Hello again!
Ok so I am a couple weeks late on this one. This is partly because this is the SECOND time writing the damned thing because somehow, Bloggr didn’t save my progress and when I left the page to check some sources the type was GONE! Needless to say it took a while for me to muster up the motivation to write it again… There was a lot to cover here with three days of activities and material so I can't cover everything but I'll touch on some fun highlights.
I had been planning to attend this event since the summer of 2013, before I started this blog project. I figured it would work in well with what I am doing here and cover the taboo subject of disbelief and non-religion. I had purchased a ticket some months prior to the event; however in February I won a video contest and received free admission. Being that I now had two admissions I went ahead and gave one to Chad so that he might attend as well, so everything worked out great! Unfortunately Chad was only able to join me on Sunday as everything was winding down, as he was being held captive at Comic Con across the street. However, I was able to participate for three fun-filled days! I’ll try to touch on as many points as I can.
In this entry I want to review my experience at the convention and then later in a second entry, cover atheism in general; what it is, some of the misconceptions and stigma surrounding it, etc. Now, I realize that Atheism isn't technically a religion (depending on some people’s own definition) but it is a very important topic to cover when addressing religion because it is a rapidly growing movement and becoming more prominent in the media, politics, and in the public arena. To understand why it is important, one must know what it is; what it really is, not what they are told in Church on Sunday mornings or what they hear on Fox News or the media.
So here's the breakdown for the Atheists...
ATMOSPHERE: 10/10 candles
I felt very welcome here, I had a name tag and everything!The
event was held at the Hilton hotel in downtown Salt Lake City. It was classy,
clean and comfortable, although the air conditioner was cranked up the whole
time making it a little cool in the event room. The feeling here was different,
it wasn’t like being in a church of course, but I have never really been to
conventions as a visitor before. I had done some volunteer work at science
conventions before and even presented a research paper but being in the crowd (though
small as it was) was a different feel.
There was a book store where I happened
to purchase Deconverted by Seth
Andrews, creator of the Thinking Atheist Radio Podcast and one of my favorite podcasters,
and The Heathen’s Guide to Western
Religions: the Mormons by David Fitzgerald. Adjacent to the bookstore was
the grab ag area, where for $25 I was able to purchase a small cloth bag and
fill it up with as much merchandise in the grab bag room as I could and the best
part? Free refills! I went to town here, grabbing one of everything, T-shirts,
books, pins, literature, tons of fun stuff!
There
were also various retailers and vendors of secular memorabilia attending the
event. Atheist groups and local secular organizations came and set up booths
with pamphlets, pens, and kind words of encouragement, and offering support to
those who have left or are leaving their religion. It can be difficult letting
go of your faith and these groups are there to give people emotional support
and direction when you feel lost.
If any of my readers are having doubts,
just know that you are not alone and there is a host of communities that can offer help and support. You are not a freak, you are not evil or wicked, you are all capable of greatness and you can be good without God. If you feel you are in need of advice or direction, you can Google an
Atheist group near you, most have Facebook pages. You can also contact a number of national organizations such as
Utah residents may consider checking out
Help is out there, you just need to know where to look. I urge all who are so inclined to even start their own Facebook group because you never know who is out there and looking, if you are already out and active, you can be a beacon and bring people together. We live in the golden age if information and the internet has been a powerful driving force for societal change, use it.
Honestly, I have to say that the people made the event! If it weren't for the great new circle of friends and the kind people I came to know I would not have enjoyed myself near as much! The people were very nice and open.
This was a gathering of people with different views and walks of life, most were of course atheist, others agnostic, and there were even a few Chistians there I came to find. I was nervous at first, being that this was my first atheist convention, but as the event progressed I warmed up more and the anxiety settled a bit by the second day. I met and befriended a small group of people who then helped introduce me to others.
I met a wonderful young woman from Canada during an hour long intermission between scheduled talks, as I was talking to prominent atheist youtuber, AronRa. I was meeting new people left and right! No sooner was I taking shameless fanboy selfies for the blog did I meet someone who would later be a key contact and dear freind throughout the rest of the event. She was going with a group of her friends to walk around temple square and invited me to tag along then introduced me.
Matt and his wife. Both gave talks at the convention (see Service section)
Here I am with Mr. Deity
Aron Ra debating a street preacher outside the hotel. see the video HERE
A fellow Utah local, who lived in Salt Lake, guided us around temple square and provided us commentary and interesting facts about the buildings and monuments as well as a bit of history about the Mormon church between sips at his hidden bottle of vodka! Very knowledgable fellow who knew all the best places to eat and drink.
On this tour I had the pleasure to walk with host of the popular public access television show "the Atheist Experience," Matt Dillahunty and his wife Beth. All these folks helped to make this a fantastic and memorable experience for me. I got to meet Seth Andrews, host of "The Thinking Atheist" radio podcast, my first and favorite podcast radio show; he even signed the book I bought. Author David Fitzgerald gave a talk on the Mormons. Later he too signed a book that I bought.
SERVICE: 10/10
Well, it wasn't so much a service as an event. It was the annual convention of American Atheists. It boasted around 37 secular vendors and merchants, among them was Evolvefish.com who had a booth where I was able to purchase a few humorous bumper stickers, ties, and comical evolve fish bumper magnets! If you are looking for a way to creatively represent yourself Evolvefish.com has something for you, t-shirts, games, toys, you name it' loads of fun stuff! I may have spent too much money here but I think it was worth it.
Each day there were a host of different speakers and their talks were on various subjects from activism to politics to overcoming challenges and discrimination as an atheist. All the talks that I attended were great, each spoke to me in a different way and hit home somewhere. Relatable stories as well as some so powerful they moved me to the fringe of tears. Some funny and others serious.
One talk that really touched me was done by Beth Presswood on coming out Atheist. She shared her story and gave advise to those who whished to be open about there disbelief in God to their families. She covered the potential risks that arise when you become open about being an atheist; believe me, they are real! She also gave some tips and advice on how to approach the topic with your family and friends. Big thanks to Beth for the tips and advice and for sharing her journey. If you are reading this, know that you are awesome and you have a family here, big hugs!
Other talks such as the one by the one and only Mr. Deity were lighthearted and funny. For those who are not acquainted with his work I recommend visiting his YouTube channel. He does good natured parodies about biblical flaws and inconsistencies. Don't worry, for many they are even considered Christian friendly, non antagonistic, and just fun.
Check out his work HERE
There was a brilliant talk done by Matt Dillahunty focusing on debate. I have always liked hearing Matt speak, he is one of the hosts for the public access television show, The Atheist Experience. It is a live call-in show where they have discussions with viewers (often Christian but not always) about their beliefs and why they believe. They also archive their episodes on a podcast and have a YouTube channel. You can access their website here The Atheist Experience
This is a great source of debate material and familiarizing yourself with topics that often arise between believers and non believers.
I was really looking forward to the final talk on Sunday but the daily events started late so unfortunately I had to walk out early on Seth Andrew's talk on Christian alternatives to pop culture. See the Christian alternative to 80's hair metal here!!
Many very good musicians but are mirrors of successful non Christian artists. They provided Christian alternatives to music that was "ungodly" so that youth could still rock out, only now they head bang for Jesus.
Seth is an excellent
speaker and has an interesting story himself. He was once a radio host for a Christian Talk Show and devout Christian. He has a lot of
experience with video production, a gift for storytelling, and his work is top notch! I recommend his
video on the Noah Story as an introduction to the kind of work he does.
You can find Mr. Andrews' YouTube channel here: The Thinking Atheist
I also HIGHLY recommend his podcast: http://www.thethinkingatheist.com/podcast
MESSAGE: 10/10
You are not alone, it is ok to ask questions, I'm fact question everything! You do not need to be live in a god to be a good person. All the messages in the talks I attended were positive messages of encouragement, empowerment, and reassurance.
This is of course referencing the talks and presentations. I can't say that all exchanges among the attendees were positive in nature, some people shared there resentment over some religious positions, policies, etc. however these were private exchanges between individuals and weren't taken into account in my survey.
This has always been the case in my blog, the words that matter to me are the ones addressed to me or the audience as a whole from the podium or pulpit. I am doing my best to be fair and honest.
Messages did vary from speaker to speaker based of course on their topics. They were overall quite positive. A few jests and jabs at the validity of Utah's State religion but nothing notably harsh, vulgar or baligerant. It was all tactful, addressing points, and calling out falsehoods. Personally I don't consider pointing out fallacies as discriminatory. If you feel I am in error, please leave comment in the comment section.
OVERALL: 10/10
There were workshops, activities, a comedy show, a movie screening, and many other fun little bonuses that I was unfortunately unable to attend. In spit of that I made many memories with great people, building what I hope to be lasting friendships. It is reassuring to see that there are many more people in my shoes and that I have a wonderful community full of support.
Next year the national convention will be in Memphis Tennessee, I will have to make an effort to get out there and check it out!
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