Please note: This post has a different comment policy than my standard one. Please read the entire piece to the end before commenting. It’s not that long.
A few years ago, I compiled a list of prominent atheists of color, and organizations of atheists of color, here on this blog. I did this for a number of reasons: mostly so that conference organizers, event organizers for local and student groups, anthology editors, bloggers, journalists, and people who are simply participants in the atheist community could easily be made familiar with the work of a wider range of atheists — a range that’s more diverse, and more reflective of the actual makeup of the atheist community. (tl;dr: Conference organizers, you no longer have an excuse. 🙂 )
The list is now somewhat out of date, and I’d like to update it. Please let me know in the comments if you know any of the following:
People/ organizations who should be on the list but aren’t. IMPORTANT: Please don’t just list their name! I need their name, the URL for their blog/ website if they have one, and a SHORT list of credentials: books, blogs, publications they write for, achievements, etc. Compiling and updating this list is enough work without having to do a ton of Googling.
Also important: Please DO NOT hesitate to nominate yourself for this list! If you’re an atheist of color and you’re any sort of public figure, either within the atheist community or outside of it — blogger, community organizer, scholar, scientist, author, artist, musician, activist, whatever — please let me know. Again, please provide your name, URL for your blog/ website if you have one, and a SHORT list of your credentials. And if you’re already on the list, but your information is incorrect or incomplete, please let me know.
People/ organizations who are on the list but shouldn’t be. If there’s anyone on this list who isn’t actually an atheist, or has stopped identifying as an atheist since this list was first created, or is no longer a public figure and has dropped off the radar, please let me know. Also, if anyone on this list is now dead, please let me know: this is meant to be a list of atheists of color who are alive and active now. And if any of the organizations on the list have since folded, please let me know.
NOTE ABOUT BLOGGERS: If a blogger hasn’t updated their blog in six months, and hasn’t stated on their blog that they’re taking a hiatus and plan to return, I’m going to drop them from the list, unless someone gives me a strong argument for keeping them on.
Up to date credentials/ biographical info. If the credentials/ biographical info for anyone on this list is out of date — if people have new books, new blogs, new positions at their organizations, if they’re working for different organizations, etc. — please let me know.
Up to date URLs. If you know the URLs for any of the people on this list who don’t have URLs listed? If there are URLs on this list that are out of date, and you know the current URL? Please let me know.
Once again, here’s a link to the original list.
A couple of notes on what I’m looking for here:
First: This is not intended to be a list of famous atheists of color throughout history. That would certainly be an awesomely useful project (and if anyone knows of this project existing, please speak up!) — but it’s not this project. This is meant to be a list of atheists of color who are alive and active now.
Second, and very importantly: I do not want to get into an argument here about why we need this list, or how we should just be color blind and ignore race altogether. In a perfect world, maybe we wouldn’t need it. We don’t live in a perfect world. Among other things, well- meaning people can unconsciously perpetuate racial bias without intending to… and we need to take conscious action to counter this unconscious tendency. If you think the atheist movement doesn’t need to make a conscious effort to be more inclusive, then please read these pieces:
Getting It Right Early: Why Atheists Need to Act Now on Gender and Race
Race, Gender, and Atheism, Part 2: What We Need To Do — And Why
And if, after reading those pieces — not skimming them or reading the titles, but actually reading them — you still think we don’t need to make a conscious effort to be more inclusive of people of color, then please make your arguments ON THOSE POSTS. Not here. Comments here arguing that we don’t need this list will be disemvoweled or deleted. This post is for people who will find this list useful and informative, and/or who want to make suggestions about keeping it accurate and up to date.
I do welcome some degree of debate here about whether a particular person should or should not be included: are they really an atheist, are they prominent enough (although I’ll tend to err on the side of inclusion there), etc. But I do not welcome debate here about whether this list should exist. Thank you.
Third: Please make your suggestions here, in comments on this blog. Please do not email them to me. I do want there to be an opportunity for public discussion about additions, deletions, or other changes. (And I’m somewhat concerned about assholes trying to troll the list: that’ll be less easy to do if there are eyes on the process other than mine.) Also, it’s easier for me to manage this if all the revisions are in one place. Thanks!
Note: I know that there are problems/ issues with the phrase “people of color” (among other things, it lumps together people from widely divergent cultural backgrounds as if not being white was the same experience for everyone). In general, I’m trying to use the phrase less. In this case, though, I’m going to stick with the phrase, imperfect though it is: brevity is key here, and anyway this list has a lot of people linking to it and citing it and searching for it, and I don’t want to screw that up.
Oh, and in case you’re not already aware of it: here, in a similar vein, is a large list of awesome female atheists, compiled by Jen McCreight at BlagHag.)
Thanks for your help!
Great list! Some nominations (in alphabetical order):
Deanna Adams
Blogger Musings on a Limb
https://musingsonalimb.wordpress.com/
Board Member Houston Black Non-Believers
http://www.houstonblacknonbelievers.org/
Jeremiah Camara
Filmmaker “Contradiction”
https://www.youtube.com/user/camara714
SCA’s Secular Artist of the Month:
https://www.secular.org/blogs/lauren-youngblood/october-secular-artist-month-jeremiah-camara
Yau-Man Chan
Survivor Contestant
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2013/02/19/former-survivor-contestant-explains-why-hes-an-atheist/
Guest speaker American Atheists National Convention 2014
Appeared in “A Better Life” Book
Steve Hill
Atheist Stand-Up Comedian
http://nogodbutfunny.com/steve-hill
Performer American Atheists National Convention 2015
http://atheists.org/convention2015/schedule
Sincere Kirabo
Blogger Notes From An Apostate
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/notesfromanapostate/
Contributor at The Humanist
http://thehumanist.com/contributor/sincere-kirabo/
State Director American Atheists
http://atheists.org/activism/state-directors?
Leighann Lord
Co-Host Star Talk Radio
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leighann_Lord
Stand-Up Comedian, Performer American Atheists National Convention 2015
http://atheists.org/convention2015/schedule
Asif Mohiuddin
Atheist Blogger in Bangladesh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asif_Mohiuddin
Guest Speaker American Atheists national Convention 2015
Peter Mosley
Blogger at Camels With Hammers
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/camelswithhammers/2014/12/welcome-peter-mosley-to-camels-with-hammers/
Blogger at barrierbreaker
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/barrierbreaker/author/pmosley/
Michael Nam
CFI New York
http://www.centerforinquiry.net/nyc/about/torchbearers/
Founder Secular Asian Community
https://www.facebook.com/secularasiancommunity
Lilandra Ra
Blogger at Ace of Clades
http://freethoughtblogs.com/aronra/
Former Host at The N0nes
https://www.youtube.com/user/Th3N0nes
Host Ra-Men
Faisal Saeed Al-Mutar
Founder Global Secular Humanist Movement
https://www.facebook.com/GSHMP
Contributor at The Humanist
http://thehumanist.com/contributor/faisal-saeed-al-mutar/
Guest Speaker American Atheists National Convention 2014
Appeared in “A Better Life” Book
Marisa Torres-Langseth
Founder Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society (PATAS)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_Atheists_and_Agnostics_Society
Vic Wang
President Humanists of Houston
http://humanistsofhouston.org
Blogger Deus X’ed
https://deusxed.wordpress.com/
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/01/30/more-annoying-atheist-cliches/
Note: Many of the above have also been guests on various podcasts, webcasts, etc. but I kept the links to their “core” credentials; can provide more if needed.
And unfortunately, Avicenna Last probably meets the criteria for removal:
http://freethoughtblogs.com/dispatches/2015/01/03/avicenna-has-been-removed-from-freethought-blogs/
I saw this headline on Hemant Mehta’s blog earlier this week:
“What Ta-Nehisi Coates, an Atheist, Can Teach Us About Social Advocacy”
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2015/07/20/what-ta-nehisi-coates-an-atheist-can-teach-us-about-social-advocacy/
Wikipedia’s article on Mr. Coates also says that he is an atheist:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ta-Nehisi_Coates
And this Atlantic Monthly article cited in Wikipedia confirms that Ta-Nehisi Coates is an atheist:
Sorry — forgot to post the link:
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/12/the-myth-of-western-civilization/282704/
A couple corrections/clarifications to the list I posted above:
-Asif Mohiuddin is *from* Bangladesh, but thankfully has obtained asylum in Germany after an attempt on his life which he barely survived
-Marisa Torres Langseth has retired from PATAS, but she may still be active in the freethought movement in general (as she did participate in this FTBCon panel recently, as did several of the others from the above list):
This is very nice whenever someone recognizes me apart from my spouse. I do also co-write Living Science Videos to help teachers and students understand science better. I have spoken on a few occasions too.
We also formed a coalition with regional community and student groups to work on Texas Secular issues together. https://www.facebook.com/groups/texasfreethoughtcoalition/
It was my idea, after dealing with stuff like Moses in Texas History as individuals with Aron.