NOTICE:

[xenologer]

LGBT activism isn't about creating more gay people; it's about supporting and advocating for the ones who're here. Still, atheist activism is framed (by people who aren't doing it) as evangelism. We don't care about converting you; we're just... out. Get over it.

Jeez.

Comments

[knitminder]

When it comes to religion or the lack thereof, I guess merely asserting one's existence is stepping on some people's toes.

[silveradept]

For the people who claim that kind of thing, your mere existence means you're evangelizing for your lifestyle, much like they believe their existence is to evangelize for theirs. After all, once they acknowledge you exist, people might decide they like you better than their own system, and zOMG mass exodus.

I wish this was true, because it's very well stated.

[count-fenring.livejournal.com]

I wish I could agree, but that's not the case, at least not in the contexts many people are exposed to.

To put it bluntly, atheism isn't the same as gayness - it's a position, not a lifestyle, and certainly not something born into you like race, sexual preference, or gender. And, while there are efforts at reducing discrimination against atheism out there, the internet is also FULL of Dawkins-esque atheist evangelism right now. A huge number of atheists (at least by volume of discourse, if not number) ARE trying to make converts, or, much more irritatingly, are spamming discussions with "You believe in a bearded dude in the sky, so everything you say is crap."

I'm well aware that it's not a majority share of the atheist population, but it's over-represented through the magic of the internet. If you want an example, look at any article tangentially touching on religion in any of the major content aggregation sites (Slashdot, Digg, Reddit).

Note that I'm an atheist-leaning agnostic with a strong hatred of the fundies.