Welcome...
A Conference about Cults
in New Zealand
The narrative is changing. For many years there has only been silence. There has been disconnection and shame. Only some people's stories have been heard. There has not been the freedom for open discourse which brings about change.
In 2021 the story of the Centrepoint children opened up. First an award receiving TVNZ documentary, then a 12 part award-winning deep dive investigative podcast series, then a home-grown kiwi radio show busting open myths about cults. What is coming next?
A conversation has started within this generation, who are asking for their experiences to be acknowledged, and heard. Many in this generation are opening the lid on what has historically been shameful and hidden.
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A ground swell is rising up and the people who can change things are starting to listen. People who were impacted by Centrepoint, and other New Zealand cults, along with others who wanted to learn about how to make New Zealanders safer from cults - over 250 of them in person, and a similar number on-line - gathered together at the first ever New Zealand cult awareness conference, Decult.
DECULT Conference, 19-20 October 2024, Christchurch
DECULT is the brainchild of journalist and author Anke Richter who discovered in her ten years of cult journalism the woeful lack of resources and supports in New Zealand for people in cults and those who have left one. In addition, she noted the national tolerance for harmful groups, the tax laws that support them, and the lack of understanding and advocacy within the New Zealand social support services and governmental policy landscape.
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DECULT grew out of her work with stakeholders across New Zealand, and internationally. Through these connections she noted the huge impacts on a person's life when they do not get the support they need, and the complete inaction in this area by politicians who could fund service development. DECULT was developed by a large team of passionate advocates - many who are survivors - and their networks across New Zealand. I was one of them.
Decult was a weekend spent with authors and educators, academics and counsellors, survivors and their advocates as they shared their expertise and personal stories. Decult was for anyone interested in spirituality, religion or personal growth who wanted to engage in respectful discussion to broaden their knowledge – especially health professionals and frontline services helping cult victims. Decult was for people who recognise the harm and wish to be part of a growing network of people who see the need for change. Decult was a powerful event, and you can read here and here how it impacted me.
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The Decult Collective
A collaboration between professionals in Australasia
How does recruitment work, what are the signs of coercive control, how can people get out, and how can they recover? These are what was learnt at Decult. One event can only do so much though.
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The Decult Conference was a powerful event, and since the event there have continued to be initiatives developed by the Decult Trust team, and one of these is the Decult Collective.
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I am one of the developers of this network for professionals - therapists, physicians, social workers, educators, lawyers and activists - people who are working with survivors and have expertise or want to develop it to work with this underserved group of people.
The goal of the collective is to change the landscape in New Zealand, such that it is much harder for places like Centrepoint to thrive unchecked, so that professionals working with those affected are better able to recognise what they are dealing with and to respond better, and to decrease the incidence of naive recruits in the populace.
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The Decult Collective aims to lobby government, educate providers, train students, build a research base, support one another, and grow the workforce in this space. Lofty ideals? The Decal Conference inspired us to believe it might happen.
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If you are a professional in New Zealand or Australia and you have interest in the Decult Collective, please email collective@decult.net to learn if it is right for you.