ATLANTA (RNS) As many gathered for Easter and Passover festivities over the weekend, an estimated 550 atheists, freethinkers, humanists and other nonbelievers converged on Atlanta for the American Atheists national convention. Typically held on Easter weekend, the annual event was live for the first time since the start of the pandemic, and the excitement was palpable.
Energized by the in-person gathering after such a long hiatus, the community of nonbelievers a general term used for all those who identify with these groups was ready to discuss some of the most pressing concerns facing their ranks today.
The convention kicked off on Thursday evening (April 14) with a lighthearted charity event in which all proceeds were donated to Access Reproductive Care-Southeast and ended Sunday afternoon with a community service event where attendees packed meals for those in need in metro Atlanta.
The service event was named Two Hands Working, after a phrase once uttered by American Atheists founder Madalyn Murray OHair. She said, Two hands working can do more than a thousand clasped in prayer. The 59-year-old civil liberties organization holds true to that mantra, according to communication director Tom Van Denburgh: American Atheists has always placed action and activism at the center of our activities.
At this years convention, the drive to action was particularly apparent, from the charity events to the workshops, lectures and panels.
Today, America is at a critical moment in our history, explained Van Denburgh. White Christian nationalists are fomenting backlash against the de-Christianization of America, against greater racial diversity and against increasing acceptance of LGBTQ people.
They are legislating their religious extremism into the law, he told Religion News Service. Atheists must stand up and act.
The conference included a wide range of panels, including issue-focused discussions on subjects such as abortion and reproductive justice, but also workshops on taking your advocacy to the next level and practical tips for disrupting sexist behavior. On Saturday, political advocate Brett Parker hosted a panel on the nuts and bolts of making a difference in your state.
Sam McGuire, the national field director for American Atheists, said the organization is working toward building broad coalitions and supporting local community groups of various sizes. Each state has different needs, she explained, adding that most active and well-organized groups tend to be in areas that are facing the most conflict. Tallahassee, Florida, for example, situated in deep red country, is home to one of the organizations most active and well-established groups.
The issues facing nonbelievers are wide-ranging. Anything can be an atheist issue that involves equal rights, McGuire explained, especially when the religious impose their beliefs on other people.
Tina Marshall, lead organizer for the Charlotte, North Carolina, chapter of Black Nonbelievers, said one major issue for her group is voting rights. We cannot be liberated until we are liberated from supremacy, superstition and belief, she said, emphasizing that these are connected issues.
This past year, American Atheists has been involved in numerous legal actions around the country. Most recently, the organization has opposed South Carolinas HB 4776 legislation, which seeks a broad denial of medical care based on religious conviction, explained Alison Gill, vice president for legal and policy at American Atheists.
American Atheists is supporting New York bill A8163A, which would require that nonreligion-based substance abuse treatment options be available for people required by a court to enter a program.
Wil Jeudy speaks during the American Atheists 2022 National Convention in Atlanta, April 16, 2022. Photo by Josiah Mannion
Wil Jeudy, the Texas state director for American Atheists, has been taking a different approach to community action. As a member of Houston Oasis, a secular community that meets weekly, Jeudy has been working to build community and safe spaces for nonbelievers to gather socially. Houston is a blue island in a red sea, Jeudy said, which makes this type of organization possible. Nonbelievers dont have to worry about backlash within the area.
However, Jeudy has also been involved in advocacy and activism through other organizations. In fact, he was honored at the convention as the 2022 American Atheists Activist of the Year. One of Jeudys missions is to build advocacy coalitions across Texas and across organizational lines, including nonsecular groups such as Unitarian Universalist and Jewish organizations.
In Texas, theres an assumption that goodness comes from religion, he said, so it helps for people to see atheists standing with members of faith-based organizations. This creates a healthy cognitive dissonance, he added, dispelling the idea that atheists are the bad guys.
As Jeudy suggested, another major concern expressed at the 2022 convention was combating pervasive myths about nonbelievers.
Aaron Rabinowitz speaks during the American Atheistsnational convention in Atlanta, April 16, 2022. Photo by Josiah Mannion
In the opening of his talk, Aaron Rabinowitz asked the audience, Please raise your hand if youve previously heard some version of the immoral nonbeliever stereotype. Please keep your hand up if someone has ever implied that you or someone you know is less moral because theyre a nonbeliever. OK, now keep your hand up if someone has ever overtly said to your face that you are less moral or a bad person because youre a nonbeliever.
Rabinowitz, a podcaster and Ph.D. student at Rutgers University, went on to advocate for compassion and the building of community. The strongest tool we have against this stereotype is something were already doing right here right now: coming together in a community centered around not just shared beliefs but shared values, Rabinowitz said.
Similarly, Mandisa Thomas spoke about the struggle against bias and misconception. However, Thomas struggle is twofold. As the founder and President of Black Nonbelievers Inc., she not only has to combat the myth of the immoral atheist, but also the idea that atheism is a white thing.
There have always been Black atheists, she told the audience. This is a myth both within Black religious communities and the atheist movement itself. She said there is a heavy stigma.
Thomas expressed pride in both being a Black woman and an atheist. She offered ways in which the nonbeliever community can more adequately support and uplift the voices of Black atheists. Spend your privilege, she advised, among other tips. Her organization, based in Atlanta, will be holding its own national conference this fall in Chicago: Woman of Color: Beyond Belief.
Throughout the convention, attendees repeatedly expressed the need for action, suggesting a growing momentum in the movement. There is a sense of urgency due to the rising tide of Christian nationalism,Van Denburgh said.
At our convention, we are getting disengaged atheists involved and helping active atheists get out there and further build community and coalitions, he added.
Mandisa Thomas speaks during the American Atheists national convention in Atlanta, April 16, 2022. Photo by Josiah Mannion
Although hosted by American Atheists, the convention was attended by other nonbeliever groups from around the country, including the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Americans United, American Humanist Association, Foundation Beyond Belief and the Secular Student Alliance.
Despite expressed frustrations with the current political climate, there was an overall sense of hope within the community, buoyed by the growing number of young people identifying as nonbelievers. Since 2009, the number of Americans identifying as atheist has doubled, from 2% to 4%, and the number of agnostics rose from 3% to 5%, according to Pew Research. Gill believes the numbers are higher.
In 2020, American Atheists published its own findings about the community in its first comprehensive study on nonbelievers. It presented the data at the conference, showing that nonreligious young people are the fastest growing segment of the nonreligious community. This tracks with Pew findings that the average nonbeliever is 34 years old.
The young people bring hope, expressed both Gill and McGuire.
Next years American Atheist convention will be held on Easter weekend in Phoenix. Until then, the local communities will continue to gather in action and advocacy.
We are ready, Jeudy said. As the world opens up again, we have plans.
Read more here:
Atheists, spurred by growing ranks, gather for first time since start of pandemic - Religion News Service
- Richard Dawkins has some regrets - Washington Examiner - April 2nd, 2024 [April 2nd, 2024]
- Keeping the faith: These religious groups are flourishing as atheism takes hold - The Age - April 2nd, 2024 [April 2nd, 2024]
- Pew study paints a picture of the average US atheist - Aleteia - February 20th, 2024 [February 20th, 2024]
- 'There's No Science Behind That': Actor Rob Schneider Passionately Checkmates 'Bleak' Worldview Within Atheism - CBN.com - February 20th, 2024 [February 20th, 2024]
- Atheists Find God at the Latin Mass: A Review of Mass of the Ages - CatholicCitizens.org - Catholic Citizens of Illinois - February 20th, 2024 [February 20th, 2024]
- Is atheism destroying the moral fabric of society? - Big Think - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- The Logic of Faith - Adventist Review - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Change of plans - USC News & Events - University of South Carolina - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- 71 Years Later, The Weirdest Religion in Sci-Fi History Is Back - Inverse - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Twitter taught Microsofts AI chatbot to be a racist asshole in less ... - January 2nd, 2023 [January 2nd, 2023]
- Al-Qaeda: Islamist Qatar Bringing 'Homosexuals,' 'Atheism' to Middle ... - December 18th, 2022 [December 18th, 2022]
- His View: Fear not the atheist; they just might be right - Moscow-Pullman Daily News - October 17th, 2022 [October 17th, 2022]
- Vatican II and the Rise of Atheism - National Catholic Register - October 17th, 2022 [October 17th, 2022]
- Atheists who believe in ghosts - OnlySky - October 17th, 2022 [October 17th, 2022]
- Religion at the Chinese Communist Party Congress: Christians Told They Should Become More Marxist - Bitter Winter - October 17th, 2022 [October 17th, 2022]
- The Rise And Fall Of Sexual Sanity In Western Civilization - The Federalist - October 17th, 2022 [October 17th, 2022]
- Duchess of York, Sarah Fergie Ferguson, is 63 - iHeart - October 17th, 2022 [October 17th, 2022]
- On the short life and sudden death of Soviet atheism - OnlySky - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Darwin and the New Atheists - Discovery Institute - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Researchers to explore why atheism is growing across the world - Newswise - September 27th, 2022 [September 27th, 2022]
- Census Northern Ireland: Academic gives warning over figures showing rise in atheism - Belfast News Letter - September 27th, 2022 [September 27th, 2022]
- The Rise of the Evangelical Heretic - ChristianityToday.com - September 27th, 2022 [September 27th, 2022]
- Antitheism - Wikipedia - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- Biden's global initiative to replace Christianity with atheism faces ... - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- Researchers to explore why atheism is growing across the world - Brunel University News - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- Functional atheism: Popular pastor delivers gut-check on what worry really reveals - The Christian Post - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- Why did Britney Spears turn to atheism and Shia LaBeouf to faith? | Opinion - Deseret News - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Someone who seeks the truth finds God Catholic World Report - Catholic World Report - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- On Religion: The faith questions that haunted the life of Gorbachev - GoDanRiver.com - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Atheism and Recovery What if I didn't have a mental illness? - Freethought Blogs - September 7th, 2022 [September 7th, 2022]
- Whatever Happened to Atheists? | Gene Veith - Patheos - September 7th, 2022 [September 7th, 2022]
- Four Very Short Introductions podcast episodes to get you thinking | OUPblog - OUPblog - September 7th, 2022 [September 7th, 2022]
- BookLash: Are the cold, hard realities found within Bridge to Terabithia not for young, innocent minds? - The Wood Word - September 7th, 2022 [September 7th, 2022]
- ABS to consult on religious classifications - The Mandarin - September 7th, 2022 [September 7th, 2022]
- In defense of the Bible - iHeartRadio - September 7th, 2022 [September 7th, 2022]
- Mubarak Bala: Atheist Activism And Liberation From Religious Oppression In Nigeria By Leo Igwe - SaharaReporters.com - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Between Grace and Nature - The American Conservative - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Religious and spiritual practices may improve mental health in older adults - 2 Minute Medicine - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- If You Meet Richard Dawkins On The Road... - Daily Kos - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Why the World's Religions Are Dying a Slow Death - The National Interest Online - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Atheism still not always easy in the Netherlands - DutchNews.nl - DutchNews.nl - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Believing Is Bad for You: At the Museum of Russian Icons, Images of Atheism - The Boston Globe - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- If You Meet the Buddha on the Road... Kill Him. - Daily Kos - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Hart's Turn To Heterodoxy | Gerald McDermott - First Things - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- For natural theologians, proving God was beside the point - Aeon - June 26th, 2022 [June 26th, 2022]
- Patrick Berg, MD To Speak On The Origin Of Life At Los Alamos Faith & Science Forum Wednesday - Los Alamos Reporter - June 26th, 2022 [June 26th, 2022]
- Head of gold and feet of clay - Deccan Herald - June 26th, 2022 [June 26th, 2022]
- Letter to the editor: LGBTQ+ students represented in Mt. Lebanon - TribLIVE - June 26th, 2022 [June 26th, 2022]
- Supreme Court ruling leads to jokes about the Church of Satan - indy100 - June 26th, 2022 [June 26th, 2022]
- Inside Amber Heards childhood, journey to atheism and early acting career - HITC - Football, Gaming, Movies, TV, Music - May 28th, 2022 [May 28th, 2022]
- Reason and Religion Go Hand in Hand Especially Paganism - Patheos - May 28th, 2022 [May 28th, 2022]
- Letter to the Editor: Find Out for Yourself What College Students Are Learning - Centralia Chronicle - May 28th, 2022 [May 28th, 2022]
- Meyer: Theistic Implications of the Multiverse - Discovery Institute - May 21st, 2022 [May 21st, 2022]
- Denton: How Science Leads the Charge to Theism - Discovery Institute - May 21st, 2022 [May 21st, 2022]
- The Musician Who Gave Me the City and Stars, Vangelis, Is Dead - TheStranger.com - May 21st, 2022 [May 21st, 2022]
- Gospel in Art: If the world hates you, remember that it hated me before you | ICN - Independent Catholic News - May 21st, 2022 [May 21st, 2022]
- Summer reading suggestions from Baylor Family authors - Baylor University - May 21st, 2022 [May 21st, 2022]
- Tired of the Media Promoting Atheism as Science? - Discovery Institute - May 17th, 2022 [May 17th, 2022]
- The rise of 'apatheism' and what it means for Christians and the Gospel - The Christian Post - May 17th, 2022 [May 17th, 2022]
- Images Of Atheism: The Soviet Assault On ReligionAntiques And The Arts Weekly - Antiques and the Arts Online - May 7th, 2022 [May 7th, 2022]
- Imagine Theres No Svarga: Rediscovering Crvka, Indias 2,700-Year-Old Atheistic Tradition - Quillette - May 7th, 2022 [May 7th, 2022]
- Confucianism: Atheism or Religion? 2. In Search of Confucius - Bitter Winter - May 7th, 2022 [May 7th, 2022]
- Why Elon Musk's ambition to have Twitter authenticate all real humans will get people killed - Rest of World - May 7th, 2022 [May 7th, 2022]
- Floyd Dell's illustrious writing career started in Quincy - Herald-Whig - May 7th, 2022 [May 7th, 2022]
- Exorcisms: Giving Witness to the Resurrection - Relevant Radio - April 29th, 2022 [April 29th, 2022]
- The Answer to Ayla's prayer - The Catholic Weekly - April 29th, 2022 [April 29th, 2022]
- Book Review: Can Scientists Be Religious? The Wire Science - The Wire Science - April 29th, 2022 [April 29th, 2022]
- Spain: Atheism and agnosticism on the rise in pandemic times - Evangelical Focus - April 22nd, 2022 [April 22nd, 2022]
- Stephen Meyer: Totalitarian Dystopias and the God Hypothesis - Discovery Institute - April 13th, 2022 [April 13th, 2022]
- Suzanne Harrington: It's refreshing that no religion is acknowledged on the census - Irish Examiner - April 13th, 2022 [April 13th, 2022]
- The trial of Anaxagoras: a soliloquy - TheArticle - April 13th, 2022 [April 13th, 2022]
- Faith, Science, and Francis Collins - The New Yorker - April 13th, 2022 [April 13th, 2022]
- EDITORIAL: On Russia, the ANC shows its moral atheism - BusinessLIVE - March 4th, 2022 [March 4th, 2022]
- Invasion of Ukraine and Russian literature III - MM News - March 4th, 2022 [March 4th, 2022]
- Percentage Of Atheists In America By State - WorldAtlas - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]
- Atheism in China: How the Communist Party Proves that God Does Not Exist - Bitterwinter.org - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]
- China: The 2022 Olympics and Scientific Atheism - FSSPX.Actualits - FSSPX.News - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]
- Studying Abroad: 'Encountering God as an Atheist' | Features | valpotorch.com - The Torch - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]
- Why I Am Catholic Will Herrmann - TheCatholicSpirit.com - The Catholic Spirit - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]
- Conversations with Friends: plot, cast and everything you need to know - Time Out - February 28th, 2022 [February 28th, 2022]