Mississippi Atheists

Secular Student Alliance Group Approved at Southern Miss

2011-10-05T05:55:00.001-05:00

There are a few active atheist groups in Mississippi, but the Hattiesburg area has never been fortunate enough to have one. That could be about to change.

The University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg) has approved the charter of a new student group, the Secular Student Alliance at Southern Miss. This group has the distinction of being the first Secular Student Alliance (SSA) chapter in Mississippi. Congratulations to all involved!

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Expanding Your Group in Harsh Territory

2011-09-27T05:52:00.001-05:00

Here is Gordon Maples speaking on how atheist groups can thrive in the South. This is from a Secular Student Alliance conference, so his focus is on atheist groups at high schools and universities in the South.

He has some good ideas:

Exposure. Simply exposing Christians to atheist ideas is an important start. Chalking campus sidewalks is a popular method used by all sorts of campus groups. I see it every day.
Collaboration. Meeting atheists from other campuses and hearing about what has worked for them can be a great source of ideas. Check out S.E.C.A.A. as an example of what this could look like.
Persistence. Sticking with it and not giving up are critical. Initial efforts will often be met with unpleasant reactions; however, sticking with it and standing one's ground can lead to success.
Expand. Get your group's name out there and keep it out there. Constant recruitment will preserve the future of the group when current leaders graduate.

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Starting a Secular Student Alliance Group in Southern Mississippi

2011-04-26T16:08:00.001-05:00

Efforts are underway to start a chapter of the Secular Student Alliance at the University of Southern Mississippi. What the group-in-the-making most needs now are Southern Miss students who are interested in helping to form the group so that it can obtain official recognition from the university. That is, the university will not recognize new student groups that do not have a certain number of members.

As soon as a sufficient number of students have come forward, a meeting will be organized and work will begin on drafting the group's charter (another requirement of the university), electing officers, etc.

A Facebook page has been started to spread the word, and a closed group has been created for interested students.

Additional details will be provided when available. In the meantime, if you know anyone who might be interested, please let them know.

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Secular Life Revisited

2009-10-29T13:37:00.005-05:00

After reading the recent post here at Mississippi Atheists, I've been extremely impressed by the recent public outreach efforts of Secular Life in Nashville, TN.

The results have been astounding. I recently received an email from Thaddeus that within 48 hours their membership has added 100 new folks interested in this world view.

In and of itself this should show how such direct outreach really helps correct misconceptions and provides a platform for activism.

It is even more significant when you consider that the actual billboard hasn't even been activated yet. It is set to start this Sunday.

All of this interest is merely the prologue due to press features and interviews regarding Secular Life and the non-religious perspective.

Here is a WKRN video of the most recent interview ~

Secular Life - Not Religious? You're Not Alone

My view is that this was one of the best presentations I've seen in this news format with little to no associated caveats to instill veiled support for theism that usually occurs in these sorts of interviews and monologues.

This is the sort of approach that gains ground and builds a positive community and I hope to see more of it.

Nashville Gets Atheist Billboard

2009-10-25T09:05:00.000-05:00

One of the things that Christians living in the American bible belt often fail to appreciate is just how alienated we atheists can feel among them. Here in Mississippi, it seems that there is a church on every corner, and yet, it can be a challenge to find even one other atheist with whom to converse. This is why blogs like this and atheist meetup groups are needed - to help those of us living here to realize that we are not alone.

On November 1, 2009, Nashville, TN, is scheduled to get a billboard just like this one:

Secular Life is the group sponsoring the billboard. In recent correspondence with Hemant (Friendly Atheist), the group's founder had this to say:

…hopefully it will bring awareness that there are positive communities who are non-religious doing good in the community. Our primary objective is to bring together as many like minded non-religious people as possible, spending less time on divisive labels and rather concentrating on the broadly shared characteristic of being non-religious and thus Secular.

This is exactly the sort of thing needed in every community here in the South. A simple reminder that we are not alone goes a long way indeed.

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Mississippi Atheists Group at Atheist Nexus

2009-09-26T09:30:00.000-05:00

Even though there are more atheist-related events and meetups occurring in Mississippi than many of us realize, there are still many Mississippi atheists who live a distance from such activities. For those of you who fall into this category, I'd just like to remind you that there is a Mississippi Atheists group at Atheist Nexus. Admittedly, it hasn't been as active as it could be. I know I don't remember to visit it as often as I should. Still, it isn't a bad place to visit for some discussion. And besides, Atheist Nexus has grown so much that there are all sorts of interest groups on virtually any topic one can imagine. Hope to see you there. You can find me at http://www.atheistnexus.org/profile/vjack.

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Promoting Atheism in Mississippi

2009-06-19T07:59:00.000-05:00

Image via Wikipedia

Friendly Atheist recently addressed an article by Crystal Dervetski of the Minnesota Atheists on the subject of promoting atheism. I found myself wondering how some of the suggestions might or might not apply here in Mississippi. I tend to think that the intensity of public hostility toward atheist might vary somewhat between Minnesota and Mississippi, but I have not spend enough time in Minnesota to do more than speculate.

Crystal's first tip certainly seems to apply:

First, be positive! There’s nothing worse than a negative atheist, mostly because that is exactly the atheist stereotype: doom and gloom, mean-spirited, angry with the world. So don’t be!

I'd argue that atheists should be angry about anti-atheist bigotry, threats to church-state separation, and the like. Of course, the trick is turning that anger into effective activism and not merely sinking into passive bitterness.

Be open-minded and willing. You won’t ever learn new things or meet new people without, at least at times, just going for it.

Absolutely! By remaining open to new experiences, we open ourselves up to all sorts of positive experiences. Of course, I'd suggest doing this because it will make us more effective and not because I am worried about confirming some sort of "lonely atheist" stereotype.

It seems to me that one of the best initial steps one can take to promote atheism in a place like Mississippi is simply to recognize that other atheists are here. I know it often feels like you are alone, but there are others with the same thoughts about gods who may feel just as alone. The bulk of Crystal's article deals with starting local atheist groups, and she has some good suggestions.

Undoubtedly, there are obstacles to forming local atheist groups. There may even be some that pose greater barriers in Mississippi compared with Minnesota. Still, the few atheist groups in our state prove that it is not impossible.

Introducing the Jackson Skeptical Society

2009-05-21T07:37:00.000-05:00

Image via Wikipedia

The Jackson Skeptical Society is not exactly a new organization. They were formed in January of 2009. However, since I just found out about them, I figured it was as good a time as any to announce their presence. Their goal is simple:

We aim to provide the city of Jackson and the area at large with a resource for critical thinking to allay the superstition of our times.

This is exactly what we need in our state. I just added their blog, Living Better Skeptically, to our list of Southern blogs worth reading.

Coming Soon: The Southern Skeptical Society

2009-02-20T09:59:00.000-06:00

Image via CrunchBase

Efforts are underway to create the Southern Skeptical Society, a group from Southeast Mississippi to Orlando, Florida, interested in supporting science and reason in the Southern U.S. The group is now in its infancy but trying to spread the word and stimulate interest. They are working on acquiring a web domain. In the meantime, those on facebook can find them at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=51753147667.

Secular Street Car Ads in New Orleans

2009-01-31T05:56:00.003-06:00

Image via Wikipedia

We have just learned that the New Orleans Secular Humanist Association is about to start running a street car ad. We do not have the details yet of exactly what the ad will say, but it is great to see reality being promoted in our area. I think street car ads are a great idea for New Orleans because they'll be very high visibility.

New Atheist Group in Alabama

2008-12-17T05:43:00.000-06:00

Image via WikipediaThanks to Friendly Atheist for bringing this to our attention. A new atheist group has formed in neighboring Alabama, the Etowah County Rational Alliance. That is probably about as safe a name for an atheist group in the bible belt as I've heard, and I like it. More information about the Gadsden-based group can be found here. Their first meeting will be held this Sunday. I wish them great success and applaud their efforts.

Oxford Humanist Society Needs Organizer

2008-07-30T05:51:00.006-05:00

The Oxford Humanist Society is looking for a new organizer. If you are interested, visit their Meetup page within the next two weeks to learn more.

Mississippi Atheists on Atheist Nexus

2008-07-11T07:23:00.002-05:00

Mississippi Atheists now has a group on Atheist Nexus. If you are not familiar with Atheist Nexus, you should check it out. It is sort of like Facebook for atheists, humanists, and freethinkers. It is very new but already has over 1,000 members. Of course, we could use more Mississippi atheists there. Once you sign up, be sure to join our group, fittingly called Mississippi Atheists.

Louisiana Tech Gets Secular Student Alliance Group

2008-04-16T05:42:00.000-05:00

Good news for atheists across the South is a scarce commodity, but I'd like to share some. Louisiana Tech University now has a chapter of the Secular Student Alliance on campus. Most universities have dozens of student groups, with some boasting hundreds of such groups. And yet, groups for freethinkers are relatively scarce. I just hope this particular group at Louisiana Tech survives. You see, the reaction to their presence has been...well, less than positive.

Writing for The Tech Talk Online, Meredith Maines informs us:

Vicedomini said she and co-founder Rachael Drella, a sophomore physics major, were not surprised to find their informational posters provided by the SSA torn down. In turn, they designed new posters, minus the bold atheistic headlines, using instead the euphemism "freethought society."

Fortunately, it seems that there is at least one pastor in the area who thinks the group may be something other than evil incarnate.

[Pastor Jason] Mayhall said he believes both sides should engage in dialogue regarding their beliefs more often.

"I think we should react favorably to it," Mayhall said. "It should be a natural crossroads for us to come together and talk about it. [Christians'] ideas need to be challenged just as much as theirs do."

Not only does Mayhall believe discussion to be beneficial, he also said non-believers should be offered an apology for some Christians' unChrist-like behavior.

"It would be healthy and humbling for secular students to be able to vent their frustrations about Christianity to Christians," he said. "We'd probably find we share very similar ideas."

I applaud the Louisiana Tech students who founded this group and hope they succeed. I'm sure they will continue to encounter opposition, but I am confident that there are many on their campus who will also appreciate their presence.

H/T to The Friendly Atheist

Tags: atheist, South, Louisiana Tech University, Secular Student Alliance, campus, Louisiana Tech, Louisiana, freethought

New Google Group for Mississippi Atheists

2008-03-14T07:48:00.001-05:00

Blogs are a great way to disseminate information and generate discussion around particular topics but probably not the best way to encourage interaction and socializing among a large group. For this reason, we created a Mississippi Atheists group through Google Groups to supplement this blog. This group is open to all atheists living in Mississippi, and we hope it will facilitate interaction and provide a means of socialization for atheists across the state.

If you are not familiar with Google Groups, they work much like Usenet groups or listservs, depending on how you configure your preferences. You can receive individual or digest e-mails from everyone on the list or participate through a web-based discussion forum. This flexibility is part of what makes the service so appealing.

Tags: Mississippi, atheist, atheism, Mississippi atheists, Google, Google Groups

Atheist Groups in Mississippi

2008-03-01T11:26:00.002-06:00

I have been pleasantly surprised to discover a number of atheist groups in Mississippi through meetup.com. I'm in the process of adding these to the left sidebar, so please feel free to let me know of any I've missed so I can add them. Also, if you are an active member of any of these groups, I'd love to do a brief interview via e-mail with you for a post here to help promote your group. As this site grows, I hope to provide readers with detailed information about atheist events and groups across the state.

Tags: Mississippi, atheist groups, atheist, atheism