At our May 8th meeting, the Atlanta Freethought Society will have a panel discussion led by Mark Banks on Secularism and the Public Schools.  A pamphlet by the Freedom From Religion Foundation titled “The Top 10 Public School State/Church Violations And How to Stop Them” will be discussed.  (See the brochure here.)  Please be ready to ask questions and take part in the discussion.

In addition, AFS Board Secretary John Carver will give a 10 minute talk on governance, as the board is working on a much-needed overhaul of the bylaws.  (John is particularly adept in this field.  He is an adjunct professor of nonprofit organizations in the Institute for Nonprofit Organizations at the University of Georgia School of Social Work.  John is the creator of the Policy Governance model for board governance.  See PolicyGovernance.com for details.)

There will be a potluck lunch at noon before John’s 10 minute talk starting at noon, and the panel discussion afterwards.  If you with to participate, be sure to check what to bring and plan accordingly.  See you there!

According to the Secular Coalition of America, here are four ways children are misled by taxpayer-funded propaganda:

1. In March 2010 the Texas Board of Education voted to remove Thomas Jefferson’s name from a list of leaders who have inspired changes in governments worldwide.  President Jefferson, who authored the Declaration of Independence, also penned the phrase “separation of church and state.”

2. Texas Board of Education member Don McLeroy states, “Evolution is hooey.” In 2009 the Texas Board of Education voted to present “all sides” of the evidence when studying evolution and misleadingly requires the consideration of “gaps” in the fossil record.

3. Students taking government classes in Texas are instructed that America’s founding was informed by “Judeo-Christian (especially Biblical law),” and that the legal principles of “Moses”…“informed the American founding documents.”  In fact, Steven K. Green, director of the Center for Religion, Law and Democracy at Willamette University, said the founders “did not draw on Mosaic law.”  The Enlightenment, the time which produced our founders, had developed in opposition to reliance on Biblical law.  Green’s search for late-1700s American court cases that referenced Mosaic law yielded almost nothing:  “The record is basically bereft,” said Green.

4. In 2009 the Texas State Board of Education removed from curriculum standards reference to the very real scientific consensus that the universe began approximately 14 billion years ago.

—————————————–

The facility is wheelchair accessible. Atlanta Freethought Hall is a former Primitive Baptist Church, built in 1866. Atlanta Freethought Society was founded in 1985, which makes it one of Metro Atlanta’s oldest secular societies. AF Hall is the meeting place for Fellowship of Reason, Freedom of Religion Foundation of Atlanta, as well as other organizations. We rent the building at reasonable rates. If you would like to rent the hall for an organization meeting, a party, a wedding, etc., please see a Board Member.