“A Dose of Conscience” – a guest post at Emily Has Books
If there was once thing I thought I could hold onto as a truth, it was that people in the atheist/skeptical communities were in tune with many of the things I hold dear. But it seems to me that recently some aspects of the community have come to light that are a little more than dismaying. As you may know, I am an avid supporter of human rights, with a particular focus on women’s rights and equitable treatment of women. But it seems to me that not all in these communities hold these same opinions or standards. Am I disappointed? Yes. Am I surprised? Well to give an honest answer, no.
It’s a hot topic, and one well worth bringing up; “Are atheist/skeptical conventions breeding grounds for misogyny?” I would have hoped that the answer was a resounding “no” from attendees, but it seems that this is not the experience of some who have felt threatened or insulted at these events. Some have even said that they have never gone to a convention that wasn’t filled with misogynistic assholes. Some have even been approached by the high profile speakers and been the recipient of unwanted and uninvited advances. The apparent immediate reaction has been a sharp downward turn in female registrations to the upcoming TAM event, which is understandable; a show of solidarity on the part of women who would like to attend, but feel that the message is worth getting across to the organisers of these events that misogynistic behaviour is unacceptable and won’t be tolerated.
I am a blogger who is attempting to make sense of the world. The opinions and statements made in this blog are my own, and bear no relation to my workplace, or any non-blog related activities 