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.
I don’t usually post about various leadership changes within our movement, but this one was particularly interesting because I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Chinese person’s name on the masthead for any national atheist group, at least in North America. (If I’m wrong, please correct me.) John Xu, who began volunteering at CFI in 2007 and started his own secular student group at York University, has just been appointed the Acting Director of CFI Canada’s Toronto branch. It’s a… Read more
Today, the “Mississippi Student Religious Liberties Act of 2013” goes into effect. The law makes student-led, administration-supported proselytizing perfectly legal in the state’s public schools. The state’s House passed it on a 109-6 vote, while the Senate supported it 50-1 (the lone “Nay” vote was cast by the aptly-named Democrat Deborah Jeanne Dawkins). Republican Governor Phil Bryant signed it into law in March: What does the law say? While much of it just reinforces laws that are already in place (e.g. Students can pray without punishment, Students can form after-school religious clubs), it also allows for Christians to push their faith onto other students in ways we’ve often fought against: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Yesterday, American Atheists unveiled a bench engraved with quotations from prominent atheists and church/state separation advocates in front of the Bradford County Courthouse in northern Florida. It was in response to a Christian group’s Ten Commandments monument that county officials had allowed on the premises. Now, we have video of the full ceremony from start to finish (via CRUClEFICTION): Leave any noteworthy timestamps/summaries in the comments! Read more