Hollywood Ideological Museum

Psychiatry: An Industry of Death Museum: Scientology’s War on Mental Health

Los Angeles, California, United States

By the Wicked Cool Places editors · Published Fri, Aug 28, 2026

Why it’s cool

This museum offers a window into the Church of Scientology’s intense opposition to psychiatry. It blends historical critiques of medical abuses with vast conspiratorial claims about the causes of global atrocities.

West Coast Historic

A weathered metal door with a small window sits beneath a sign reading Psychiatry: An Industry of Death.

The name on the facade in Los Angeles leaves no room for ambiguity. This institution, operated by the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, serves as a permanent exhibition of the Church of Scientology’s deep-seated hostility toward the psychiatric profession.

It is a place where historical medical failures are framed as part of a much larger, darker narrative.

Why It Stands Out

Inside, visitors encounter a high-production environment filled with large plasma screens and detailed infographics. The exhibits start with legitimate historical grievances.

You will see displays regarding the horrors of early insane asylums, the use of straitjackets, and the controversial legacy of lobotomies and electro-shock therapy. These segments highlight moments when mental health care was indeed inhumane.

However, the narrative quickly shifts into the specific ideology of L. Ron Hubbard.

Hubbard viewed psychiatrists as enemies of the public. He believed that human beings are actually immortal spiritual entities called thetans.

From this perspective, any attempt to treat the mind with drugs or physical intervention is considered a spiritual violation. The museum eventually expands its scope beyond the clinic.

It presents arguments that psychiatry is the primary cause behind major global tragedies. Large placards link the profession to the rise of Adolf Hitler, the start of both World Wars, and even the attacks on September 11.

It is a jarring transition from medical history to a conspiratorial worldview that suggests the entire field is a global menace.

Before You Go

The museum is located in the heart of Hollywood. Another local historical site is the Heritage Square Museum.

While the content is provocative and heavily ideological, the facility is modern and professional in its presentation. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels is another modern architectural landmark in the city.

Entry is generally open to the public, providing a rare look at how this specific belief system interprets modern history and science. Guests should be prepared for a very specific and intense perspective on medical history.

Questions worth answering

What can I expect to see inside the exhibits?

The displays use large screens and infographics to show historical medical tools like straitjackets. It begins with the history of insane asylums before moving into the specific beliefs of L. Ron Hubbard.

How does the museum explain global history?

The narrative links psychiatric practice to major world events like the rise of Adolf Hitler and the September 11 attacks. It frames the entire profession as the primary cause of these tragedies.

Is there a specific religious perspective behind the displays?

The Citizens Commission on Human Rights runs this space to show the Church of Scientology's view on mental health. It presents the idea that humans are spiritual entities called thetans who should not be treated with drugs.

Where should I leave my car when I visit?

You can find a spot at no cost in the area to the right of the entrance. Just head through the gates located there.

Visit Snapshot

Parking is available for free in a lot located to the right of the main entrance. You must drive through the gates to access it.

Location

Los Angeles, California

Know before you go

Free parking to the right of the museum's front door - through the gates.

Editorial source

Psychiatry: An Industry of Death Museum

The title of the museum "Psychiatry: An Industry of Death" immediately gives you a hint as to the creators behind the project. While officially run by the "The Citizens Commission on Human Rights" both the CCHR and the museum are fully funded by the Church of Scientology which holds a very low opinion of psychiatry indeed.

Among the fundamental beliefs of the Church of Scientology is the idea that all problems are spiritual in nature, and that humans are "immortal spiritual beings" or "thetans" who have forgotten their true and perfect nature. Within this framework psychiatry is seen as a form of abuse.

L. Ron Hubbard himself had a strong personal dislike and distrust of psychiatry and incorporated it into his written work.

He considered psychiatrists to be "antisocial enemies of the people" despite (or perhaps because of) some evidence that Hubbard sought psychiatric care in the 1940s and took prescribed tranquilizers. Church members often sign lengthy contracts which have a clause stating members deny psychiatric care "regardless of what any psychiatrist, medical person, designated member of the state or family member may assert supposedly on my behalf." Of course it is not as if the Scientologists have nothing to work with and the Psychiatry: An Industry of Death Museum shows much of the worst practices in mental health throughout the ages.

Electro-shock therapy, lobotomies, straightjackets, insane asylums, the over-use of psychiatric drugs and generally poor treatment of the mentally ill are all on prominent display throughout the museum, and are on occasion fair critiques of now-frowned-upon practices. However, the museum takes a more pronounced ideological turn in trying to hit home its other points, essentially that there is no medical evidence that psychiatry is a science or in any way helpful and that psychiatry is directly responsible for the major atrocities of our time such as WWI, the rise of Hitler and WWII, the Balkan wars, and September 11th.

All of which is displayed in large-scale placards, infographics, and large screen plasma screens. A fascinating look into both the worst of psychiatry and an ideology that feels that "the worst" is just the tip of a conspiratorial iceberg.