Leah Remini Slams Scientology for ‘Having the Balls’ to Take Out 3 PPP Loans Intended for Small Businesses
It’s no surprise that Leah Remini is no fan of Scientology. The 50-year-old actor has been outspoken about her experience as a former member of the religious organization — which she has since dubbed a cult — and has been holding them accountable for their actions. Most recently, Remini has teamed up with former senior executive of the Church of Scientology, Mike Rinder, for a podcast called Scientology: Fair Game, where they look into the organization’s Fair Game doctrine.
In a recent episode of their podcast, Remini and Rinder discussed how the organization took advantage of the government’s PPP loans during the coronavirus pandemic that were intended for small businesses — even though the Church of Scientology is estimated to be worth $2 billion.
Leah Remini’s background in Scientology
Remini’s mother joined Scientology when she was only nine years old, bringing their whole family into the organization. While she was once outspoken about her support of the church, in 2013, she officially left and renounced everything about it. In 2015, she released her book entitled Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, in which she detailed her experience in the organization.
In 2016, Remini released a documentary series on A&E called Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. Co-hosted by Mike Rinder, the show interviewed many former Scientology members and explored their stories of alleged abuse and harassment from within the organization. The show lasted for three seasons. The Church of Scientology was critical of the series and refuted most of the claims.
Leah Remini slammed Scientology for taking advantage of programs intended for small businesses
In episode 0 of the podcast, Remini and Rinder got into a heated discussion about how the Church of Scientology recently took out three Payment Protection Program (PPP) loans that were being given to small businesses struggling during the coronavirus pandemic. PPP loans are intended to provide an incentive for small businesses to keep their employees on the payroll instead of having to lay them off. But when you consider that the Church of Scientology is supposedly worth upwards of $2 billion dollars, it’s safe to assume they’re not the type of organization intended for the PPP loans.
Remini said of the loans, “When you think Scientology can’t sink to a new low, wow! I don’t even know what to say anymore. Scientology, they had the f*cking balls, Mike, to take out three f*cking PPP loans.”
Rinder responded, “The outrage is on levels of insanity. Leah, you realize that Scientology claims whenever anybody seeks to force them to take responsibility for their employees, that they’re not employees, they are volunteers.”
Remini then went on to say that she often gets emotional about things like this. “They say, ‘Well, they’re not our employees,’ when it works for them… While small business are going out of business, while people can’t eat — this $3 billion for-profit cult had the balls to take out three PPP loans during a pandemic.”
Does the Church of Scientology need government assistance?
In short, no. Three branches of the organization, located in New York, Washington, D.C., and Florida, received between $150,000 to $300,000 from the PPP loans. The church as a whole is estimated to be worth close to $2 billion, according to Daily Mail. Not only that, the Church of Scientology actually owns numerous properties around the world, including a $400 million Los Angeles property.
Spokespeople for the organization have stated that jobs were saved thanks to the PPP loans in Florida and New York, but the Washington, D.C. branch did not save any jobs, even though they received the funds. It’s clear there are some shady things going on, and Remini has every right to be upset about it.
