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.
While we’re on the subject of the challenges high school atheists are up against, the Secular Student Alliance group at La Porte High School in Texas wanted to put up flyers advertising their group. To make that happen, the school administration had to approve the design (a standard procedure at high schools). When they submitted a design for approval, this is the message they got back from the principal: The principal’s note at the top — in reference to the… Read more
A couple of years ago, atheist Rob Sherman filed a lawsuit because Illinois legislators were giving $20,000 to the Friends of the Cross organization “for the purchase and installation of new exterior panels for the cross to replace existing panels that are missing, worn or rusted.” That’s the long way of saying the state was giving money to restore this 11-story monstrosity: That’s the Bald Knob Cross in Alto Pass, Illinois. Sherman filed the lawsuit (PDF) in August, 2010. The… Read more
Dave Silverman of American Atheists interviewed the controversial Executive Director of the Secular Coalition for America, Edwina Rogers, and he gets right into the issues people have been talking about online: Highlights: 7:29: Dave asks her to justify the Republican politicians she’s worked for: On social policies, they’re the “bad guys,” right?! Rogers acknowledges that the GOP has indeed shifted hard to the right when it comes to the social trends, but says that she was never involved on those… Read more
In response to FFRF’s “It’s Time to Quit the Catholic Church” ad campaign (the latest one appeared in USA Today over the weekend), co-presidents Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor received this nugget of Jesus-y goodness in the mail: I would be angry about it, but that “Aloha” stamp is just too adorable. Read more
This week marks the release of the paperback version of Penn Jillette’s bestselling book God, No!: Signs You May Already Be an Atheist and Other Magical Tales As it turns out, he’s making a stop near Chicago this Thursday to promote the book and I’ll be interviewing him in person before his talk. It’ll be recorded and transcribed for the site. What I need from all of you are questions to ask him. Leave them in the comments. I’ll select… Read more