mossos d'Esquadra.
He has a doctorate in social psychology.
Nancy Ammerman, Ph.D. is Professor of Sociology
of Religion at Boston University. She is the President-elect of the Society
for the Scientific Study of Religion and has written extensively on American
congregational life. Her earlier research on fundamentalist movements
contributed to the “Fundamentalism Project” of the American Academy of Arts
and Sciences and was published in Bible Believers: Fundamentalists in the
Modern World. In 1993, she served on the review panel convened by the
Departments of Justice and Treasury following the Branch Davidian disaster.
David Anderson is the webmaster and author of
RightCyberUp.org, a recovery website for former and current members of the
International Churches of Christ (ICC). He also serves on the Board of
Directors of Reveal (http://reveal.org),
a San Francisco-based non-profit organization providing assistance and
information to former ICC members. He holds a Psychology degree from the
University of Minnesota, and works in New York for a digital media agency.
Dick Anthony, Ph.D.,
a
research and forensic psychologist, received his Ph.D. from the Graduate
Theological Union in Berkeley, California. He has served as an expert in
many legal cases involving allegations of coercive organizational influence.
While at the University of North Carolina Medical School, and later at the
Center for the Study of New Religions at the Graduate Theological Union, his
research on NRMs was funded by government agencies and philanthropic
foundations. He has published many professional articles and co-edited
several books on this topic.
Jose Barba, Ph.D., Researcher and Professor of
Humanities, Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico, Mexico City.
Livia Bardin, M.S.W., Therapist, Clinical Social
Worker. Ms. Bardin specializes in cult-related cases. A member of the Family
Therapy Practice Academy of the Clinical Social Work Federation, she chairs
AFF's Family Workshop Advisory Board and has presented AFF-sponsored
workshops for family and friends of cult members. Ms. Bardin has provided
trainings on cult-related issues for mental health professionals in the
Washington area and is the author of Coping with Cult Involvement, a
handbook for families and friends of cult members.
(liviabardin@aol.com)
Eileen Barker, Ph.D., OBE, FBA is Professor of
Sociology with Special Reference to the Study of Religion at the London
School of Economics and Political Science, University of London. A former
President of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Dr. Barker
has written or edited nine books and written over 200 articles and book
chapters. Her books include New Religious Movements: A Practical
Introduction, and The Making of a Moonie: Brainwashing or Choice?
She is the Founder and Chair of INFORM, a charity supported by the British
Government and Mainline Churches which helps enquirers with information
about new religions that is as objective and up-to-date as possible.
James A. Beverley, Ph.D., Professor of Theology
and Ethics, Tyndale Seminary, Toronto, Canada, is the author of Nelson's
Illustrated Guide to Religions (2004), Islamic Faith in America
(Facts on Files 2002), Understanding Islam (Nelson 2001), and Holy
Laughter & The Toronto Blessing (1995). He is also, Senior Editor,
HarperCollins' Encyclopedia of Religions in Canada (projected 2004).
A long time member of the New Religious Movements section of the American
Academy of Religion, Dr. Beverley has taught in Africa and India. He was
part of an international symposium with Muslim leaders in Lebanon and Syria
in April 2002 and interviewed the Dalai Lama in August 2000.
Ron Burks, Ph.D. holds an M. Div. and an M. A.
in counseling from Asbury Theological Seminary and a Ph. D. in Counselor
Education from Ohio University. His dissertation is entitled, “Cognitive
Impairment in Thought Reform Environments.” He is licensed in Ohio as a
Professional Clinical Counselor and has worked at Wellspring Retreat and
Resource Center in Albany, OH, since 1993, researching the emotional
aftereffects of cults and counseling ex-cultists with the psychological and
spiritual issues of recovery. Dr. Burks was involved in the Fort
Lauderdale/Shepherding movement for 17 years. After exiting the group, he
and his wife, Vicki, shared their experiences in Damaged Disciples:
Casualties of Authoritarian Churches and the Shepherding Movement,
published by Zondervan. Their book has been helpful for many recovering
from a variety of authoritarian Bible-based groups.
José Antonio Carrobles, Ph.D., is Full Professor
of Personality, Assessment and Treatment and Director of the Biological and
Health Psychology Department of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. His work
focuses in the areas of Psychopathology and Clinical and Health Psychology.
He is President of the European Association for Behavioural & Cognitive
Therapies (EABCT). He has directed numerous Doctoral Theses and is author of
an important number and variety of articles and books in his areas of
specialization. He has organized and participated in numerous national and
international psychology congresses, among which stands out his
participation as President of the Scientific Committee at the "23rd
International Congress of Applied Psychology" held in Madrid in 1994. He is
member of the Editorial Boards of several national and international
journals.
Dianne Casoni, Ph.D., Professor, School
of Criminology, University of Montreal. Psychologist. Psychoanalyst, member
of the Canadian Psychoanalytical Society and the International
Psychoanalytic Association. Dr. Casoni is the author of over 50 articles and
book chapters on psychology and the law, sexual abuse of children, treatment
of victims, wife assault, and the psychodynamic understanding of cults. She
has just published a book on the psychoanalytical understanding of the
criminal mind and edited a book on terrorism, both in French, co-authored
and co-edited with Louis Brunet.
(dianne.casoni@umontreal.ca)
David Clark, Thought Reform Consultant,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Mr. Clark has been active in this field for
more than 20 years and is the chair of AFF’s Video Education Committee. Mr.
Clark is on the Board of the Leo J. Ryan Education Foundation and reFOCUS.
He was a contributing author for the exit counseling chapter in the W.W.
Norton book, Recovery from Cults. In 1985 he received the Hall of
Fame Award from the "original" Cult Awareness Network. He was a founding
member of the "original" Focus and reFOCUS, a national support network for
former cult members. He has been a national and international conference
speaker on the topic of cults and has been interviewed by newspapers, radio,
and TV stations on the topic of mind control and cults for over two
decades.(cultspecs2@comcast.net)
Pedro Cubero, M.D.
has worked as a clinical general psychiatrist at the Hospital 12 de Octubre
(Madrid) since 1989. He has also worked for several years as an exit
counsellor and been the head of A.I.S. in Madrid (AIS, the main Spanish
association in the field, is based in Barcelona). He has written several
articles in medical publications. His main interest has been the psychiatric
characterization of the behaviors induced by cultic groups, other than
dissociative phenomena.
Anuttama Dasa is the Director of Communications
for the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), a
Vaishnava, or monotheistic, faith within Hindu culture. He was appointed to
ISKCON's Governing Body Commission in 1999, and also serves as an editor of
the ISKCON Communications Journal. Anuttama is a board member of the
Washington, D.C. region of the National Conference for Community and Justice
(NCCJ), vice president of the Religion Communicators Council (RCC), and
founding member of Children of Krishna, a networking and support
organization for second-generation Krishna devotees.
He also
serves as a board member of the Society for Hindu-Christian Studies of the
American Academy of Religion. He has participated in many AFF
conferences, including the panel presentation, "Can Cultic Groups Change."
Zixian Deng is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political
Science, University of North Texas. He specializes in civil societies,
human rights development, and the state, and has training in religion and
philosophy. His publications include "Measuring Tolerance" (co-author,
forthcoming Social Science Quarterly). He began publishing his
research on Falungong in early 1999 (see www.wys.org/pages/falun.html) and
has since written extensively on its development and has participated in
various debates on its theological foundation.
(dengzixian@hotmail.com)
Krishnakant Desai, M.A. is a British writer
whose paper 'The Final Order'(1996), currently translated into nine
languages, led to the founding of the ISKCON Revival Movement (IRM). The IRM
is a worldwide group of ISKCON temples, communities and members inside and
outside the official ISKCON establishment that seeks to rid the movement of
corruption and restore its purity in line with the vision of its founder. He
has authored over 100 papers on the subject, and currently travels the world
working for the reform of ISKCON and serves as an Executive advisor to the
IRM. He holds bachelors and masters degrees from Cambridge University and
worked formerly as a Management Consultant for leading US and UK companies.
Carol Diament. Once the victim of a
psychotherapy cult, Carol Diament speaks and writes on the subject. Before
her group involvement, she was a realtor, a horse business owner, and a
full-time mother. She has returned to college to pursue studies in
journalism and is currently working on a memoir. (cdwins1@aol.com)
Diane
DiNicola
is
Executive Director of the Opus Dei Awareness Network, Inc. (ODAN). She and
her husband Carlo, as well as other concerned individuals, founded ODAN in
1991 after their daughter Tammy joined and subsequently left Opus Dei. Over
the years Mrs. DiNicola has communicated with thousands of individuals about
Opus Dei's questionable practices. She has volunteered extensively in the
field of education, sitting on search committees in her community for
administrative positions, including superintendent of schools. Mrs.
DiNicola's other volunteer activities include leadership of a Girl Scout
troop, President of a Parent Teacher Organization and activities at her
church. Mrs. DiNicola is a communicant of St. Mary the Morning Star Roman
Catholic Church in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where she is actively involved
as a Eucharistic minister, church bulletin advertising coordinator and
volunteer for church activities. Mrs. DiNicola is employed as office manager
for her husband's tax preparation business. She is the mother of two
daughters, and has six grandchildren.
(http://www.odan.org; odan@odan.org)
Tammy DiNicola
is a former Opus Dei member and a current Board Member of the Opus Dei
Awareness Network, Inc. (ODAN). Since leaving Opus Dei in 1990, she has
written extensively about manipulative and deceptive techniques employed by
Opus Dei to recruit and maintain members. A graduate of Boston College with
a degree in accountancy, Ms. DiNicola works as a tax preparer. She is a
communicant of St. Charles Roman Catholic Church in Pittsfield,
Massachusetts, where she is involved with the music ministry. She resides in
Pittsfield with her husband and three sons.
(http://www.odan.org; odan@odan.org)
Steve K. Dubrow Eichel, Ph.D., ABPP, is a
licensed and Board Certified Counseling Psychologist. Dr. Dubrow-Eichel is
a Co-Founder of RETIRN (Philadelphia, PA) and was a 1990 recipient of the
John G. Clark Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Cultic Studies. He is
a former-president of the Greater Philadelphia Society of Clinical
Hypnosis. (drsteve@snip.net)
Philip Elberg, Esq. is a partner in the Newark,
New Jersey law firm of Medvin and Elberg. He represented Rebecca Ehrlich in
a lawsuit against Kids of North Jersey, a treatment center for adolescents
with "behavior disorders." The case was initiated as a medical malpractice
action but evolved into a claim that the treatment center operated as a
destructive cult for the benefit of its founder, Miller Newton. The case was
settled on the eve of trial for $4,500,000. A reported New Jersey Court
decision describes Mr. Elberg's work on the case as "heroic." He currently
represents another patient of the same facility who was treated at Kids for
thirteen years and has become committed to obtaining public awareness of the
potentially dangerous practices of some adolescent treatment facilities.
Andrea Moore Emmett is a journalist and
researcher. She was the researcher for the two hour A&E documentary, Inside
Polygamy, and has provided research for ABC's 20/20. Moore Emmett is the
recipient of five Headliners Society of Professional Journalists Excellence
in Journalism Awards and a Utah Professional Chapter of Women in
Communications Leading Changes Award. Moore Emmett has spoken across the
country concerning abuses against women and children within polygamy and has
just finished a book, to be published soon, detailing the lives of women who
have left the religious groups who practice this lifestyle.
Steven Gelberg,
while a member from 1970-1987, served as the Krishna Movement's principal
liaison to the international academic community (e.g., edited Hare
Krishna, Hare Krishna: Five Distinguished Scholars on the
Krishna Movement in the West,
Grove Press, 1983), and its Director for Interreligious Affairs. He is
author of a number of scholarly articles on ISKCON (and related historical,
social-scientific, and cultic issues) published in various academic books
and journals. He subsequently earned a Masters degree (comparative
religion) from Harvard Divinity School in 1990. He currently lives with his
wife and cat near San Francisco, where he is an accomplished fine art
photographer, working on a book, Photography and Imagination. His
essay, "On Leaving ISKCON," to be published in revised form in a forthcoming
volume from Columbia University Press, is available online at
http://surrealist.org/betrayalofthespirit/gelberg.html.
Peter Georgiades, Esq. is an attorney practicing
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. Between 1980 and 1995, his
practice consisted primarily of representing the victims of cults and
authoritarian groups, nationwide. Over the years he has successfully
recovered millions of dollars from a wide array of cults and their leaders.
His last major cult case was Robert A. Miller, et al. v. Tony and Susan
Alamo Foundation, a federal case which resulted in a $2.8 Million
judgment, and an IRS investigation that resulted in the conviction of Tony
Alamo for tax fraud and the imposition of a six year prison term.
Carol Giambalvo is an ex-cult member who has
been a Thought Reform Consultant since 1984 and a cofounder of reFOCUS, a
national support network for former cult members. She is on AFF’s Board of
Directors, Director of AFF’s Recovery Programs, and is responsible for its
Project Outreach. Author of Exit Counseling: A Family Intervention,
co-editor of The Boston Movement: Critical Perspectives on the
International Churches of Christ, and co-author of “Ethical Standards
for Thought Reform Consultants,” Ms. Giambalvo has written and lectured
extensively on cult-related topics. (affcarol@worldnet.att.net)
Lorna Goldberg, M.S.W., L. C. S. W., a therapist
in private practice, has co-led a support group for ex-cult members with her
husband, William, for over 25 years. She is on the faculty of the New
Jersey Institute for Training in Psychoanalysis, where she also is the
Director of the Child and Adolescent Program. Mrs. Goldberg has written
extensively for social work and AFF publications. (blgoldberg@aol.com)
William Goldberg, M.S.W., L.C.S.W., a therapist
in private practice, has co-led a support group for ex-cult members with his
wife, Lorna, for over 25 years. He is Director of the Community Support
Center, The Young Adult Center and The Partial Hospitalization Program of
the Rockland County (NY) Department of Mental Health.
Steven Hassan, M.Ed, LMHC has been involved in
educating the public about mind control and destructive cults for over
twenty-six years. He actively counsels mind control victims and their
families and is a licensed Mental Health Counselor, holding a Master’s
degree in counseling psychology from Cambridge College. He is the author of
Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves
(Freedom of Mind Press, 2000). In 1988, he authored the critically acclaimed
book Combatting Cult Mind Control: The #1 Best-selling Guide to
Protection, Rescue and Recovery from Destructive Cults (Park Street
Press). He is Director of the Freedom of Mind Resource Center at
www.freedomofmind.com. (center@freedomofmind.com)
Rosanne Henry, M.A., L.P.C. is a psychotherapist
practicing in the Denver area. For the last fifteen years she has been
active in the counter cult movement working closely with the original CAN
and AFF. Her private practice specializes in the treatment of cult survivors
and their families.
Josep Maria Jansà, M.D. Medical
Doctor. In 1985 he interned at AFF. He has worked with AIS (Assessment and
Information on Cults (sectas in Spanish) since 1984 working with families,
group members, and former group members. The AIS clinic has dealt with more
than 1000 patients since January 1986. He has participated in research
initiatives and issued various publications on this topic. Dr. Jansà also
works as an epidemiologist for the City Council of Barcelona and is
responsible for international health and health and migrations.
Joseph F. Kelly, a thought reform
consultant since 1988, spent 14 years in two different eastern meditation
groups. He has lectured extensively on cult-related topics, and is a
co-author of “Ethical Standards for Thought Reform Consultants,” published
in AFF’s Cultic Studies Journal. (freecognition@mindspring.com)
Stephen A. Kent, Ph.D., Professor of
Sociology, University of Alberta, teaches undergraduate and graduate courses
on the sociology of religion and the sociology of sectarian groups. He has
published articles in Philosophy East and West, Journal of Religious
History, British Journal of Sociology, Sociological Inquiry,
Sociological Analysis, Canadian Journal of Sociology,
Quaker History, Comparative Social Research, Journal of
Religion and Health, Cultic Studies Journal, Skeptic,
Marbourg Journal of Religion, and Religion. His current research
concentrates on nontraditional and alternative religions.
Dennis King is a writer and expert on extremist
groups. Based in New York City, he is the author of the critically acclaimed
Lyndon LaRouche and the New American Fascism (1989) and the standard
manual for investigative journalists Get the Facts on Anyone," 3rd ed
1999. Mr. King was the first journalist to write about Fred Newman’s
organization in 1977 and has tracked the group ever since.
Michael Kropveld
is the Executive Director and founder of Info-Cult, the largest resource
centre of its kind in Canada on cultic thinking. Since 1980 Mr. Kropveld
has worked with more than 2,000 former members and families. He has
spoken, in Canada and internationally, to hundreds of professional and
community groups on the cult issue. He is also involved in counseling and
consulting, and as an expert witness on cult issues. He has been featured
on hundreds of radio and television programs locally, nationally, and
internationally. In 1992 he was awarded the 125 Commemorative Medal "in
recognition of significant contribution to compatriots, community and to
Canada" by the Government of Canada.
http://www.infocult.org;
http://www.infosecte.org (Kropveld@operamail.com)
Michael D. Langone, Ph.D., a counseling
psychologist, is AFF’s Executive Director. He was the founder editor of
Cultic Studies Journal (CSJ), the editor of CSJ’s successor, Cultic
Studies Review, and editor of Recovery From Cults. He is
co-author of Cults: What Parents Should Know and Satanism
and Occult-Related Violence: What You Should Know. Dr. Langone has
spoken and written widely about cults. In 1995, he received the Leo J. Ryan
Award from the "original" Cult Awareness network and was honored as the
Albert V. Danielsen visiting Scholar at Boston University. (aff@affcultinfoserve.com)
Paul
Lennon, S.T.L., M.A.,
Child and Family Therapist, Board Member, Regain Network (Religious Groups
Awareness International Network -
www.regainnetwork.org).
Mr. Lennon was a Legionary of Christ brother from 1961-69 and an LC priest
from 1969-84. He served as a Diocesan priest from 1985-1989 and received an
M.A. in Counseling from the Catholic University of America in 1989. He was
a Community Development Specialist from 1990-1995 and a home-based therapist
to Hispanic Families from 1995-1998. He was the co-founder of Network
1992.
Ronald N. Loomis has been educating others about
cults for some 25 years at over 100 colleges and universities throughout the
US and Canada. He is a Past President of the original Cult Awareness
Network (CAN) and was a founding member of the Steering Committee of the
International Cult Education Program (ICEP) and was Chair of the Interim
Planning Committee (IPC), which created the Leo J. Ryan Education Foundation
(LJREF) and the Cult Information and Resource Center (CIRC), (CULTINFO). In
1999, he served as a principle expert witness for the Legislative Task Force
on Cults in Maryland. He has been cited in such publications as The New
York Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Congressional Quarterly,
The Christian Science Monitor, The Toronto Sun and Newsweek Magazine.
He has been interviewed by the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC), The
Today Show at the request of NBC News, The Discovery Channel, ABC
Productions, and Current Affair. He is featured in the educational
video, Cults, Saying No Under Pressure, and he authored a chapter in
the book Cults on Campus. He has been an expert advisor to The
Roberts Group Parents Network (TRGP) since it was founded in 1997. (rloomis07@SNET.NET)
Arnold Markowitz, C.S.W., is a psychotherapist
and Director of the Cult Hotline and Clinic of the Jewish Board of Family
and Children's Services in New York City, where he also serves as Director
of Brooklyn Adolescent Services. He has written and lectured extensively on
cultic groups and psychological manipulation. (AMarkowitz@jbfcs.org)
Rod Marshall, Ph.D. (Nottm) teaches Psychology
at Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College in Wycombe, England, where
he is head of the Department of Human Sciences, where he is Acting Dean of
Faculty, Applied Social Sciences and Humanities. His principal research is
on the psychological effects of cultic group membership, social influence in
organizational settings, and the psychological processes involved in social
group identity and prejudice. He is also a member of Politics, Psychology
Resistance, a UK group of researchers, practitioners, and clients working
against the harmful effects of psychology, including within the mental
health system, as well as a member of the national committee of FAIR
(Family, Action, Information, Resource), UK. (rod.marshall@bcuc.ac.uk)
Paul Martin, Ph.D., a former member and leader
of Great Commission International (currently called Great Commission
Association of Churches), is a psychologist and Director of the Wellspring
Retreat and Resource Center in Albany, Ohio, a residential rehabilitation
center for ex-cult members. Dr. Martin is author of Cult-Proofing Your
Kids. He has written numerous articles on cults, including several
contributions to Cultic Studies Journal, and has been interviewed by
many newspapers and radio and TV stations concerning cults.
Marina
Ortiz
was a "Social therapy" patient from late 1984 to mid-1990. Once initiated,
she was asked to join an "underground" Marxist-Leninist organization (the
International Workers Party), led by NYC-based philosopher Fred Newman.
Ortiz left the group in 1990 and has since spoken out about her experience
at various public forums. A trained journalist, she has also written a
series of articles on the cult and produced related radio programs aired
over Pacifica-WBAI Radio. Ortiz is currently the editor of
www.ex-iwp.org,
a website which chronicles the origins and recent activities of the
International Workers Party.
Adriana Pacheco. Originally from Mexico where
she worked as an editor, Ms. Pacheco immigrated to Montreal where she first
worked as a translator, then started undergraduate studies in criminology at
the University of Montreal, where she is now pursuing her Ph.D. As part of
her research work, she is interested in crimes committed by non-delinquent
individuals or groups who, owing to their religious beliefs, claim virtuous
and altruistic reasons for abusive or criminal actions. She is a student in
the department of Criminology at the University of Montreal under the
supervision of Dr Dianne Casoni.
Robert Pardon, M.Div., Th.M., is the Executive
Director of the New England Institute of Religious Research and MeadowHaven.
During the past five years he has specialized in Bible-based communal
groups. Much of his work involves counseling, support groups, working with
those born and/or raised in groups, and helping former members rebuild their
lives. To facilitate the recovery process MeadowHaven, a long term
rehabilitation facility was opened in 2002. It can accommodate individuals
or families who require long term (up to a year) care to recover from trauma
and cult abuse. (www.MeadowHaven.org
and www.neirr.org)
Marie-Andrée Pelland is a Candidate in the
doctoral program of the School of Criminology of the Université de Montréal.
Currently completing her dissertation, “Presumed Violent Cultic Groups:
Analysis of Allegations of Violence According to the Representations and
Social Identity of Members.”
Miguel Perlado is a psychologist and
Psychotherapist. A graduate of the University of Barcelona (psychology), he
received psychotherapy training from Vidal Barraquer Foundation (Barcelona).
He currently works with Assessment and Information on Cults (AIS) as an exit
counselor and iPsi (Attention and Research in Mental Health) as a
psychotherapist. (miguel_perlado@hotmail.com)
E. Burke Rochford, Jr. is Professor of Sociology
and Chair of the Sociology-Anthropology Department at Middleburg College.
He has studied the Hare Krishna movement for nearly 25 years. His book,
Hare Krishna in America, was published by Rutgers University Press in
1985. He has also published numerous articles on the movement. His book on
family, the second generation and the development of ISKCON is in progress.
In addition to his academic studies Professor Rochford also serves as a
member of ISKCON’s North American Board of Education.
Herbert L. Rosedale, Esq., President of AFF, is
with Jenkens & Gilchrist & Parker Chapin in New York City. He has written
several articles on cults and the law, contributed a chapter to Recovery
From Cults, and is co-editor of The Boston Movement: Critical
Perspectives on the International Churches of Christ. Mr. Rosedale has
lectured widely on cults and was the Executive in Residence at the School of
Business, Indiana University in 1992.
Rabbi A. James Rudin, Senior Interreligious
Adviser, American Jewish Committee (AJC), retired in 2000 as AJC's National
Interreligious Affairs Director. A 1960 graduate of Hebrew Union
College-Jewish Institute of Religion, he has been a leading figure in
interreligious affairs since 1968, when he joined the AJC staff. In 1997 he
was awarded the "Person of Reconciliation" Award from the Polish Council of
Christians and Jews in Warsaw and the Joseph Award given by the Villa
Nazareth, a Pontifical Institution. In 1999 the International Council of
Christians and Jews awarded him its Interfaith Medallion. He has led
interreligious delegations and conferences in many nations and was active in
the civil rights movement. In 2002 he was appointed Distinguished Visiting
Professor of Religion and Judaica at Saint Leo University. He writes a
weekly commentary for the Religion News Service/Newhouse Newspaper Syndicate
and has published articles in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times,
Newsday, New Catholic Encyclopedia, Reform Judaism, The Kansas Historical
Quarterly, Commonweal, Encyclopedia Judaica, The Journal of Ecumenical
Studies, The Christian Century, and Christianity Today. He is
the author of Israel for Christians: Understanding Modern Israel and
co-editor of Evangelicals and Jews in Conversation, Evangelicals
and Jews in an Age of Pluralism, Twenty Years of Jewish-Catholic
Relations, and A Time to Speak: The Evangelical-Jewish Encounter.
He is co-author of Why Me? Why Anyone and Prison or Paradise? The
New Religious Cults (with his wife Marcia Rudin).
Patrick Ryan, a former member of Transcendental
Meditation, has been a thought reform consultant since 1984. He designs and
implements AFF's Internet Web site. Mr. Ryan is the founder and former head
of TM-ex, the organization of ex-members of TM. He has contributed to AFF’s
book, Recovery From Cults, and has presented programs about hypnosis
and trance-induction techniques at several AFF workshops and conferences. (Patrick.ryan@affcultinfoserve.com)
Alan W. Scheflin, J.D., LL.M., is
Professor of Law at Santa Clara University Law School in California. Among
his many publications is Memory, Trauma Treatment, and the Law
(co-authored with Daniel Brown and D. Corydon Hammond), for which he
received the 1999 Guttmacher Award from the American Psychiatric
Association. Professor Scheflin is also the 1991 recipient of the
Guttmacher Award for Trance on Trial (with Jerrold Shapiro). A
member of the Editorial Advisory Board of AFF’s Cultic Studies Review,
Professor Scheflin received the 2001 American Psychological Association,
Division 30 (Hypnosis), Distinguished Contribution to Professional Hypnosis
Award. This is the "highest award that Division 30 can bestow." He was also
awarded in 2001 The American Board of Psychological Hypnosis, Professional
Recognition Award. This Award was created to honor his achievements in
promoting the legal and ethical use of hypnosis.
Daniel Shaw, C.S.W. is a nationally certified
psychoanalyst in private practice in New York City. He received his
psychoanalytic training at the National Institute for the Psychotherapies in
New York. Formerly a member of Siddha Yoga, Mr. Shaw attended Northwestern
University and worked as a professional actor until joining Siddha Yoga in
1981. He toured worldwide as a spokesperson for Gurumayi and Siddha Yoga,
and served as organizer, manager, and public relations director. He left
the group in 1994 and helped found the Leaving Siddha Yoga website. (shawdan@aol.com)
Shen Zhenyu,
Researcher, China Research Institution for Science and Technology,
specializes in the study of superstition, pseudoscience, and cults.
Amy Siskind, Ph.D. received her Ph.D. in
sociology from the New School for Social Research in 1995. She has written
extensively about The Sullivan Institute/Fourth Wall community—a group she
had belonged to for twenty-two years. Her book, The Sullivan
Institute/Fourth Wall Community: From Radical Individualism to
Authoritarianism, will be published in May 2003 by Praeger
Publishers/Greenwood Press. Recently, she has written about the effects of
totalistic groups on children and the conditions within these groups that
can result in child abuse and neglect. Dr. Siskind currently teaches
sociology and children's studies at Brooklyn College of The City University
of New York (asiskind@bellatlantic.net).
Alexandra Stein, M.L.S. is a doctoral student in
the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota. Born in
Johannesburg, South Africa, Ms. Stein has also lived in England, France, and
the United States. She writes creative non-fiction and is author of
Inside Out: A Memoir of Entering and Breaking Out of a Political Cult
(North Star Press, 2002). She lives in Minneapolis with her two children.
Juan
Jose Vaca, MS.Ed., M.Th., M.Ph.,
Adjunct Professor of Psychology and Sociology, Mercy College, Dobbs Ferry,
NY. He was a member of the Legion of Christ from May 1947 to April 1976, in
Mexico, Spain, Italy, Ireland, and USA. His last position in the Legion was
president and religious superior of the Legion of Christ, Inc. in USA,
Orange, CT. He was a diocesan priest in Rockville Centre Diocese, Long
Island, NY. He has been a College counselor and lecturer for CUNY (City
University of New York) in different campuses. He left the priesthood in
April 1989, married in 1993, and has nine year daughter.
Erika Van Meir, L.M.F.T. is a licensed marriage
and family therapist currently in private practice in Atlanta Georgia. She
has a B.A. in Sociology from the University of California at San Diego and
an M.A. in Marriage and Family Counseling from the University of San Diego.
In addition to her private practice, Erika also runs a monthly support and
education group for former members of abusive/totalitarian groups.
Wang Wenzhong, Ph.D., Associate Professor in the
Institute of Psychology of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), graduated from
the Department of Psychology, Beijing Normal University in 1988. He received
his Master's Degree and Ph.D. Degree from The Institute of Psychology, CAS.
Dr. Wenzhong has conducted research in the area of cognitive and social
cognitive development, with a focus on the study of achievement motivation
and mental health of children. His publications include: Alice Cheng Lai,
Zhi-xue Zhang, Wen-zhong Wang. Maternal child-rearing practices in Hong Kong
and Beijing Chinese families: A comparative study. International Journal
of Psychology, 2000, 35(1), 60-66; Wang Wenzhong. Golf System in the
achievement motivation of students. Psychological Science, 1996,
19(4), 207-210; Wang Wenzhong, Shi Kan, Sun Jian, Maehr, L. Martin. A
comparative study of super students' motivation models. Psychological
Development and Education, 1996, 12(1), 1-7.
“Frank” Tian Xie, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor
of Marketing at the Bennett S. LeBow College of Business, Drexel
University. He obtained his Ph.D. in business administration and MBA in
finance from Georgia State University and B.S. in science from Peking
University. Prior to his career in academics, he had eight years of
industry and managerial experience serving in technical, supervisory,
managerial, and consulting positions for companies such as AirTouch
Communications (now Verizon Wireless), SunTrust Equitable Securities, and
Apeks International. His research interests include marketing strategy,
business-to-business marketing, international marketing, and non-linear
marketing methodologies. His research appears in Journal of Business
Research, Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, Journal of
Interactive Advertising, Journal of Marketing Channels, and
World Economic Review.
