By Scott Douglas Jacobsen Gavin Riley is a persistent student at the University of New Hampshire. Our focus here, today, is on the ways in which even for the best of efforts; the student groups and secular initiatives can fail. Our aim is to provide a lens on the honest failures and real successes of attempts… Read more »
By Scott Douglas Jacobsen — The Breeze reported on some of the experiences of a Secular Student Alliance student group on the campus of a North American school or JMU (James Madison University) started by Kate Hurley. Hurley was raised by Catholic parents. However, in early life, she came out as a homosexual and an atheist.… Read more »
By Scott Douglas Jacobsen Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What are your main concerns for the secular community off campus, in society that is, now? Karen Loethen: Oh, Scott, so many. I’ll try to keep my capitalizations down to a minimum. Lol I have HUGE concern for the many ways that the religious right has put institutional religion into… Read more »
By Scott Douglas Jacobsen Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What is family background — geography, culture, language, religion/irreligion, and education? Karen Loethen: Thanks, Scott. I come from a small town in Illinois, just your basic homogeneously white, lower-income Christian small town. My family didn’t really practice religion much until I was in my younger teens. My own parents come… Read more »
By Scott Douglas Jacobsen Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What is family background — culture, education, geography, language, and religiosity/irreligiosity? Kayla Bowen: I grew up very poor. My high school was at one point ranked one of the worst in the state of Kentucky. I attend Morehead State University now as a Psychology and Philosophy double major. I’m also… Read more »
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What are the current biggest threats to secularism on campus? Professor Michael J. Berntsen: Anger and insulation. Most campuses have provisions for free-speech, but people’s anger and inability to listen to unpopular thoughts have threatened those policies. The main issue is that Americans have confused unpopular with controversial and illegitimate. For example, anti-vaccinations… Read more »