Hi, all! I have some speaking gigs coming up in Richland WA (Columbia area); Columbus OH; Manteca CA; San Juan Puerto Rico; and Winnipeg Manitoba. If you’re in or near any of these cities, I hope to see you there!
CITY: Richland, WA
DATE: Tuesday, June 16, 2015
TIME: 6:00 pm
TOPIC: What Can the Atheist Movement Learn From the LGBT Movement?
SUMMARY: The atheist movement is already modeling itself on the LGBT movement in many ways — most obviously with its focus on coming out of the closet. What else can the atheist movement learn from the LGBT movement… both from its successes and its failures?
LOCATION: Riverfront Shilo Inn, International Ballroom, 59 Comstock, Richland, WA
HOST: Tri-CIty Freethinkers
CO-SPONSORS: Mid-Columbia Pride and the Mid-Columbia Coalition of Reason
COST: Free
EVENT URL: https://www.google.com/calendar/render?eid=YzF1NW5laTNsMWltcjQ3OHN1ZzExcWdvaHMgZnJlZXRoaW5rZXJqZW5uQG0&sf=true&output=xml#eventpage_6
CITY: Columbus, OH (2015 SSA Annual Conferencee)
DATES: July 10-12, 2015
EVENT: 2015 SSA Annual Conference
TOPIC: Activism Burnout: Prevention and Treatment
SUMMARY: One of the most important keys to the success of the atheist movement is keeping activists engaged for the long haul. But the most inspired and motivated activists are often the ones most likely to eventually burn out. What are some practical strategies for preventing burnout — and for managing it when it happens? And how can activists support each other in not burning out?
LOCATION: The Ohio State University, Ohio Union, 1739 N. High Street, Columbus, OH
HOST: Secular Student Alliance
COST: $49; low-cost lodging in dorms available; group discounts available
EVENT URL: secularstudents.org/2015con
CITY: Manteca, CA
DATE: Wednesday, July 15, 2015
TIME: 7:15 pm
TOPIC: Coming Out Atheist – How To Do It, How to Help Each Other Do It, And Why
SUMMARY: Coming out is the most powerful political act atheists can take. But coming out can be difficult and risky. What are some specific, practical, nuts-and-bolts strategies we can use: to come out of the closet, to support each other in coming out, and to make the atheist community a safer place to come out into? What can atheists learn about coming out from the LGBT community and their decades of coming-out experience — and what can we learn from the important differences between coming out atheist and coming out queer?
LOCATION: Manteca Library, 320 W Center St, Manteca, CA
HOST: Stockton Area Atheists and Freethinkers
COST: Suggested donations of $20 to support this and future colloquiums are appreciated.
EVENT URL: meetup.com/Stockton-Atheist/events/219545698/
CITY: San Juan, Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Regional Atheist Conference)
DATES: August 21-23, 2015
EVENT: Puerto Rico Regional Atheist Conference
TOPIC: Coming Out Atheist – How To Do It, How to Help Each Other Do It, And Why
SUMMARY: See above
LOCATION: Sheraton San Juan Hotel and Casino
HOSTS: American Atheists and Humanistas Seculares de Puerto Rico
COST: $99.00
EVENT URL:
CITY: Winnipeg, Manitoba (River City Reasonfest)
DATES: September 19-20, 2015
EVENT: River City Reasonfest
TOPIC: TBA
LOCATION: Canad Inn Polo Park, 1405 St. Mathews Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba
HOST: Humanists, Atheists, & Agnostics of Manitoba
COST: $125; $99 early bird special through August 1; $84 student rate
EVENT URL: rivercityreasonfest.org/
Thank you for the presentation last night, Greta. I appreciate the insights you shared with us. I am left puzzling over what better to do with the observation that our choice to be godless is viewed as fundamentally threatening to religious believers, that , in contrast, they could ‘look past’ a biological imperative (being gay). That is a big difference in perception.
My approach has been to eschew criticizing a person’s dogma, for the most part, and focus on the specific harm that is being done by that belief. I don’t care to ridicule the insanity of Leviticus before them, but rather point out the harm that is being done to their LGBT child or nephew by rejecting them. Let them find their own scriptural basis for adopting a more healthy outlook on the world.