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Request for articles about the experiences of atheists : طلب مقالات عن تجارب الملحدين

Hello! I am writing in hope that some of you in this group might be interested in contributing to the anthology I'm working on. I would very much like to include articles by atheists living in Arab countries. I know some people have to keep a low profile, and for that reason am okay with submissions under pseudonyms (fake names). Please have a look at the details below and consider contributing!

Shukran ilkum!

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Dear friends,
I am working to compile for publication a book of essays/articles about the experiences of atheists around the world.
I am from the United States, where religion is usually a personal matter and one’s beliefs or non-beliefs do not necessarily affect their public lives. I live in the middle-east, where a person’s religion is very public, even printed their national identity card, and people of different religions have different legal systems. It is a much different experience being atheist in the USA and being an atheist in the middle-east.
I am very interested to hear about the experience of atheists in different cultures and societies around the world. Our beliefs are similar, but the way they affect our lives is very different.

For this reason, I am seeking contributions of articles from atheists and non-believers around the world. I am especially interested to hear from atheists in non-western countries, countries which espouse a state religion, and countries where the majority religion is non-theistic or polytheistic. I am also interested to hear the experiences of atheists who are members of a minority community.

I would like submissions to include both personal experience and the facts of your environment. Some questions to consider:
What is your experience as an atheist in your country or community? Are you open about your non-belief or must you keep your atheism a secret? Are you discriminated against for your atheism? How does your day-to-day life compare with the lives of religious believers in your country or community? How does your atheism affect your family life? Do you celebrate holidays? What struggles do you face, if any, as a non-believer? Does your country list a religion on your identity card, and if so, is “atheist” allowed as a response? Do you face legal restrictions due to your beliefs?

Submissions should be at least 1000 words and up to 5000 words.
(Please assume that readers have little knowledge of your
country’s majority religion and explain that cultural context from which you write.)
(fake names are okay if necessary)
Please submit your essays to
jannajabr (at) gmail (dot) com

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jedi Wanderer on January 22, 2011 at 3:18pm

This sounds like an interesting idea. I am an atheist (obviously) who just got back from living in Saudi Arabia for a little over a year. I'm sure I can write something interesting for you. I will try to write over the next few days or weeks. Is there a deadline I should know about? Also, where are you living? I have traveled alot in the middle east. Maybe I have been in the same country.

Permalink Reply by janna thorson-jabr on January 23, 2011 at 3:20am

No, there's no deadline. I began this project last spring, with the naive hope that I'd collect a sufficient number of articles within a few months. To date, however, I have only received a handful, so the project continues...

Permalink Reply by H.Q. on August 5, 2012 at 3:58pm