An Atheist Under Attack!
For those who aren’t already aware, I’m a first year Computer Science student at Royal Holloway, University of London. I live in halls, in a flat with 7 other people. Most, if not all of them are from a Christian background and would call themselves Christians, however the fact that I am openly atheist has never discouraged them in any way. Of course the same could not be said for other inhabitants of the halls, as I would find out within the first few weeks of term.
I’d met a fellow atheist in the neighbouring flat, and we had both decided that the university needed an “Atheist Union” of sorts to oppose the active Christian Union. We drafted up some posters explaining our cause and purpose, and began sticking them up around campus, mainly in the vicinity of our halls. After a few days, 3 of them had been torn off the wall and ripped into pieces. Evidently, I thought, there were some people who really didn’t like atheists. So I reprinted them with a message that tried to get through to their sense of reason. I wasn’t imposing on their beliefs, so why should they impose on mine?
The posters stayed up a few more days…before being ripped down again. I gathered up the pieces, stuck them back together, and decided to display them on my door, as a kind of “shrine” dedicated to my futile efforts to reason with these people. One of the posters I found still intact, but with the words “Pricks” and “Nobs” (British slang for the word “penis”) written across it.
Nevertheless, I managed to build up a small gathering of atheist and agnostic students after we changed our name from “Atheist Union” to “Atheist & Agnostic Alliance” (for an awesome alliteration). Things were going well, until a few weeks ago, when the vandals struck again…only this time they attacked my door.
I have stuck many posters to my door during the year, the vast majority of them atheist in nature. For instance, I have a poster depicting the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and a copy of an advert supposedly taken from some fundamentalist publication. I don’t really mind if it is real or fake, I just find it funny every time I look at it:
Now I should point out at this point that these posters are on my property, and not in the way of anyone (unless you are entering my room), so they shouldn’t cause a fuss. Of course as soon as the fundamentalists found my room this all changed. The first vandalism was the writing of the word “douchebag” on one of my posters, which I promptly reprinted. The second vandalism was much more serious, and happened just over a week ago. The word “douchebag” was written on the same poster again, and the word “gay” next to another. A load of breakfast cereal was poured on the floor as well.
I have since asked my flatmates to keep the interconnecting door closed and the vandalism has stopped for now, though I doubt it will cease completely. For what is supposedly one of the most secular universities in one of the most secular nations on Earth, it is surprising to see how vile some people can be.
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
There are no related posts...have some random ones:
Subscribe to my RSS Feed if you like what you read!
Loading ...
Hang in there Adrian. Don’t let the fundamentalists keep you down! ;)
dirvish
11 Mar 08 at 5:21 pm (GMT)
Do you have any evidence that is was fundamentalists or are you just assuming?
If you are on an Atheists “crusade” (to oppose the active Christian Union), then why are you crying about your posters?
anon
12 Mar 08 at 2:35 pm (GMT)
anon,
Any person who decides it is right to rip apart posters can be described as “fundamentalist”. I did not say they were Christian, as I have no evidence for this, but they were certainly not rational members of society.
Perhaps “oppose” was too harsh a word. What I meant was form an organisation to challenge them as a group. Every single time they meet, they discuss either the “threat” of secularism, the “fiction” of Evolution, or the “immorality” of homosexuals in some way. This was not a group that should be allowed to just flaunt their views without opposition, although certain people think otherwise.
Our relations with the CU have been very friendly, and a debate was organised and executed without any major glitches a few weeks ago. We aren’t out to deny the CU anything, we just want to argue for our rational viewpoint.
Adrian Hayter
12 Mar 08 at 5:08 pm (GMT)
Dude, did you ever consider it could be GOD that did it? Hmm? He wouldnt like you besmirching his name, and it would be harming him.
In all seriousness, though, it could be a completely rational atheist who is taking them down. For perfectly logical reasons.
Peter
16 Mar 08 at 2:42 am (GMT)
Peter,
How exactly am I besmirching God’s name by advertising an atheist union? I’m tired of people always assuming atheists are against God in any way.
In all seriousness, it is impossible for a rational atheist to take down those posters. Maybe an irrational one who is a jerk, but not somebody who is rational enough to understand freedom of speech and expression.
Adrian Hayter
16 Mar 08 at 4:10 am (GMT)
I love the spiritual safety poster, its hilarious. The only thing I laughed harder at was the fact that advertised on the left side of your post was an ad for Ben Steins ‘Expelled’ a pro creationist/ID movie.
anon
13 Apr 08 at 5:54 pm (GMT)
Hehe, blame Google for that :D
Adrian Hayter
13 Apr 08 at 10:21 pm (GMT)
OK, time for a web cam. Hook it up to some of that good security software that only records when there is movement. Could be fun to catch the person, and then circulate the video of their vandalizem around the campus, with their name on it. Just a tad bit embarrassing don’t you think?
JM
20 Apr 08 at 7:03 am (GMT)
Hi Adrian
I’m at Imperial and we just set up a Atheists and Agnostics Soc, and I’ve been amazed to find that we have got a similar reception though not quite as aggressive in nature.
I stuns me that even at a university that is vastly atheist contains people that think that repressing someone’s freedom of speech is any kind of defense for their religion.
Alex
21 Apr 08 at 8:36 pm (GMT)
Something similar happened at my school. It seemed only fair that if Christian Union existed, an Atheist and Agnostic Union should be allowed to exist too. But apparently, when it’s a Christian Union, it’s a peaceful expression of religious faith in a group environment, but when it’s an Atheist Union, it’s a deliberate attempt to undermine and threaten the work of CU. Who knew?
Mark
22 Apr 08 at 6:13 pm (GMT)
Great article. People never cease to amaze me.
Note: You might want to add http://www.ExpelledTheMovie.com to your list of blocked sites on Adsense. There is an ad for the movie on the left hand side of your blog right now…not sure you would want to advertise such a fabricated piece of shit documentary
Eric
22 Apr 08 at 8:52 pm (GMT)
I’d be interested to see the fliers you posted. Perhaps there was some wording or something that made you look like a prick. Even though I myself am agnostic, I meet a good number of atheists who qualify as pricks, and regularly and proudly reinforce it. I’m not saying you did this, but I am skeptical. Also, ripping up some fliers is nothing to whine about. Maybe the names being written on your door might be, but until someone threatens you personally with serious physical or emotional harm, just laugh at them and keep doing what you do. Don’t play Jesus bearing the cross, Christians will beat you at that game every time.
itsalljustaride
22 Apr 08 at 9:00 pm (GMT)
Hi Adrian, I just wanted to tell you that I applaude your efforts to get a group going for Atheists and Agnostics. It’s too bad that the fundies don’t practice what they preach (WWJD). I wish we had an Atheist/Agnostic group where I live, and I’m too worried about the backlash for my kids to start one on my own. So, keep up your efforts. Don’t let them get you down. :D
Natalie
22 Apr 08 at 10:59 pm (GMT)
I would just add a note to the door “love thy neighbor, eh?” and look what they would do.. or put up some of the many “funny” statements in the bible like the one below - because what could they do? they believe in this stuff so they could not really damage it..
Matthew 10,34ff:
Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; and A MAN’S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.
- Jesus, our loving saviour
by the way, the caps-locking is not my fault, it’s scripturetext.com’s
Klaue
22 Apr 08 at 11:32 pm (GMT)
Adrian,
Although I never went through what you have, I applaud your efforts. I wish more Christians practiced what they preached. I was lucky, my family who is Christian is fairly open to alternative beliefs, or in my case lack of belief. My mother practices what she preaches as best she can and it makes me sad that more Christians aren’t like her.
Here’s a link I think you might enjoy and you might even like to show the Christian Union at your school and see if any attitudes towards you and your friends change after they read it: http://www.joethepeacock.com/2008/03/how-to-actually-talk-to-atheists-if.php
I, myself, am agnostic, and again, having come from a Christian background this article felt like a warm, welcome relief as it provided a great outpouring of rationality and reason for Christians that wish to talk with people who believe differently then they do. The guy who wrote it is a devout Christian and to me is the most logical of any I have come across. Rather than confronting and speaking against those that don’t believe in God, it talks about showing by example and not forcing something down someones throat.
Best regards,
Sean
Sean
22 Apr 08 at 11:59 pm (GMT)
The Romans knew how to deal with Christians. Buy a lion.
Bob O'Fetty
23 Apr 08 at 12:32 am (GMT)
Adrian,
“How exactly am I besmirching God?s name by advertising an atheist union? I?m tired of people always assuming atheists are against God in any way.”
Umm seriously? I’m an atheist as well and I agree with what you say but come on, stop trying to get everyone to like you. Being an atheist, by definition, IS to be against god. You can be open to people’s beliefs and allow them to openly devote their lives to fairy tales, but stop saying you’re not against god or religion on an atheist website. I accept religious people- their “god” is bullshit and quite frankly religion is second only to money as far as destructive forces go on the planet- but I don’t try and get them all to accept my views by being nice and trying noto offend anyone. Just accept the fact that being an atheist makes you AGAINST religion, whether actively or only in belief.
Max
23 Apr 08 at 1:58 am (GMT)
Max, being an Atheist just means you don’t believe in God. I’m an Atheist myself, and I can see the benefit that some people gain from belief in some deity. I don’t know about you, but I’m not hunting down Christans and yelling in shrieking voice “believer! You’re sick!” because quite frankly, most of them aren’t. Some are misguided, sure, but that’s not a fault of their belief in a higher being, just their indoctrination. You’re right in saying that religion is a destructive force… if by that you meant “organized religion”.
So Max: I’m not against God, I just prefer the other method. I’m an Atheist. You might want to tone yourself down, it seems, lest you turn into the anonymous destructor of property on a Christian blog.
Buncy
23 Apr 08 at 3:22 am (GMT)
Wow, that’s bullshit. You haven’t defaced their fucking property; why do they feel the need to deface yours? I thought Christians were “moral.” (see link on my name for irony)
Kobra
23 Apr 08 at 3:23 am (GMT)
Max,
Being an atheist means you don’t believe in God. Therefore, how can you be against something you don’t believe in? Maybe you’re against God and religion, but most atheists aren’t. They just choose to ignore it. And Adrian, more power to you. I’m glad that you keep reposting your posters and showing those fundamentalists that they can’t dampen your spirits. Hope things turn out well.
Rachel
23 Apr 08 at 4:17 am (GMT)
Max,
“Being an atheist, by definition, IS to be against god. You can be open to people’s beliefs and allow them to openly devote their lives to fairy tales, but stop saying you’re not against god or religion on an atheist website.”
Like others have pointed out, being an atheist simply means you don’t believe in God. I’m not against the idea of God at all, in fact I think it would be great if there was some guy in the clouds who made us all. The fact of the matter is I don’t believe he exists. You are correct however in saying that I am against religion, and I have never said that I’m not. Religion and God are totally separate entities though. I am not against God because I have no proof to make any valid argument, but I am against religion because they use “God” to terrorize and destroy.
I’d also like to take this chance to thank everyone who commented in the last 24 hours. I’m not sure why the sudden influx occurred, but I’ve read all your comments. I probably won’t have the time to respond to them all though :P
Adrian Hayter
23 Apr 08 at 11:20 am (GMT)
Just in case anyone was interested, there is more hilarious christian propaganda aimed at children here: http://objectiveministries.org/kidz/
I think that’s where that athiest goat guy originated. =)
indiKATE
23 Apr 08 at 12:17 pm (GMT)
Who would have thought that there are such up-tight english man? My view of england always resembled to my view on Japan- good people with no obsession over religion. Too bad I’m wrong.
The most ironic thing about is the protest those religious people use. Obviously some of them got the bad side of an englican pastor’s willy when they were kids… :(
Rasputin
23 Apr 08 at 12:39 pm (GMT)
Rasputin,
I really wish England was more like Japan or Sweden. We need to be more secular. The only problem is, unlike America we were founded by religious fundamentalists, and so we have no 1st amendment type law that prohibits religion from taking over.
America might have it’s own fundie problem, but at least atheists get their say and can fight for the right to religious freedom.
Adrian Hayter
23 Apr 08 at 1:04 pm (GMT)
Indikate, I checked out that site, and I am just saddened by the fact that they try to brainwash children with things like this. I was watching a video about this creationist group with a bunch of children in it visiting a natural history museum, and they were just telling them how evolution, fossils, and radiometric dating are myths. Pissed off alot of historians and museum workers. It just makes me sad. Hopefully these kids start thinking for themselves:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D8AeiAamjY
Rachel
23 Apr 08 at 3:52 pm (GMT)
I’m confused. I thought Christians were the very epitome of moral, tolerant, loving people. Clearly this act wasn’t carried out, but is in fact a plot amongst Atheists to make them look bad. Yes, that’s it.
Seriously, though, that’s terribly sad. And it makes you wonder just how confident they are in their faith if they feel it necessary to silence anyone who questions it. How harmful can your group be if they have the absolute truth and you’re lying?
TurboFool
23 Apr 08 at 10:58 pm (GMT)
TurboFool,
Well said. I used to think freedom of speech actually stood for something in this country, but when it comes to religion, all guns come out. Whenever another belief system advertises some event, I approach it with an open mind. I even went to a lecture on I.D with an open mind to try and see it from their perspective, but all I heard was a guy who had no idea how evolution worked.
I agree with you though, people who do this are either not confident in their faith and see us as a threat, or they are religious bigots. From my experiences with the Christian Union, I’d go with the latter.
Adrian Hayter
23 Apr 08 at 11:47 pm (GMT)
I really wish I could understand the mindset. I know it’s difficult for us. These people genuinely believe, wholeheartedly, that they’re right. So much so that everyone else is clearly stupid, evil, or belligerent, and therefore they have no respect for us. It’s the same thing they claim about us, except I know no Atheists who actually treat Christians in such a manner.
It’s the same reason they feel the need to preach, lecture, and try to “save” us. At least it’s the reason some of them have, or claim to have. From what I can understand, the true believers actually believe they’re helping. The rest are like all the other bullies who simply believe anyone not like them is a “loser” and deserves their scorn. What I wonder about, though, is the ones do it merely to convince themselves. The ones who don’t believe, or aren’t fully convinced, and have to drag everyone else in to make themselves feel better. They’re just going through the motions, believing what they’ve been told, trying not to be too inconvenienced by it but still living with burdens and fears, and when they see someone unencumbered by this it pisses them off. At this point they suddenly become completely sure of their religion and have to do something about these non-believers.
I think some of us atheists do get lost in an idealistic belief that the world would be better without religion and the prejudices it creates. Heck, I still believe that. But in the end, I think the problems religion creates are merely an outlet for problems that exist in human nature. Bullies will be bullies no matter what, and if they don’t have an ancient holy book to back them up, they’ll come up with something else. It’s just sad to see these people lumped together with the ones who genuinely believe they’re doing good with their beliefs.
TurboFool
24 Apr 08 at 4:42 pm (GMT)
TurboFool,
Although I agree with you somewhat that a world without religion doesn’t mean the world would be any better, I agree with the argument that a lot of tragic events would not have been caused. I can’t think of any reason why 9/11 would have occurred if not for religious fundamentalism, and certainly things like the crusades would have disappeared from history.
I think the Steven Weinberg quote sums it up quite well:
“With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.”
There are good people in religion, and they are grouped together with fundamentalists who are the oppressors, which is wrong. I think people should refrain from imposing their beliefs on others, and if that were the case, I could pack up this blog and do something else. Unfortunately, people are insulting atheists, challenging them, and just downright lying about us and the world, and I’ll be damned (figuratively speaking) if I am going to stand for it.
Adrian Hayter
24 Apr 08 at 5:07 pm (GMT)
While I understand your position (as a fellow athiest) I think you are at risk as becoming slighty hypocritial.
You can’t change most people, and opposing them won’t get you anywhere. I think you should avoid sinking to their level.
Fred
25 Apr 08 at 1:03 pm (GMT)
Fred,
We haven’t set out to change people, we have set out to let people know we do exist and that we are active. We certainly aren’t going to go around telling people they are stupid and there is no God (like the CU go around saying the opposite), but we are going to answer challenges.
Adrian Hayter
25 Apr 08 at 2:46 pm (GMT)
I have no interest in spending my time trying to convert, but when we’re constantly imposed upon and marginalized by an overly-religious society, we are forced to take a stand. As Adrian noted, it’s not about changing people, but at least about changing their perceptions of us and people like us. We’re here, we matter, we’re real, and we deserve respect. And when they spend their time trying to convert us, or force their beliefs on us because they believe we’re merely unconverted blank slates who simply haven’t been brought the gospel yet, it’s only fair that we strike back by making it clear just how genuine we are.
TurboFool
25 Apr 08 at 7:42 pm (GMT)
I won’t try to change anyone’s belief on anything.what I will do is encourage them to think freely, without the restrictions of religion. Hopefully that will lead them away from religion and they will realise the hypocritical nature of what they worship. I guess you could call it “passive converting”, but it’s certainly not anything I do directly.
Adrian Hayter
25 Apr 08 at 7:45 pm (GMT)
Wow, it is easy to spot the Christian commentators here!
I really don’t understand how people still think Christian == Moral. Not even close.
I grew up a son to evangelical ministers. I left home at 16, but up till then I spent 14 years being a sheep myself. But trust me, sheep only in the sense that we just followed what we were told with mindless ease, in reality we were more like wolfs.
Who else would beat up a kid because he “might” be gay. And beat him badly too. Who else would be so openly hostile to a work we live in, and even more so, hostile to the ideas we live with.
Since losing my faith and leaving my old family far behind I have found that I a great person, but never would have known it if you knew me when I was “following Christ”.
James
17 May 08 at 5:45 am (GMT)