Scott Douglas Jacobsen: You met Richard Dawkins. Many consider him the most famous atheist of the New Atheist movement. Where did you meet him? What was it like? What did you get to ask him?
Mohammed Charlie Khadra: I met Richard Dawkins at the international conference of free expression which was the largest gathering of ex-Muslims in history. It was very brief as people were all over him. I just thanked him for being the spark which leads me to atheism.
Jacobsen: When did you become convinced of it? That is atheism.
Khadra: It was back in 2012 when I was on the midway between looking into sects and religions were. I started a new path to look into which was: what’s goes science say about all of this? Later that year I became an atheist.
We can all agree on one simple idea, no proof of a supernatural deity exists. That’s pretty much what we all have in common. Other than that we can’t say that we stand for something else although most of us appreciate free speech, science, and human rights.
Jacobsen: What are your current tasks and responsibilities in activist work for the non-religious?
Khadra: No one can say of at certain tasks or set of ideas that an atheist has. We are left wing and right wing, active and non-, so some choose to be “militant” some might focus on saving those at risk, some choose to just keep it to themselves. What I mean is there are no responsibilities that come with atheism.
Jacobsen: What do you see as the next steps for atheism in North America?
Khadra: While we win on some grounds and lose in another North America is soon to be a ground to lose in. With the introduction of laws to limit people’s rights, Canada and Trump’s “protection” of religious “rights”, people there are giving up their rights in exchange for peace. What they don’t understand, this type of behavior, especially with a fascism, the only result is more rights being asked to be dropped and more lives to be lost if they don’t obey.
Jacobsen: Thank you for the opportunity and your time, Mohammed.