ICSA Today
Criminal Defence offers the privilege of fighting for individuals' freedom from physical imprisonment. Through research on cults, Guillaume has studied the tension between freedom of religion and mental/spiritual imprisonment.
The following articles were written for the magazine of the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA). ICSA is dedicated to providing information on cults, cultic groups, psychological manipulation, psychological abuse, spiritual abuse, brainwashing, mind control, thought reform, abusive churches, high-demand groups, extremism, totalistic groups, new religious movements, alternative and mainstream religions, group dynamics, exit counseling, recovery, and practical suggestions for those affected by or interested in these subjects. In addition to writing some news report for ICSA, Guillaume has given a talk at ICSA's yearly conference in 2012.
Hover your mouse over the articles to navigate:
The following articles were written for the magazine of the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA). ICSA is dedicated to providing information on cults, cultic groups, psychological manipulation, psychological abuse, spiritual abuse, brainwashing, mind control, thought reform, abusive churches, high-demand groups, extremism, totalistic groups, new religious movements, alternative and mainstream religions, group dynamics, exit counseling, recovery, and practical suggestions for those affected by or interested in these subjects. In addition to writing some news report for ICSA, Guillaume has given a talk at ICSA's yearly conference in 2012.
Hover your mouse over the articles to navigate:
Posted with permission of ICSA, reprinted from:
- ICSA Today Vol. 03 No. 01, 2012
- ICSA Today Vol. 03 No. 03, 2012
- ICSA Today Vol. 04 No. 01, 2013
- ICSA Today Vol. 04 No. 02, 2013
- ICSA Today Vol. 05 No. 01, 2014
- ICSA Today Vol. 05 No. 02, 2014
- ICSA Today Vol. 05 No. 03, 2014
Info-Cult
The Organization: Info-Secte/Info-Cult (website) - Info-Cult is a non-profit charitable organization founded in 1980 based in Montreal (Quebec, Canada) that offers help and information about cults, new religious movements and related groups and subjects.
In the Summer of 2011, Guillaume researched the topic of freedom of religion, and compared various legal solutions to protect children from cultic/fanatic groups, under the direction of Info-Secte/Info-Cult director Mike Kropveld, Founder and Executive Director of Info-Cult and Carolle Tremblay, Lawyer and President of Info-Cult. In the Summer of 2012, Guillaume conducted a presentation on freedom of religion at the annual International Conference of the International Cultic Studies Association.
Guillaume argued that freedom of religion, in a free and democratic society, is a right that is enhanced if the law deliberately allows specific and purposeful infringements of that freedom by the government. The purported violations are those aiming to promote particular facets of religious freedom, including enhancing one's ability to choose a religion, or the ability to compare religions. He labelled those "meta-freedoms" of religion. This approach may inspire novel ideas and arguments if governmental interventions are alleged to infringe on one's freedom of religion. This may, for instance, apply to mandatory school curricula that introduce students to multiple religions. When the Supreme Court of Canada studied this issue in S.L. v. Commission scolaire des Chênes, 2012 SCC 7, [2012] 1 S.C.R. 235, it found that no infringement was proven. In the future, this question may be asked again, and an infringement could be found. This would require an analysis into the competition between freedom of religion and the justification of infringements to that fundamental freedom by the government.
Those programs, as well as other interventions by the government, may have a preventive effect against cults and fanaticism. It is therefore an area of law that may lead to enhancements in public health and safety.
In the Summer of 2011, Guillaume researched the topic of freedom of religion, and compared various legal solutions to protect children from cultic/fanatic groups, under the direction of Info-Secte/Info-Cult director Mike Kropveld, Founder and Executive Director of Info-Cult and Carolle Tremblay, Lawyer and President of Info-Cult. In the Summer of 2012, Guillaume conducted a presentation on freedom of religion at the annual International Conference of the International Cultic Studies Association.
Guillaume argued that freedom of religion, in a free and democratic society, is a right that is enhanced if the law deliberately allows specific and purposeful infringements of that freedom by the government. The purported violations are those aiming to promote particular facets of religious freedom, including enhancing one's ability to choose a religion, or the ability to compare religions. He labelled those "meta-freedoms" of religion. This approach may inspire novel ideas and arguments if governmental interventions are alleged to infringe on one's freedom of religion. This may, for instance, apply to mandatory school curricula that introduce students to multiple religions. When the Supreme Court of Canada studied this issue in S.L. v. Commission scolaire des Chênes, 2012 SCC 7, [2012] 1 S.C.R. 235, it found that no infringement was proven. In the future, this question may be asked again, and an infringement could be found. This would require an analysis into the competition between freedom of religion and the justification of infringements to that fundamental freedom by the government.
Those programs, as well as other interventions by the government, may have a preventive effect against cults and fanaticism. It is therefore an area of law that may lead to enhancements in public health and safety.
