Reason Rally 2012

Reason Rally

Don't let anyone tell you that the rally was less than a success. People were amazing today. The American Atheists held a wonderful rally, with people from all over the planet presenting, and tweeting. So let me tell you about the reality of this event.

Imagine around twenty thousand people standing in the rain. Coming out to stand up for something they may otherwise hide. Today the closet door swung wide open and atheist walked out. After all homosexuals have been coming out, but us atheists were hiding behind them.

I met a lady in the crowd who told me how alone she feels. How she does not understand why people do not come to the conclusion that there is no god. I told her it is because we want that comfort, but us atheist must admit to our need for comfort. We must admit we have been hiding because we are afraid of being seen as monsters, and evil. We hide because we are less trusted than rapists, which is horribly shocking. We hide because people do not want us "corrupting" their kids. We hide because that boss may not hire us,simply because of a lack of a delusion. We hide because we may not want kicked out of our apartments, homes,and neighborhoods.

We have to ask ourselves if we are doing more harm than good for the cause. After all I spoke about moderates, but are we moderating our selves? No one should walk up to every person on the street saying, "did you know there is no god?" Yet people walk around asking if we have been saved, and if we believe in Jesus. We should not get that in your face about it in my opinion, but we should be willing to say who we are. We should care to change what people think about us. We should work to help promote the cause of rational thinking, and critical thinking.

So we need to be involved, and be part of our community. Stand up for critical thinking. Fight back for science, and not just wait silently for change to come. So from today forward join a group, find your fellow atheists, talk to people about who you really are. Let them know you can be just as loving and compassionate, and warm, and caring as ever as an atheist. Let them see you were and always will be that same person. As David Silverman said, "They loved you then, they can still love you now."

The rally was a complete success in so many ways. People shared umbrellas, and huddled close. They stood for hours in the rain, and cheered. They stood for what they believe, and united for a cause. Today was a joyous event, because it marked the first time so many people who are atheists gathered, and showed their voice. Even though Fox news will mock us, and most media will try and ignore us, we came out of the closet today, and we are never going back in.

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