Written by A. M., News Team | 26 December 2012

I worked in a Iranian police office for two years, and it was common to see women being mistreated by the so-called Morality Police on Tehran's streets. The Morality Police have not been trained in any aspects of moral studies, but have have been given the authority to stop people on the street, give them advice on their outfits and ask for immediate action.  People can be arrested if they do not follow this advice, on the grounds of abusing the Islamic hijab. This has become a social phobia in Iran.

Stories from people who have dealt with the Morality Police show that there are no clear laws and rules in place; the Morality Police treat people according to their own personal wishes. A husband and wife who were arrested say that it occurred because the wife was wearing a white outfit. The Police forced the wife to sit inside a minibus in Narmak Square in Tehran, while photographers from different agencies took pictures. When the husband complained about the situation he was also arrested and taken to the police station. This is only one of the minor cases that acts to suppress dissent - treating people who wear 'different' outfits as though they are not a part of society and have to be taken away.   Sometimes activities by the Morality Police are reported in the Western media (eg here and here) but usually they are not.  

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Written by Anne, News Team | 24 December 2012

Grinch....or just different?  (image: Dr Seuss' The Grinch)

Our poor senses have been abused recently by the most prominent holiday of the year (at least in Western countries): Christmas. Even as a budding atheist last year I celebrated it. It can be quite fun. But it always feels as if those who choose not to participate in these yearly solstice-based activities, be it due to their beliefs or lack thereof, are demonised in our culture. Even the basic act of ignoring the Christmas season is seen as supremely anti-social.

For some reason, it seems to be those few social 'commentators' who think that their insightful rantings and lists on why EVERYONE should be joyful around Christmas time always receive publicity in the media. Those who write nice and simple articles about the need for some variation in holiday music for the non-religious among us and those of other religions [1] are ignored in favour of things such as one of the many over-hyped nonsense lists on "Why you need to stop being a Christmas grump". [2]

Those who come out against public collections of art only depicting nativity scenes are shown as 'grinches' or 'grumps'. Those who ask that Christmas messages are not splayed over every wall and window in shopping centers are told to be quiet and bare the brunt of the mass marketing of an over-stated holiday. And don't even start about the infamous 'war on Christmas'. [3] It makes me want to rip my hair out even more than the holiday and its consumerism itself. 

So, for those of you out there who don't need a certain date on which to give gifts to those whom you love, for those of you who don't see the significance in celebrating a conglomeration of pagan and Christian traditions, and for those of you who prefer to read a book or play games instead of listening to "important sounding dead languages" [4] during a mass, I say to you, you are not alone.

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Written by administrator | 18 December 2012

AAI President Carlos A. Diaz talks to Kylie Sturgess on the Token Skeptic podcast about Atheist Census and the growth of atheism worldwide.

Written by administrator | 16 December 2012

MEDIA RELEASE

On 7 December Atheist Alliance International (AAI) launched Atheist Census at www.atheistcensus.com, a global project to count and capture a snapshot of the world’s atheists.  The response to Atheist Census was very positive, with 8,880 entries confirmed and another c. 2,300 pending before it was taken offline as a result of a DoS (denial of service) attack, about 17 hours after launch.   

Atheist Census is now back online with a higher level of protection, and entries have already grown to over 20,000.  The President of Atheist Alliance International, Carlos A. Diaz, said "It seems that there are people who do not want atheists to be counted, who do not want to accept that as more people question and think critically about religion atheists are a growing demographic.  It is a measure of the project's success - even at this early stage - that some people wanted to shut it down."  He added "While truth and fair public policy are not determined by popularity, demonstrating the significance of the non-religious community will assist our efforts to promote a secular world.  I encourage all atheists to be counted in Atheist Census."

Participants in Atheist Census identify their preferred non-religious title, religious (if any) background, education level level, age, gender identity and country.  Participation is free, with an option to make a financial donation to help cover development and operating costs. 

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Written by Jo Stephanie, News Team | 13 December 2012

For a second it seemed that Malawi was on its way towards improved rights for its gay community. After being sworn in as President in April 2012, Joyce Banda promised to overturn the country’s anti-gay laws. Following this, in November 2012 the Malawian government announced that it was suspending anti-gay laws and ordered police to stop arresting gay people.  Malawian churches acted swiftly to strongly oppose the announcement. As reported by the Independent/Reuters, the Malawi Council of Churches, a coalition of 24 church groups, pressured the government until its backed down and reversed the decision.

While Malawi is officially a secular state, recent events show that separation of church and state does not occur in practice. In Malawi (and many other African countries) religious institutions use their positions to influence national politics and further their agendas. Gay people continue to be marginalised largely due to religious influence.  As a gay man in Malawi put it, the Council of Churches "believes that gays are not human beings and should not be allowed to be free." [1] Secularism promotes human rights for all but, as demonstrated in Malawi, religious institutions choose their particular interpretation of their particular god’s law over human rights. 

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Written by administrator | 12 December 2012

AAI President Carlos Diaz talks to Han Hills on the Cape Reason podcast about AAI projects and atheist activism in Argentina - enjoy!