In his Jan. 20 letter to the Tacoma News Tribune, Brad Elken asks of the crisis in Haiti, “Where are the atheists?”

Atheists are precisely where we’ve always been: giving what help we can to people who need it. Countless atheists and free-thought organizations have united under the aegis of Richard Dawkins’ Non-Believers Giving Aid, a multi-organizational drive to raise money for the people affected by the terrible earthquake in Haiti. Together, we’ve already raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for two admirable secular organizations: the International Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders.

True to the message of the holiday sign we placed outside of the Capitol building this past year, Seattle Atheists extends its resources and thoughts to those suffering, regardless of creed, belief, or religion. For the past several years, we’ve raised thousands of dollars for Seattle Children’s Hospital, we donated a large sum of money after the 2005 tsunami, we organize a year-round blood drive, and a year-round SeasonLESS Food Drive, which provides food throughout the year — not just during the traditional holiday giving season. We have a project underway now to donate books to our troops overseas with Operation Paperback.

Unlike the religious groups mentioned by Mr. Elken, these organizations do not proselytize or use tragedies as an easy opportunity to convert vulnerable people. Christian organizations are exploiting the situation in Haiti by distributing solar-powered talking Bibles. The Haitian people don’t need bibles — they need clean water, food, and shelter. They need doctors, medicine, engineers, and aid workers to rebuild their country. They do not need faith-based opportunists who are already using the crisis as if it were a fire sale for religious conversion and salesmanship. They don’t need organizations that use charity as a Trojan horse to spreading their beliefs to vulnerable people.

The earthquake in Haiti was a tragedy, not an opportunity. Access to the country is limited right now. Every evangelist getting off the plane takes the place of a doctor. Every Bible is crowding out medical supplies.

Let’s be good for goodness’ sake.

The Board of Seattle Atheists

To ensure rapid response to this tragedy, we would like our readers to donate immediately to any of the following charities working right now to help the people of Haiti:

Humanist Charities Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund

We urge all members of the humanist and freethought community to join us in the relief effort. You can make a donation to the Humanist Charities’ Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund online, or by calling 1-800-837-3792.

The Center for Inquiry

CFI is accepting disaster-relief donations through its S.H.A.R.E. program to support those providing care to the survivors of the magnitude-7 earthquake. 100 percent of all donations will be sent directly to the secular aid group Doctors Without Borders, which suffered the loss of all
three of its medical facilities and is working against difficulties to provide the basics of first-aid care and stabilization.

Please make your contribution to S.H.A.R.E. here. All funds sent to S.H.A.R.E. are tax
exempt in the United States.

Red Cross

Donate to the American Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund here:
http://american.redcross.org/

Additional charites:

MADRE
Partners in Health
Doctors Without Borders
Americares
International Relief Teams
Mercy Corps

The response from Christians (especially Bill O’Reilly!) to the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s Winter Solstice sign in the Washington state capitol in Olympia has been over-the-top negative and intolerant, to the point of theft and vandalism. In addition to recognizing the winter solstice, the real reason for the season, our sign says “There are no gods, no devils, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.” Although a small minority of educated believers, while disagreeing with our message, does support our freedom to express our views, the overwhelming majority considers our message to be an inappropriate affront to their celebration of the holidays and want to see it removed.

It’s almost the opposite with the atheists and agnostics we hear from. Based on the emails and phone calls I receive from nonbelievers, the support for our sign is about 95% positive. Annie Laurie, who sees more responses than I do, says it is 99% positive. Many FFRF members have asked for a replica of the sign that they can frame or display in their own yards. The Foundation has been signing up hundreds of new members as a result of this one controversy alone.

A small minority of atheists and agnostics (not all members of the Freedom From Religion Foundation) think the wording on our sign should be changed. Some think it is too strong. Others think it is not strong enough!

That wording was written by FFRF founder and president emerita Anne Gaylor, which offers a nice balance of celebration and criticism. Any one of the 13,000 members of the Freedom From Religion Foundation might have come up with a different wording, but Anne’s lovely version has stood the test of time. For the 13th year in a row, those exact thoughts have appeared in the Wisconsin capitol building, and although there was some early theft and vandalism, it has stood virtually unmolested for most of that time. We have heard that it has become a tourist attraction!

Our sign is an “equal time” protest. It would not be there if there were not religious signs and symbols in those buildings in the first place. If believers are going to use state property to promote their views, then we nonbelievers insist on a place at the table. We are not destroying their symbols or interfering with their private freedom to worship or express their views. We are simply reminding the country that there are millions of good Americans who do not believe in a god or celebrate Christmas. Christians do not own the month of December. This season of the year is a natural occurrence, the winter solstice being the day of shortest sunlight in the northern hemisphere. Long before Christianity, humans have celebrated this time of year with festivals of light, feasts, evergreens, songs, and family gatherings. Christians don’t own the franchise. We are happy to share it with them.

Some people think our sign is an insult, and that we should avoid hurting feelings this time of the year. But if our measured criticism of religion is inappropriate, then certainly the Nativity Scene, which suggests that we are so evil that we need a Savior in order to avoid the tortures of hell, is a much deeper insult to human nature. If they insist on attacking us, we will defend ourselves. If they will remove their creches and religious messages from state property, we will be happy to remove our sign.

Ultimately, what we all want is a world with less violence and more understanding. The Freedom From Religion Foundation is taking advantage of our wonderful American freedoms to educate the public about how we can achieve that, by resisting religious divisiveness and advising: “At this season of the Winter Solstice may reason prevail.”

The only man never to be redeemed is the man without passion.

We at Seattle Atheists feel that the sentiments expressed in the sign are unfortunate.  We cannot endorse the language or sentiments expressed on this sign.  We feel it was divisive, hostile, and does not represent a good-faith attempt to promote the separation of church and state.  In fact, we feel it has done damage to the public perception of atheism.

Seattle Atheists feel that a statement relating directly to the separation of church and state, or a seasonal gesture of universal goodwill and equality would be appropriate if a non-religious sign is to be placed on public property.  While the State of Washington is ultimately responsible for giving permission to place private holiday displays on public property, we place a high value on the separation of church and state and support the removal of *all* private displays from the rotunda in Olympia, including the Winter Solstice plaque.

The FFRF is a nationwide organization is based in Madison, WI. It was founded to promote the separation of state and church. Its purposes are to promote the constitutional principle of separation of state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to non-theism.

Seattle Atheists is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization committed to education and community. Through education, we strive to educate the public and change the image of atheism. We strive to promote understanding and respect toward all freethinkers by opposing discrimination and emphasizing reason and critical thinking. Seattle Atheists provides community services, including blood drives, participating in public radio pledge drives, and gift wrapping, of which 100% of the proceeds benefit the Seattle Children’s Hospital.

Seattle Atheists, 11008 NE 140th St., Kirkland, WA 98034, (206) 729-0327