8 May 2021

The protest in Lebanon against the town promoted National Day of Prayer event went well. There weren't a lot of us, as to be expected on such short notice on a work day, but we were definitely noticed.

The event was, as is usual for these NDP events, very Christian; there was no attempt to even acknowledge other believers. I had a handout explaining our position, but, as is also usual, many participants refused to even look at it.

First Selectman Kevin Cwikla spoke at the event. He came up to us afterwards. He made sure to mention that he was on his lunch break, and not on the clock. I asked him how he justified a religious event which appeared to be endorsed by the town. I expected him to claim that any group could hold a similar event, which would be the opening for a Lebanon Atheist Day. However, he just said, "We're a 300 year old town" as he walked away. I'm still at a loss as to how that even qualifies as a bad answer.

Stay tuned. We'll be figuring out our next move on this issue. Lebanon has not heard the last of us. It took us several years to get a similar event kicked out of Middletown City Hall, and we'll be just as persistent here.

26 April 2021

It has come to my attention that the town of Lebanon is holding a National Day of Prayer event at their town hall. This is not just a group using a publicly available site to hold their event; this gathering is advertised on the town website, and the first selectman is scheduled to speak. When a Lebanon resident complained to the first selectman about this she was told that it was a "government holiday".

American Atheists will be protesting this event. We will be there to let it be known that such a violation of the separation of church and state is not acceptable. We protested a similar event in Middletown from 2012 to 2015 and got them to move it out of city hall. We're prepared to be as persistent in Lebanon.

The NDP event starts at 12:15 on Thursday, the 6th of May. We will be gathering around 12 noon, at Lebanon Town Hall, 579 Exeter Road, Lebanon, Connecticut.

I know it's hard for some people to make it during a work day, but if you can make it at all I encourage you to do so; the more people we have there the better.

14 March 2021

17 January 2021

This will probably come as a surprise to no one, but this year's American Atheist convention has been canceled. The plan is to hold the 2022 convention in Atlanta, and the 2023 one in Phoenix. If you had already bought tickets to the 2021 convention you can get a refund or transfer the ticket to another year. American Atheist should be getting in touch with you about that if they haven't already.

18 November 2020

Secular Connecticut (formerly known as the Secular Coalition of Connecticut) is starting to plan for next year's General Assembly session. One thing which was identified as necessary to be effective is the ability to find constituents of key legislators. "Key" meaning mostly on whatever committee is responsible for the bill under consideration.

It's not constituents who would put in a lot of work that they're looking for (although of course that would be great); it's constituents who are willing to make contact with their legislator and allow the activists who know a lot about a given issue to get their foot in the door.

27 May 2020

I know you're probably tired of hearing about cancellations, and looking forward to when that all ends, but nonetheless I've decide to cancel what would have been the 17th Annual Connecticut American Atheists Summer Solstice Party. It would have been on the very day that restrictions on that size gathering would have been lifted in Connecticut, but that's an edge I don't care to walk. We'll hold the 17th party next year. Until then, stay safe.

21 May 2020

Looking for an intellectually stimulating activity to pass the time during these troubled, and often boring, times? American Atheists has just what you're looking for.

Every Wednesday at 8:00 starting the 27 of May American Atheists is hosting a different online speaker. Each episode will give the speaker the floor for 20 minutes, continue with a discussion between the presenter and an American Atheists representative, and conclude with a question and answer session for which any viewer can submit questions.

For further details, a list of the first few speakers, and the links for registering, see the American Atheists' Summer Speaker Series web page:

16 December 2019

Some of you have seen the article in last Monday's Manchester Journal-Inquirer where I congratulated the mayor of Vernon (Dan Champagne) for eliminating holiday displays from the green, after a dozen years of competing Christian and Atheist displays. Well, apparently some Christians in Vernon couldn't stand the idea that the town might actually do something that Atheists requested so they pressured the mayor into reversing his policy and having displays on the green again.

So it's happening. We'll be putting the display up this Saturday. Meet at my place in Vernon at 11:00 a.m. My address is 650 Bolton Road / Vernon. If your GPS is based on Google Maps it will try to send you down Hatch Hill Road and Ravenscroft Road. Don't fall for it; stay on Bolton Road.

13 October 2019

U.S. Secular Survey

As many of you know, American Atheists is about to launch the largest and most comprehensive data collection about Atheists and other nonreligious people ever conducted. It's called the U.S. Secular Survey and it will start on Wednesday the 15th, but you can sign up at the website now and you'll be notified when it's ready.

13 September 2019

I'm pleased to announce, however belatedly, the winner of the 2018 American Atheists Connecticut Activist of the Year Award, Rebecca Williams.

Rebecca Williams has tirelessly served the Connecticut Atheist community for years. She's been vice president, secretary, and social director for the Hartford Area Humanists. She's also been the Hartford Area Humanists' representative to the Connecticut Coalition of Reason board and has served as the coalition's secretary. She's been the treasurer and development director for the Humanist Association of Connecticut. Rebecca started the Exceptional Secular Women of Connecticut group. She's also been very active with the Yale Humanist Community and Connecticut Valley Atheists. Rebecca was a big driver in our alliance with CT NARAL chapter. Any time she caught wind of social justice event she was there and always identified herself as a secular person.

2 September 2019

Lucien Greaves, of the Satanic Temple, sent the following message to the Atheist Humanist Society of Conn. and R.I. (where he recently spoke), "Thank you again for having me by last month to speak in Groton. I believe I spoke with you about the situation in Bethel, where they are opening up the public grounds for privately donated holiday displays. The Satanic Temple would like to enter itself as a potential holiday display donor to be entered into Bethel's lottery system. Do you have a resident in Bethel who would be willing to give us standing? We would like to apply as soon as applications are accepted on October 1."

If any of you are Bethel residents and would like to take him up on his offer, his email is lucien@thesatanictemple.com.

21 August 2019

Many of you will remember that last summer Bethel joined Vernon and Shelton in having an Atheist display joining the town's nativity scene, thanks to Bethelite James Naddeo. Some of you might have been keeping track of the back and forth in the town over what policy to set this year. The final decision was to let any town resident apply for a spot, and if there were more applications than spots run a lottery to decide what actually gets permission to go up in the park. I know Mr. Naddeo is planning to apply again. If anyone else getting this letter is in Bethel, you might consider doing so as well. Naddeo's display last year was an Atheist one, but a Humanist sign, or even a sign from a minor religion such as Satanism, would still be a refreshing change from a nativity scene.

4 July 2019

Several local groups in Connecticut have recently held movie nights for viewing the new documentary Hail Satan?, which is about the Satanic Temple, headquartered in Salem, Mass., and its charismatic leader Lucien Greaves.

Mr. Greaves will be appearing in Connecticut next month. He will be the guest speaker at the next meeting of the Atheist Humanist Society of Connecticut and Rhode Island in Groton. Here is your chance to see one of the most interesting and controversial leaders of secular America. I've heard him speak myself (in fact I can briefly be seen in the background during Hail Satan?) and was very impressed.

26 May 2019

There are two events coming up soon you should know about.

One is a protest next Tuesday (the 28th) of Franklin Graham's appearance in Bridgeport. Some of you joined us when we protested his appearance in Hartford back in 2016. I was there for that one, but unfortunately won't be able to make this one. However, I know a number of activists from Fairfield County will be there, and they're hoping to pull in people from around the state.

Time: Tuesday, May 28, 2019, 5:30 p.m.

Place: Seaside Part, 1 Barnum Dyke, Bridgeport, Connecticut

Here's the description of the protest from the main organizer, John Levin:

One of the world's worst homophobic Christian bigots is returning to Connecticut with his "Decision America - Northeast Tour". His goal is to "transform the northeast" into a flock of mindless drones that will swallow his mind numbing lies and thrive on hating their fellow humans who don't think exactly like they do. We are sure that he will have thousands of "fans" bussed in from nearby states like he did on his last visit in 2016. Join our "welcoming committee."

You can contact John at jlevin6@zoho.com or 646-221-9134.

The other event is the 16th Annual Connecticut American Atheists Summer Solstice Party at my place in Vernon. This is a picnic/barbecue afternoon affair. Every Atheist in the world is invited. Let me know if you're coming. You can do that on Meetup at https://www.meetup.com/atheists-727/events/261695101/ or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/181956809413200/ or by replying to this email.

Time: Saturday, June 22, 2019, 1:00 p.m.

Place: 650 Bolton Road, Vernon, Connecticut

The address is 650 Bolton Road, Vernon 06066, but be forewarned that some GPS systems will try to send you down Hatch Hill and Ravencroft Roads. Don't fall for it. Once you're on Bolton Road stay on Bolton Road. We're up the driveway which is across the street from the mailbox which says, "650".

25 April 2019

Over Easter Weekend I attended the American Atheists National Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was held in the Hilton Netherland Plaza, a downtown hotel with lots of art deco architectural details.

I arrived Thursday (after two days of driving) and volunteered that evening at the registration desk, so I missed the pub quiz and Cards against Humanity tournament.

On Monday the official convention started with a welcome by Kentucky State Director Johnny Pike.

Next was a talk by Dr. Hector Garcia about how religions incorporate mammalian, and specifically primate, features of males making their heads look big, e.g. with beards and hats. It included a great sequence of the many, many times Mike Pence has talked about Donald Trump's "broad shoulders".

The we heard from Kevin Bolling of the Secular Student Alliance, talking about how how local groups can appeal to students.

Then we went to a nearby park and had an Equality Rally in the rain. This was the only time I know of when we had counter-demonstrators.

After that we returned to the hotel and listened to Debbie Goddard. Goddard is a new vice president for American Atheists. She had previously spent 12 and a half years working for Center for Inquiry, mostly helping their affiliate organizations. In her talk at the convention she talked about collecting data on our members and using those to help us better.

Then we heard the keynote speaker, Jim Obergefell (as in Obergefell v. Hodges). He had married his husband John in Maryland because same-sex marriage wasn't legal in Ohio, where they lived. When John got sick and was about to die, Jim wanted to make sure he would be legally a widower, so he sued the state of Ohio. The case eventually made its way to the Supreme Court, which decided not just that Ohio had to recognize Maryland marriages, but that same-sex marriage would be legal throughout the republic.

The next speaker was Fraidy Reiss, who grew up in a ultra-orthodox Jewish community, where her marriage was arranged. She eventually got out, and is now campaigning against forced and child marriage. I hadn't been aware before her talk that there are some girls in America who are married but are not legally allowed to sue for divorce (because they're underage and children can't bring suit).

Next Dr. Zachary Moore talked about Ex-evangelicals, which are a growing population. Moore himself went from Evangelicism, to Catholicism, to Atheism.

After that Adriana Buenaventura-Martinez talked about efforts to end female genital mutilation in the United States. The practice was once banned in the United States, but that law was overturned for being too broad.

The next speaker was Alison Gill, our legal and policy vice president. She talked about Project Blitz, a project by theocrats to overwhelm their opponents (such as us) by pushing a whole slew of laws at the state level.

The last speaker was Heron Greenesmith, who talked about the conflict between some trans activists and some feminists over how "woman" is defined. She's on the former side. Her whole talk was a guilt by association argument, noting that the other side has made alliances with some right-wing organizations. She was very snarky, for instance always using air quotes around "feminist" when describing her opponents.

That evening was the awards dinner, a sold-out affair in a grand ballroom in the hotel. Johnny Pike won State Director of the Year. Samantha McGuire, regional director for the mid-Atlantic area, and one of the main organizers for the convention, won Activist of the Year. Gayle Jordan, whose talk was on Saturday, won Atheist of the Year.

I missed the movies that night.

On Saturday I missed the philanthropy panel.

The first speaker I did hear was Lorelei Eschenback of the Satanic Temple. She explained a lot about the history of Satanism in the United States and about its current state. The two main groups now are the Church of Satan and the Satanic Temple. There doesn't seem to be many if any Satanists who actually believe in Satan as a being.

The next speaker was Gayle Jordan who had twice run for state senate as a Democrat in a Republican district in Kentucky. For her latest run her opponent played up her Atheism a lot in his campaign. She lost, but no worse than other Democrats in similar districts.

Then we heard from our new president (new since the last convention, at least) Nick Fish. He talked about changing attitudes to achieve our vision, which is essentially just to make the world a better place.

We then split up into various rooms. There were four things going on simultaneously for the rest of the day, but of course I can only report on what I attended.

First, I heard Alison Gill again, talking about American Atheists' legal policy. We are now concentrating more on state issues than national issues, because with the current climate that's where we think we can have the most effect. Our priorities are 1) Prevent discrimination; 2) Limit harm to 3rd parties, such as children, and 3) Oppose special privileges for religion.

Then there was a meeting just for state/regional/territorial directors and assistant directors, with Nick Fish and Debbie Goddard. There was a lot of talk about working with affiliates, and about goals, and about what happened to our former director Jim Helton, who has recently resigned.

Then Kent Mulcahy, a local librarian, talked about how to find the right foundations to apply to for a grant.

Early Sunday morning I was volunteering at the book and product room, so I missed the members' meeting, Geoffrey Blackwell, and a panel discussion.

I did hear Frank Zindler. Zindler has been active with American Atheists since the 1970s. He talked about passing the baton to the younger generations.

The last speaker was Candace Gorham, who talked about mental health. One interesting fact was that people who are unsure about whether or not there are any gods tend to have more mental health problem than either those who are sure there are or those who are sure there aren't.

The last official event was a community service event, where we packaged tens of thousands of meals for people in need.

As always, some of the best parts of the convention in the networking and discussions among activists from all over the country.

Next year's convention will be in Phoenix, Arizona.

3 February 2019

For years the Secular Coalition of Connecticut has been working to get several needed bills through the General Assembly. This year we have a good chance for one of them. A bill has been submitted which would standardize oaths in Connecticut. Right now some oaths are fine, they allow someone to take an oath either by swearing to a god or not, as preferred. Several oaths, however, are written into state law in a way which only provides for swearing to a god. Non-believers have been able to get exceptions, but we know from reports that it can be a huge hassle to do so. This bill, SB484, would standardize the state's oaths so they all have a non-religious option.

The Secular Coalition, and I personally, urge you to write your representatives urging them to cosponsor, or at least vote for, this bill.

2 December 2018

It's that time of year again, when mayors, selectmen, and town councils across the state decide that since everyone in town is a Christian, nobody will mind if the town puts up an explicitly religious display. We here at American Atheists are in the business of reminding them that there are, in fact, non-Christian in their towns, and that we (and, for that matter, many Christians) would rather they not give any official endorsement to any religion. When a town puts up a nativity scene in a town park, for instance, we ask them to take it down. When they refuse, which they usually do, we request to have an Atheist display erected along side it. They can't refuse this (not legally, at least).

13 June 2018

Just a reminder, or a notice to those who might not yet know, on Saturday the 23rd, starting at 1:00 p.m., I will be hosting the 15th Annual Connecticut American Atheists Summer Solstice Party at my place in Vernon. This is a picnic/barbecue afternoon affair. Every Atheist in the world is invited. Let me know if you're coming. See https://www.meetup.com/atheists-727/events/250946733/ or https://www.facebook.com/events/1714996841918574/.

The address is 650 Bolton Road, Vernon 06066, but be forewarned that some GPS systems will try to send you down Hatch Hill and Ravencroft Roads. Don't fall for it. Once you're on Bolton Road stay on Bolton Road. We're up the driveway which is across the street from the mailbox which says, "650".

9 April 2018

Easter weekend (29 Mar. - 2 Apr.) I attended the American Atheist convention in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The theme for this year seemed to be, "things are bad, but there are things we can do." There were 850 people in attendance.

Thursday there were some seminars I didn't go to and some games I volunteered at the door for.

On Friday before the official start of the convention, our president David Silverman had a members' meeting, where he reviewed the state of the organization. Short version: We have no debt, we own our building, we have seven (It think it was) employees, and our financials are independently audited each year with the results available on our website. The MC this year was Californian poet Victor Harris.

The first speaker was Mary Johnson, who is now an Atheist, but used to be a nun with the Sisters of Charity, working for Mother Teresa. She described it as a very stifling environment, but wouldn't criticize Mother Teresa directly.

Next was Anthony Magnabosco, who has developed a technique called "street epistemology" for challenging believers not directly, but by asking questions to get them to understand why they believe what they do.

Next was American Atheist vice-president Kim Abell, who talked about her work passing legislation to require convicted pedophiles to have permission to contact their victims when they get out of jail. Not really on topic, except to show what a dedicated activist can achieve.

Then there was a taping of the Atheist Experience show, which I missed because I was volunteering again.

After that a female-to-male transgender student named Gavin Grimm told his story, which included successfully suing his school.

The last speaker Friday was Puerto Rico Territorial Director Shirley Rivera, who showed a video and gave a talk about the Atheist response to Hurricane Maria. After the hurricane an appeal went out to mainland Atheists, which generated $22,000. Atheists of Puerto Rico (of which Rivera is the president) used that money to buy food which they then packaged into family sized units, which they distributed by driving them to areas in need.

After that there was a screening of the documentary "Bill Nye: Science Guy", with a discussion about the movie by its director/producer David Alvarado and its social media producer Tracey Moody. That night there was a dinner and a comedy show (with Andy Wood and Leighann Lord).

The first speaker on Saturday was Mohammed Alkhadra, of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Jordan, who described the situation in Jordan and said that the Internet is doing to Islam what the printing press did to Christianity. He also criticized people in the multiculturist left who condemn non-Muslim who speak against Islam but not Muslims who call for apostates to be put to death. He was a very powerful speaker.

He was followed by American Atheist National Program Director Nick Fish, who talked about Atheists as a voting bloc which doesn't vote as much as it should. It was probably the best talk I've heard Fish give. I wondered if he was fired up by Alkhadra's talk.

After that was a talk by the Rev. Barry Lynn, who had been the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State for 25 years until he retired last fall. Soon after his retirement he had a heart attack and a near death experience of being encased in a giant whiffle ball. He mostly reminisced about his career.

I missed the taping of the Thinking Atheist show because that was during the state directors' meeting. We now have 19 state (and territorial) directors, 19 assistant state directors, and 2 regional directors, which is a lot more than last year. The plan has been to concentrate on state directors this past year and on affiliates next year. We will be providing more resources for local groups in the coming year (such as an expanded speakers' bureau and a legislation tracker) and encouraging them to become affiliates.

The first speaker of the afternoon was Mandisa Thomas, who's now a full time employee of Black Nonbelievers, arguing that the Atheist movement is still strong and mostly united in spite of some recent rifts.

Then we had the "keynote conversation" with David Silverman interviewing Hugh Laurie, an actor best known for playing the title role in the TV series House. Apparently, Laurie is a very popular guy; the room was full and late registrants watched by video in another room. Laurie talked about acting and the differences in religion between England (where he's from) and the U.S.

After that Silverman gave his annual rousing speech, getting the troops all fired up to resist the "second classing of Atheists".

After Silverman was Kelly Helton, a 13 year old student with Tri-State Freethinkers showing some youthful enthusiasm. She was followed by her father, Jim Helton, the national field organizer for American Atheists and the cofounder of Tri-State Freethinkers (tri-state being Ind., Ohio, and Ky.). "National field director" means that he's in charge of managing state directors and affiliates. He'd run the lunchtime meeting. In his talk he reiterated many of the points he'd told us, specially about helping and encouraging affiliates.

He was followed by our new legal director, Alison Gill, who warned about the efforts by theocrats to allow religious discrimination in the name of religious freedom.

At the awards dinner Saturday night the following awards were given: State Director of the Year: Vicki Gettman (Texas) Affiliate of the Year: Atheists of Puerto Rico First Amendment Award: a student whose name I couldn't find in my notes Some Other Award: Barry Lynn Activist of the Year: Jen Scott (Kentucky state director) Atheist of the Year: Hugh Laurie

The first speaker Sunday was David Tomayo, discussing artificial intelligence. In addition to the usual overview and speculations, he talked about the religious implications, such as how religions are going to have to grapple with the issue of what has a soul.

Next was Brooke Binkowski of Snopes, the rumor checking website you should be familiar with if you're not already. She talked about fake news and finding reliable sources in an age when journalism is in serious trouble.

Then we heard from Andre Salais, who is with the Atheist Candidates Project, which helps Atheists run for office. They have been concentrating on Arizona, where there are 23 openly Atheist candidates for public office this year, and where several Atheists have previously been elected.

The final speaker was Yvette D'Entremont, who is known as SciBabe on her blog, where she debunks unscientific health fads. She talked about how to not get sued. D'Entremont had recently gotten married, and after her talk her husband and David Silverman came on state, and David performed a second wedding ceremony, reading from an alternate Book of Genesis which described God creating the first man from SciBabe's rib.

After the official convention many of us participated in a charity event, where we packaged 30,000 macaroni and cheese pouches for distribution to the hungry. It was fun as well as helpful. My table was singing Bohemian Rhapsody and Oklahoma as we worked.

As usual, a lot of the value of the convention was not in the talks or formal events, but in the networking and discussions among activists from all over the country. On Friday, for instance, I had dinner with Atheists from Michigan, Kansas, Indiana, California, and Oklahoma. Next year's convention will be in northern Kentucky, near Cincinnati, again on Easter weekend.

19 January 2018

Connecticut is celebrating the birthday of Charles Darwin this year on Saturday the 10th of February (a couple days before his actual birthday).

First, the Connecticut Coalition of Reason is sponsoring an event from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Connecticut Science Center in Hartford. Prof. Kenneth Noll (UConn) will be on hand to deliver a presentation on evolution and answer questions. As a bonus, professor Noll is also a Darwin impersonator and will be dressed up to look like Darwin. People will be able to take selfies with him. The Art Truck will also be at the event and help kids create a tree of life craft, finch painting, etc. The Science Center will also have a birthday cake in honor of Darwin's birth. The cost is admission to the Science Center. See https://ctsciencecenter.org/ for more information about the Science Center.

Then, starting at 6:00 p.m. the Humanists and Freethinkers of Fairfield County will be holding their annual Darwin Day dinner. This year's Celebration returns to The Waters Edge at Giovanni's, 2748 Boston Post Road, Darien. The cost this year is $64 per person ($69 if you respond after February 3rd). The Annual Darwin Day Dinner event includes cocktail hour, dinner, science quiz (with prizes!), and a presentation by Mark Sheskin, a researcher and lecturer in Cognitive Science at Yale University, titled "What, if anything, makes humans unique?" Each year HFFC invites local high school and junior college students who are passionate about science to join them for this celebration (and to help their tables with the Science Quiz). Their attendance is paid for by attendees and committee benefactors. See http://www.darwindayct.org/ for more information about this event.

18 December 2017

I am happy to announce that Pat McCann is this year's winner of the American Atheists Connecticut Activist of the Year Award. For many of us, Atheist activism consists of getting together with fellow Atheists and complaining about how ridiculous religion is, and maybe putting bumper stickers on our cars and memes on our Facebook pages letting people know who we are. There's nothing wrong with that, I do my share myself, but change in society will be driven by those who are willing to engage the powers that be, and put in the work necessary to slowly shift the momentum of society in the right direction. As the Chair of the Secular Coalition of Connecticut (and previously as co-chair of the Conn. Coalition of Reason, and recently as Assistant State Director for American Atheists) Pat has been a leader in doing just that. Most notably, he was the main organizer for the Secular Advocacy Day (i.e. Lobby Day) the SCC held in Hartford in March, during which many of us met with our representatives and their aides as part of what will be a multiyear project to change the state's laws so they are no longer biased against non-believers and for the Roman Catholic Church. Be sure to congratulate Pat the next time you see him, which won't be long for most people active in the Atheist movement in Connecticut.

18 October 2017

Richard Dawkins, biologist, author, and long time advocate for Atheism, will be appearing at the Bushnell in Hartford on Saturday the 4th of November. See https://bushnell.org/events/richarddawkins. This isn't an American Atheists event; it's sponsored by the Center for Inquiry. I'm just passing it along because I know many of you will be interested.

8 October 2017

The Secular Coalition for Connecticut, as many of you know, is engaged in a multiyear project to get some important legislation passed in Connecticut. One problem we've been having is finding people in key legislators' districts to help arrange meetings. For instance, if we're trying to get a bill approved by its relevant committee we need to target members of that committee, and we'd greatly like to be able to meet with that committee's members. To do that, though, we usually need people in the committee members' districts. So what I'm asking is for people on this distribution list to let me know if you would be willing to help us by letting us join you in meetings with your state reps, if need be. (You won't have to say much in such a meeting; we'll have an expert on the bill under consideration to do most of the talking.) If that's OK, email me with your name, town, and either zip code or (preferably) your district numbers or representatives' names. Your information won't be used for any other purpose than this.

1 September 2017

I am proud to announce that Pat McCann is American Atheists' new Assistant State Director for Connecticut!

There's always more that can be done, and I had even once tried to recruit someone for the assistant SD position, so when Pat informed me during the American Atheists National Convention last month that he would like to take on that role, I wholeheartedly approved. He's been vetted by the national office, and they agreed.

Many of you already know Pat. He has been tireless in advancing church/ state separation in Connecticut for years, as president of Hartford Area Humanists, co-chair of the Connecticut Coalition of Reason, and most recently chair of the Secular Coalition for Connecticut.

Pat and I will be figuring out how to coordinate our activities, but from the members' point of view you should treat him as another me. In fact, when you have a reason to communicate with me as state director, whether for a church/state violation to report, an editorial to respond to, or a question to ask, you should email both of us: dphimes@atheists.org pjmccann3@atheists.org For one thing, if I'm hiking incommunicado in the mountains it no longer has to wait until I get back before it's dealt with.

So congratulate Pat the next time you see him, which, considering his commitment to the cause, won't be very long for many of you.

25 August 2017

Over the past weekend I attended the American Atheists National Convention in North Charleston, South Carolina. Usually American Atheists conventions are on Easter weekend, but this year it was in August to coincide with the total eclipse of the sun.

As with all of these conventions, although the official speakers and events were good, the best parts were the informal discussions and networking going on before, in between, and after the formal events.

The MC this year was comedian Ian Harris. I missed his act Sunday night, but he had a good joke about original sin at one point while we were waiting for technical problems to be fixed.

The first event of the convention was the members' meeting, where we heard a summary of the organization's finances and such. Membership is up, contributions are slightly down, and we're still debt-free. Every year we have an independent auditor review our books, and that review is publicly available.

Next there was the "Affiliate & State Director Meeting" with National Field Director Greg Lammers, National Program Director Nick Fish, and National Field Organizer Jim Helton. (Greg is a volunteer, and Nick and Jim are employees.) To be honest, I can't remember what was said here versus what was said in Jim's individual speech, and what was said in Sunday's private state director meeting. The gist, though, is that American Atheists seems to be getting more serious about supporting local groups. The best indication of this is the hiring of Jim for what is a newly created position which seems to be mostly for supporting those of us on the front lines.

The first speaker after the official opening of the convention was Yvette D'Entremont, the Science Babe, who talked about health diet / cleansing gurus, such as Gwyneth Paltrow. From here on I'm going to list the speakers as they appeared in the program, which wasn't always the order in which they actually appeared.

Marsha Botzer talked about the intersection of the Atheist and LGBTQ communities.

Eddie Tabash talked about the Supreme Court. I missed this because I was volunteering doing some tabling.

There was a video link with Ann Brusseel, a legislator in Belgium. I missed most of this as well.

Nick Fish talked about the Johnson Amendment. The Johnson Amendment is what prevents 501(c)3 organizations, such as churches or American Atheists, from endorsing political candidates. President Trump and many members of his party want to eliminate this. At first it might seem that it wouldn't matter much, because it would affect secular and religious 501(c)3s equally, but those aren't equal. Religious 501(c)3s aren't required to have the financial transparency which secular 501(c)3s have (to say nothing of the extra transparency American Atheists voluntarily has). The end result of Johnson Amendment repeal would be to turn churches into PACs with even less accountability than current PACs.

Fernando Alcántar talked out his step-father dying when he was a pre-teen, his conversion to Christianity, and his eventual journey to Atheism. His main point was that after his step-dad's death it was the Evangelical community which offered support, and the Atheists community has to start doing the same sort of thing.

Mandisa Thomas of Black Nonbelievers talked about running groups, saying "don't discriminate, but be discerning."

Annie Pearl Avery talked about being member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (which those of you around my age, at least, are probably familiar with) and being a black Southern nonbelieving women in the 1960s' civil rights movement.

Seth Andrews talked about the Satanic panic in the late 20th Century, mostly about the push back against games and comics (including, for instance, the Smurfs) by Fundamentalists.

Jim Helton talked about effective organizations, including the need to sometimes partner with believers.

William and Susan Trollinger talked about the Creation Museum, but frankly, I don't remember this talk; I may have missed it, or have been talked out. (It was at the end of the day).

Mark Gura talked about Secular Buddhism. He says this is a perfect opportunity to transform a major religion from within. He's also really into meditation.

Geoffrey Blackwell, the new American Atheist Legal Director (Amanda Knief got a job with the Library of Congress) talked about legal cases we're involved in. He also emphasized that most of the cases we handle originate from members informing us of church/state separation violations, and urged everyone to contact him if they learn of one.

Athena Salman is an openly Atheist member of the Arizona state legislature. She talked about her election campaign.

Susana Martinez-Conde and Steve Macknik talked about optical illusions, with some neat examples.

James Randi was the featured speaker. James Randi is a magician and long time debunker of paranormal claims. Unfortunately, I was in a meeting of state directors and only caught the end of his talk. I didn't find out until after I got back home that our own Pat McCann was one of the volunteers called up to help with a magic trick.

Matt Dillahunty talked about religious books for children.

Shirly Rivera, the American Atheist Regional Director for Puerto Rico, talked about the work she and Ateístas de Puerto Rico have done.

Marc Pagcaliawangan is a professional boxer who talked about his journey from Christianity to Atheism. It was interesting that what made him start to really think about what he believed was a stranger whom he was proselytizing just politely asking questions.

Amy Monsky talked about Camp Quest Southeast, which is going great guns.

Dr. Sian Proctor talked about the upcoming eclipse.

Herb Silverman (no relation to Dave) talked about running for office in South Carolina and challenging the requirement that any office holder in the state believe in God.

Zerin Firoze talked about being an Atheist in Bangladesh and her efforts to be granted asylum in the United States. (She's now here on a student visa.)

Anthony Pinn (who spoke at Yale not too long ago) talked about "Atheism and the Challenge of Race". I thought it was the best of the three times I've heard him talk. As an example of what he was saying, he said that it's not a good idea for a white to ask a black Christian, "How can you belong to a religion which oppressed your people for centuries?", because it's condescending; most blacks will be well aware that Christianity was used as a tool of oppression, but they also know that the situation is more complex than that, and Black Christian churches have also help liberate them.

Kathy Johnson talked about how Jess Sessions is more interested in obtaining conviction than in using accurate forensic science, a bit off topic, but interesting.

Angela Mattke gave a history of medical knowledge from Hippocrates to Vesalius, showing how it became less about gods and spirits and more about physical processes.

American Atheist President David Silverman gave his Firebrand Atheism talk, which many of you heard at the SANE convention in West Haven.

Aron Ra talked about running for state office at an Atheist Democrat in a Texas district which usually doesn't even bother to nominate a Democrat.

Besides the speakers there were several events after the speakers were done. There was a debate with a Christian on Thursday and some social activity on Friday, but I was in Connecticut during the former and skipped the latter. On Saturday there was a panel on the recent movie "The Most Hated Woman in America" about Madalyn Murray O'Hair, the founder of American Atheists. I hadn't seen the movie, so I didn't go to the panel. On Sunday there was an awards dinner. Brian Fields won Atheist of the Year. Athena Salman won an award (Activist of the Year, maybe?). Tristate (Ind., Ohio, and Ky.) Freethinkers won Affiliate of the Year. I won State Director of the Year. The big after-speaker event, though, was the total eclipse of the sun Monday afternoon. The forecast for the day was partly cloudy, so we didn't get our hopes up too much. We were given eclipse safe glasses and gathered outside the hotel on a patio, with Dr. Dian Proctor talking us through the eclipse. There were also some telescopes with solar filters. During the early stages of the eclipse the sun kept going in and out of the clouds. About 15 minutes before totality there was a blue patch which really looked like it would be right beneath the sun then, but it was not to be; the last I saw the sun it was a semicircle. Twilight came with black clouds and lightning, and it was really cool, but no corona.

There's an announcement relating to something decided at the convention of interest to Connecticut Atheists which I'll make when it becomes official.

Next year's convention will be during Easter Weekend in Oklahoma City. I hope to see a lot of Connecticutpeople there. Not only are there always interesting speakers at these conventions, but also a lot of eye opening conversations with activists from very different parts of the country. I know not everyone can afford it, or afford it every year, but if you can swing it I highly recommend it.

2 August 2017

Pat McCann, the chair of the Secular Coalition of Connecticut, will be speaking at the Yale Humanist Community on Sunday the 13th.

Title: The State of Secular Connecticut: Communities, Activities, and Activists

Abstract: Pat's talk will focus on building awareness of Connecticut's thriving atheist/humanist/freethinker community. He'll describe some of the great things the individual groups are doing and emphasize the need for outreach. Pat will also talk about what Connecticut's secular activists are doing as well as the Secular Coalition for Connecticut's legislative efforts in the state. Lastly, Pat will discuss how members of the audience can engage in as much, or as little, activism they want and why it is important to do so.

Meetup link: https://www.meetup.com/Yale-and-New-Haven-Humanist-Community/events/240614745/

7 June 2017

On the 3rd I debated a "presuppositional Christian" at Groton Public Library. Here is the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCLp8uahRos&feature=youtu.be I do make a few minor errors at 1:49:08. I talk about dozens of copies of each gospel in the First Century when I should have said dozens of copies of the gospels in the Second Century, but the point holds.

On Saturday the 24th, starting at 1:00 p.m., I will be hosting the 14th Annual Connecticut American Atheists Summer Solstice Party at my place in Vernon. This is a picnic/barbecue afternoon affair. Every Atheist in the world is invited. See https://www.meetup.com/atheists-727/events/239715542/ or https://www.facebook.com/events/1507747159235714.

3 May 2017

There are two big events coming up in June for Connecticut Atheists.

On Saturday the 3rd of June, starting at 1:00 p.m., I will be debating Christian Apologist Alexxander Medeiros on the question "Is there a God?". This will take place at the Groton Public Library. Although there are a lot of spaces available for this, they're not unlimited, so if you're coming I ask that you sign up at the AHSCRI Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/Atheist-Humanist-Society-of-CT-and-RI/events/239529904/

On Saturday the 24th of June, also starting at 1:00 p.m., I will be hosting the 14th Annual Connecticut American Atheists Summer Solstice Party at my place in Vernon. This is a picnic/barbecue afternoon affair. Every Atheist in the world is invited. See https://www.meetup.com/atheists-727/events/239715542/ or https://www.facebook.com/events/1507747159235714.

4 February 2017

The Secular Coalition for Connecticut is holding its first ever Lobby Day, known as Secular Advocacy Day, at the state capitol in Hartford on Monday, 13 March 2017. If you are a Connecticut resident and are able to make it on a Monday, I urge you to participate.

At Secular Advocacy Day you will meet with your state senators and representatives to discuss issues important to secularism in Connecticut. There are several bills in particular we are pushing: 1) Patient's Right to Know Act: With an increasing amount of religiously affiliated hospitals merging with secular hospitals, many patients are unaware that their options for care are dictated by religious doctrine. The Patient's Right to Know Act would mandate that religious health providers inform patients of about procedures that are not permitted, such as sterilization procedures and prescribing contraception. 2) Oath standardization: Current Connecticut law is inconsistent as to whether or not swearing to God is required when taking an oath. This bill will standardize oaths so no one would be required to swear to God. 3) Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill: Although this will not be enacted this year, we want to keep our legislators aware that it has wide spread support, and push harder for it next year.

The SCC will be providing materials and training for you, so lack of experience lobbying will not be a problem. To register for Advocacy Day fill out the form at this link: ct.secular.org.