I live in a small city in northern Michigan. You drop the "A bomb" here and watch the loving Christians do what harm they can. Would you like to take a guess at how I know this?

Julie

parents and my siblings. Being a an atheist in the black community is asking to be castigated as the social pariah.

Interesting.

Is generally considered to be Ayaan Hirsi Ali (since Hitchens' death). At least that's what I read on the InternetZ, so it must be true.

As predictably as clockwork, on slow news days, this crap about women in atheism comes floating back to the top of the toilet bowl. But atheism is not, and never has been, an "old white boy's club."

Quick now, who founded American Atheists, one of the first such groups, in 1963? Madalyn Murray O'Hair, a Certified Woman.

Who founded the most in-yer-face current secular group, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, in 1976? Anne Nicol Gaylor and her daughter, Annie Laurie Gaylor.

Just Google "women atheists" and you'll find long lists of women active in atheism and secular activism, some of them for many years.

of fear of being vilified or punished. People are social, I have a friend who is Jewish. He's an atheist but he attends the synagogue every Saturday because he likes his social cultural gatherings of his background. He knows he will be booted out of the club so he stays silent.

and titled it 'atheism is often seen as male, stale and pale'. They could have had one with her in - neither 'stale' nor male:



It was her idea; Dawkins supported it:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atheist_Bus_Campaign

I think the article puts the situation in the UK fairly well. If you looks at polls on religious categories, women tend to be slightly more religious, and also slightly more in 'not sure' categories. But it's women who are more affected by the conservative influence of religions.

looks far too much like a religion? Seriously?

Perhaps you should clarify, because if that's what you're actually saying, it would be pretty transparently silly.

I think that everyone knows the name of one of the most famous atheists in the US, even if they have never heard of Dawkins or Harris. And Madalyn Murray O'Hair was a woman. She was the most outspoken atheist in her time. It is just bullshit to discount all of the women who are atheists just because the media pays more attention to the men. Remember, the media is responsible for who we are aware of, and who we have never heard about.

until that point go do some homework on female atheists.


(Mostly aimed at the author)

But I can certainly see how women and POC would be hesitant to come out. It's not as if they've been treated well by our "family values" America. I don't blame them for not wanting to add evil atheist to the list of reasons to be crapped on.

so don't expect that to happen any time soon. The males will continue to preen and strut and pretend that they, alone, possess the wisdom of the ages the way they already do.

However, we're still here. For every male atheist, there's at least one woman atheist. We have far more reason to discard belief in male gods and men's religions.

At least here, where we're all black print on a white screen, we can be "out."

Dog bless him, he's fighting the good fight but it's a steeeeeply uphill struggle. Just the little bit I see him interact with his family on FB makes me worry on his behalf. I'm sure I barely have any idea how tough it must be for him but he is also one of the most optimistically awesome people I know. He inspires me every day.

an issue in the black community but it's getting better.

asshole, but atheist.

It went something like:


"Is Religion Becoming Feminized?"

and then when on to talk about how women were taking over religion.... whatever that means.


Of course that was years ago!

I wish people would make up their minds about what women "should" and "should not" believe!

Some women want to be totally subservient to a male, but I'd guess that the majority of women do not. They don't want to be treated like second-class citizens.

And when you add in all the ways that women can be victimized, raped, even killed for absurd transgressions, you'd think that a lot of women would want "out."

I've seen a few examples of this; however, the women sought out another religion or another branch of Christianity rather than chuck the whole make-believe bullshit. Sad.

like pre-pre-school early. From the time we joined the fundamentalist baptist church (we were religious from my youth but my mom didn't get fundie until she divorced my dad and married step-asshole when I was 10 or so) it was drilled into me how women were here to support me and drilled into women that was what their god expected.

Great deal for me but shitty one for all my female friends. They are indoctrinated daily with it and in a lot of churches they are so isolated from the real world it's years and years before they realize life can and should be different. Sadly, it's too late for most by then.

...and so impressionable.

One of the regrets I have for not having any children of my own is that I was not able to raise any freethinking heathens. I'm confident that they would not have rebelled against me and become fundies. So I have tried to "talk down" religion pretty much whenever I get the chance. It is so easy to ridicule. At last check, three out of four of my nieces/nephews are atheists, and they are all in their 30's now.

Our roster is just a list of people who don't belong to any of the other clubs.

But I'm in the north-east. Maybe that changes the numbers?

Last edited Fri Jan 22, 2016, 02:29 PM - Edit history (1)

From my purely subjective and grumpy point of view. Since I recently re-located from Los Angeles back to the Deep South, where I grew up.

I'm surrounded by nice little old church ladies who keep trying to set me up with their spare daughters, nieces, cousins, etc. I guess because I'm male, unattached and (barely) breathing.

Don't want to piss them off since many are my Mom's friends. She keeps telling me they mean well. I keep telling her "So did Hitler."

So far, every potential candidate has been some toxic mix of right-wing Repub, Southern Baptist or Evangelical.

Or just weird. No thanks. I'd rather not end up starring in a "Rose For Emily" scenario...

The payoff mentality makes me choke. I'd like to meet a man who really appreciates a thinking woman, in stead of seeing me as a threat to his inner b.s.

Not like say... the RCC?