Friendly Atheist Podcast

Monica Long Ross and Amy Ellison are two of the producers at 137 Films, a non-profit production company based in Chicago that promotes science through storytelling. (The other producer, Clayton Brown, couldn't join us for the interview.) In 2008, they released the film The Atom Smashers, all about physicists at Fermilab working to find the Higgs boson. In 2013, they put out The Believers, all about the two scientists who wrongly claimed to have discovered "cold fusion" in 1989. Their next project, currently in post-production, is called We Believe in Dinosaurs, all about Noah's Ark, Creationism, and America's troubled relationship with science. I spoke with them about Ken Ham's reaction to their project, whether Ark Encounter has led to an economic boom in the community it's in, and why the word "Believe" is in the title of the film. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We (Hemant and Jessica) sat down to discuss all the big stories from 2016. By which we mean whatever stories we could cram into two hours. Those topics included atheism, our future traveling roadshow, and Donald Trump. Fair warning: There was a box of wine between us during the taping of this podcast. See if you can guess when the Merlot kicks in. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Barbara Mancini is an ER nurse from Pennsylvania. In 2013, she was arrested and prosecuted on charges of trying to help her terminally ill 93-year-old father take his own life. She is now an advocate for medical aid in dying. We spoke with Barbara about her heartbreaking personal story, the connection between assisted suicide and abortion rights, and her correspondence with Brittany Maynard. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ali A. Rizvi is a Pakistani-Canadian writer, physician, and musician who resides in Toronto. He's the author of a new book called The Atheist Muslim: A Journey from Religion to Reason. Ali lived in Libya, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, as part of a progressive Muslim family, before he moved permanently to Canada in his twenties. He is a trained physician and a vocal advocate for secularism, science, and reform, particularly in the Muslim community. We spoke about whether someone can be culturally Muslim, whether there's something uniquely problematic with the doctrine of Islam, and what people like Reza Aslan get wrong about the faith. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dr. Steven Tomlins is a researcher and graduate of the University of Ottawa who has just co-edited a new academic book called The Atheist Bus Campaign: Global Manifestations and Responses. It looks at the various atheist advertising campaigns -- billboards, bus ads, and the like -- all over the world. We spoke about how this idea went viral, which kinds of ads are more successful, and whether the media coverage matters more than the messages themselves. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sarah Levin is the Senior Legislative Representative for the Secular Coalition for America, a lobbying group in Washington, D.C. representing non-religious people on Capitol Hill. She graduated from American University with a degree in International Studies, focusing on the Middle East and Israeli domestic politics. Following Tuesday's elections, we spoke about what church/state separation advocates should be worried about over the next few years, the positive developments (and there were some!) from Election Day, and what atheists need to do to become more of a political force in the future. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Brendon Marotta is an award-winning filmmaker based out of Austin, Texas. He graduated from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts Film School, to work as a professional film editor. His first feature-length documentary as director is called American Circumcision. (You'll never guess what it's about.) We spoke about why male circumcision is problematic, the dubious health benefits of getting circumcized, and whether there's any chance of passing laws to prevent the procedure (at least without consent of the patient). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If you've ever seen VeggieTales, you're familiar with Phil Vischer. He's the animator, puppeteer, writer, voice actor, and songwriter who co-created that series. His production company soon grew to over 200 workers by the year 2000 before a lawsuit sent the company into bankruptcy and forced Phil to basically start over again. He now runs Jellyfish Labs, where he produces faith-based content. He also hosts the Phil Vischer Podcast which is a very entertaining show all about Christianity in a post-Christian America. We spoke with Phil about why Christian media is so cringeworthy, how he tells Bible stories that may offend parts of his audience, and what the hell is happening with evangelicals in the upcoming election. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Luke Fevin has fought against mandatory prayers in Alberta (Canada) secular schools. He sits on the Board of the Society of Edmonton Atheists and founded the advocacy group Albertan's for Equality Education. I spoke with Luke about some of the major church/state issues taking place in Canada, including within the public schools, local governments, and Catholic hospitals. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Vyckie Garrison was once a prominent member of the "Quiverfull" community, a rapidly growing Christian fundamentalist movement that bans birth control and encourages huge, "Biblical families" (much like the Duggars of TLCs 19 Kids and Counting fame). Garrison edited and published a Christian "pro-life, pro-family" newspaper for 16+ years in northeast Nebraska while home-churching, home birthing, and home schooling seven children. She made waves when she left the Quiverfull movement, divorced her husband, and began speaking out against the lifestyle. She recently received American Atheists' Atheist of the Year award and runs the blog "No Longer Quivering" to provide support to women and children who are escaping abusive religious movements and to provide the public with accurate and compassionate information on the unique challenges faced by the spiritually abused. We spoke about what her Quiverfull lifestyle entailed, how she escaped it, and what advice she would give to other women in her position. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.