Black Atheists
Offline At our last local atheist meeting someone pointed out that no one in our group was black. His intention was to suggest we reach out to blacks, mexicans, and other minorities to get more variety and opinions in our group. Before he got to his point, everyone appeared shocked at his initial observation, so I think his point was generally lost. Keep in mind this is in Oklahoma, so there is still a lot of racial tension just at the mention of "black". I do not think anyone in the group is racist, but the topic of race is still taboo here. Due to the reaction of the crowd, I decided not to state my opinion on the subject, so i'll do it here instead....
I have noticed that minorities seem pretty willing to accept religion. I always thought of this as a way for them to "fit in" with society better. If you are a minority in a group of racist people, that is "one strike" against you to begin with. It would be wise to do what you can and lay low and blend in as a survival technique. Imagine if you are a black atheist in a racist christian town, you don't have a chance in hell. If you become a christian, at least they might not lynch you.
I also imagine that is why most "out of the closet" atheists are white. We are the majority and we can take our "one strike" and survive.
This is a hard subject to research online since searches with "minority" and "atheist" usually result in atheists as a minority instead of minorities as atheists. I just wanted to get others opinion.
p.s. Lots of respect to Greydon Square for his work. I was blown away the first time I heard his music and saw how open he was with it. He is definitely an exception to my previous statement. He has no fear of being a double minority when most of us have fear of being in a single minority.
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Good points adams_antics
I been wondeing the same thing. I reached out to cool black girl FreeThought, ( said I luv her but I scared her somehow?. Come back girl , I just "like" you , okay? )
any hoot, I think it's ALL about making real education and freedom available to all, of ALL A FREE world. No Borders, No Division, No Masters, No Work, ALL for FUN for ALL.
btw, Mother Eve was Black, of course there was a mom before that !
I will now Google "Black Atheists" and check it out http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=black+atheists&btnG=Google+Search
))) I miss you FreeThought , old grampa here, I did say "carrot juice"
( but I can still rock it good, and drink beer ! )
I want more Black friends .... really, and Red ones TOO !
"I have a dream", a Beautiful Human Race, that no longer needlessly suffers ....
Yeah prophet Martiin Luther KING, I love ya man, ya make me tear up friend, and we killed you
..... ??????
Atheism Books.
If you're truly interested in this subject, I'd suggest speaking to Mike Estes. He's a gentleman I met at the AAI '07 conference, got to speak with him a bit at the fundraiser and sat through his presentation on atheists & freethinkers during the civil rights movement.
He has some interesting thoughts on the matter, and his presentation was incredibly educational.
This is a little bit outside of my realm of knowledge, but I do know a little. Generally, poverty and religious adherence are positively correlated across nearly all cultures. In America, the poorest groups are blacks and hispanics. Poverty and dire lack of education are also correlated. Worldwide, atheism is generally found in the best educated portions of societies.
It's certainly a chicken and egg question, but there is no doubt that in America, most atheists are white, and those blacks and hispanics who are atheist are not outspoken. Consider that it's hard enough for a white male, the most priviledged kind of person in America, to 'come out' as an atheist. Imagine how hard when 99% of everyone you ever see is a theist!
Atheism isn't a lot like religion at all. Unless by "religion" you mean "not religion". --Ciarin
http://hambydammit.wordpress.com/
Books about atheism
Black Music < so Gospel it is, SOUL baby, Blues, RAP, R&B ! remember Wolf Man Jack radio !? , just think of all those great great Black Artists.
Fuck yeah, Jimi, Aretha, Miles, on and on and .... so fucking COOL !
,and don't forget the Arab, and China music too !
Atheism Books.
I love 'Freethought Makes Me Tingle' too but I'm inclinded to agree with Hamby's analysis on this one.
Although, I'm starting to wonder - has no one here heard of the Infidel Guy? Perhaps Neil DeGrasse Tyson then?