Hemant Mehta is the founder and editor of FriendlyAtheist.com, a YouTube creator, and podcast co-host. He is a former National Board Certified math teacher in the suburbs of Chicago. He has appeared on CNN and FOX News and served on the board of directors for Foundation Beyond Belief and the Secular Student Alliance. He has written multiple books, including I Sold My Soul on eBay and The Young Atheist's Survival Guide. He also edited the book Queer Disbelief.
Last week, the Freedom From Religion Foundation chapter in Chicago put up an atheist display at North School Park in the city of Arlington Heights. It included a five-foot-tall Scarlet A and a banner reading “Are you Good Without God? Millions are” (courtesy of the Chicago Coalition of Reason): It’s been a week, and I just got word that the display was vandalized: The top of the banner was ripped out of its grommets and the eyehooks that kept the banner attached to its stand were missing. Read more
Ryan Bell is the former pastor who decided to “try on” atheism for a while when he felt a little pulled in that direction. His decision even cost him his job. For the past several months, he’s been blogging on Patheos at A Year Without God, though his year is about to come to an end, so it’ll be interesting to see what he does after that. In the meantime, Bell recently gave a speech at the Center For Inquiry in Los Angeles detailing his theological views and how he came to put his faith to the test. Check it out! Read more
We are still talking about the Mount Soledad cross for some reason. Here’s a quick recap in case you’re unfamiliar with the story: This controversy, which began nearly 25 years ago, is the longest-running Establishment Clause case in American history. It involves the Mount Soledad cross in San Diego — a huge cross on public land erected in 1954. After the now-deceased Philip Paulson challenged the cross’ constitutionality more than two decades ago and after atheist Steve Trunk took up the case a few years ago, atheists have generally prevailed in the court system. In 2012, the Supreme Court declined to hear any more challenges from Christian groups, putting the future of the cross back in the hands of lower courts. Read more