Being Openly Secular at School a Toolkit for Students
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BEING OPENLY SECULAR AT SCHOOL A Toolkit for Students Being Openly Secular at School: A Toolkit for Students Copyright © 2015 Openly Secular. Some Rights Reserved. Content written by Lori L. Fazzino, M.A., University of Nevada, Las Vegas Graphic design by Sarah Hamilton, www.smfhamilton.com Secular Student Bill of Rights co-authored with the Freedom From Religion Foundation, www.ffrf.org This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International. More information is available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Openly Secular grants you permission for all non-commercial uses, including reproduction, distribution, and adaptation, so long as you provide proper credit to Openly Secular and provide others with the same rights you are receiving. ABOUT THE OPENLY SECULAR CAMPAIGN Openly Secular is a coalition project that promotes tolerance and equality of people regardless of their belief systems. Founded in 2013, the Openly Secular Coalition is led by four organizations - Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science, Secular Coalition for America, Secular Student Alliance, and Stiefel Freethought Foundation. This campaign is also joined by national partner organizations from the secular movement as well as organizations that are allies to our cause. OUR MISSION The mission of Openly Secular is to eliminate discrimination and increase acceptance by getting secular people - including atheists, freethinkers, agnostics, humanists and nonreligious people - to be open about their beliefs. www.openlysecular.org 5 6 A SPECIAL NOTE are three times more likely to identify as secular. I couldn’t find a Dear Reader, single counseling, wellness, or self-help resource specifically for One of the greatest challenges secular people face is overcoming secular students. Sadly, anti-secular intolerance isn’t a concern anti-secular stigma in a culture where religious belief is normal of many anti-oppression organizations. and even expected. When doing the research for this guide, I What makes anti-secular oppression unique is the widespread realized just how true this is. I looked at hundreds of websites and nearly universal blindness towards it. There is a growing and read resource guides on everything from interfaith dialogue body of academic research that examines discrimination against to how to be civil and resolve conflict. My goal was to answer non-believers, including secular students, and this research two questions - What unique challenges do secular students discusses the needs of secular students at length. With all that face? and How can Openly Secular help? we have learned in the last 10-15 years about anti-secular I looked at student programs and campus life at colleges all intolerance, coupled with the well-documented history of across the country. I focused specifically on student health minority group treatment in the U.S., I am baffled as to why anti- and wellness, LGBT/Women’s centers, and programs for secular bigotry remains the least recognized, least understood, multiculturalism and diversity. On a few occasions, I found and least talked about form of oppression. schools with a webpage dedicated to religion and spiritual life. The bright side to all of this is that it’s an exciting time to be The amount of information and online resources varied by a secular student, and organizations like the Secular Student school, but the content was more or less the same. If I were Alliance (www.secularstudents.org) continue to experience a student of color, or studying from abroad for a semester, massive growth year after year. The 2013 launch of the Secular or queer-identified, I would be able to access my institution’s Safe Zone Project (www.secularsafezone.org) received national website and within a few clicks, find a program or resources for media attention. my community. The future of the secular movement is happening now. Secular Secular people have a history of oppression and moral injustice, students aren’t tomorrow’s leaders, they are today’s. If you want yet as a whole, I couldn’t find resources for secular students your voice to be heard, you’re going to have to go out there and anywhere on the university sites I visited - not in diversity or shout, and when you do, I sincerely hope it’s on my campus. multicultural groups, not included in programs for religion and Be Bright. Be Loud. Be Openly Secular. spiritual life, not even lumped in with LGBT communities, who Lori Fazzino, M.A. ABOUT THIS GUIDE The information presented in this toolkit is intended to help you navigate being an openly secular student. Think of your high school or college like taking a road trip; you’re the driver and this toolkit is Google Maps. You’ve got the keys and know where to go, but aren’t quite sure how to get there. We will provide you with route options and step-by-step directions. The very practice of being open about who you are promotes tolerance and encourages others to do the same. When more people choose to be open about being secular, a community of love and respect is created, helping to eliminate discrimination. Just remember, being open is different for everyone, and only you can decide what the process looks like for you. We recognize that being open, especially for those who are under 18, still live at home, and/or rely on financial help from family, may not be an option right now. We strongly suggest taking the time to consider your personal situation and encourage you not to be open until you feel that it’s safe and you’re ready. Be safe. Be sure. Then be open. www.openlysecular.org 7 8 CoNTENTS Introduction 9 Let’s Just Be Honest 10 Social Stigma and Being Open 11 Meaning is Everything 12 A Secular Public High School Student’s Bill Of Rights 13 Starting an SSA High School Affiliate Group 14 Potential Church-State Violations at your High School 15 Selecting the Right College for You 16 Becoming Open in College 18 Stress Check 19 Handling Hate-Mongering Preachers on Campus 20 Food for Thought 21 Additional Resources 22 Atheists in Interfaith: Our Place at the Table 26 INTRODUCTION AMONG US CITIZENS The number of Americans who do not identify with religion continues to grow. The unaffiliated population in the previous five years increased from over 15% to just under 20%. In 2012, Pew Research found one-fifth of the U.S. public – and a third of adults under 30 – are religiously unaffiliated, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling. 20% 33% In 2013, findings from the American Religious Religiously unaffiliated Adults under 30 Identification Survey (ARIS) indicated that almost one- religiously unaffiliated third (28%) of university students can be classified as secular. Among this group, 42% stated the belief that AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS god does not exist, with another 35% who said they didn’t know and can’t know whether god exists. These respondents hold progressive views on social issues like female reproductive rights and assisted suicide, are more likely to be politically liberal, and reject the idea that atheists have less chance to succeed. If the population of secular students continues to grow, it is safe to assume that there will be 28% 42% University students God doesn’t exist implications for what goes on in the classroom and on classified as secular campus. We can’t overstate the importance of watching 35% how academic institutions respond to this changing Doesn’t and can’t dynamic. know if god exists www.openlysecular.org 9 10 Let’S JUST BE HONEST The most obvious challenge that secular students encounter is the stigma they face for their nonreligious lifestyles. So let’s start there; stigma against secular students. Q. What is Stigma? A. “Stigma” refers to negative attitudes people hold toward others whom they deem “different” than themselves. It is manifested in prejudicial and discriminatory behaviors such as bias, distrust, stereotyping, fear, intolerance, and/or avoidance. Q. Who Does Stigma Hurt? A. Stigma affects those stigmatized, and prejudice and discrimination affect all levels of society. Racial/ ethnic minorities, women, and LGBTQ persons have spoken out to end their oppression. While members of these groups continue to confront social stigma, the stigmatization of two groups - transgender and secular communities - is still generally seen as acceptable. Q. Why Does Stigma Exist? A. Sociologist Erving Goffman describes stigma as an “attribute that is deeply discrediting.” The person with the attribute is “reduced in our minds from a whole and usual person to a tainted, discounted one.” Q. Who Stigmatizes? A. All of us are guilty of some form of stigmatization, whether we do it consciously or unconsciously. Media portrayals can create, perpetuate, and reflect stigma. Media reinforces negative stereotypes that portray oppressed groups as blameworthy, dangerous or funny. Q. How Does Stigma Hurt? A. Stigma isn’t just hurting people’s feelings. Stigma can negatively affect social participation and mental health, cause substance abuse, and jeopardize work, school, family, and peer commitments. People who experience stigma often talk about feelings of shame, anxiety, frustration, depression, helplessness, fear and hurt. SOCIAL STIGMA AND BEING OPEN While deciding to be open is an important step towards living an authentic and honest life, for many people it’s a difficult decision to make. The majority of secular people are aware of the negative ways they are perceived. Some choose to live openly while others view concealment as their only option. Despite the growing numbers of religiously unaffiliated adults, being fully open often incurs social costs, such as: Types of Religious Anti-Secular Intolerance Experienced by Secular Individuals Verbal Harassment Social Ostracism Invalidation Stereotyping/Slander Being “Outed” Proselytization A 2011 study found that repeated exposure to stereotypes, when stigma was visible, lead to greater resilience against them.