1,000 tickets have been sold for the Global Atheist Convention in the first three weeks after its official launch.

David Nicholls, President of the Atheist Foundation of Australia said “we’re thrilled with the public response and very excited about the Global Atheist Convention. We expected a great level of interest, which is why we booked the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

There are still plenty of tickets left, but we’re well on the way to the Global Atheist Convention being one of the largest atheist events ever, anywhere!

Thank you everyone who has bought a ticket – it’s going to be BIG!”

Temporary Ticket Sale Site during technical inconvenience: Here.

Hats off folks for pointing this out to us, we also call on the government to respond to this blatant distinction between Australians promptly, it’s time religion did not have rights above and beyond anyone else doing the same thing.

Atheists, non-believers,  unite!

The Global Atheist Convention 2010 in Melbourne, Australia is expected to be the largest gathering of atheists, rationalists, humanists, sceptics, free thinkers and other like-minded people in Australian history.

The Atheist Foundation of Australia is running the Convention and applied for government funding months ago – but has not yet received a response. This delay seems excessive and the government appears to be trying to dodge the issue of supporting non-believers, perhaps worried about upsetting the religious organisations they have a mutually beneficial relationship with. In Australia exemptions or concessions apply to religious organisations in relation to income tax, fringe benefits tax, GST, payroll tax, land tax, stamp duties, car registration fees and municipal rates. And let’s not forget the recent Victorian government decision to exempt religious organisations from a range of anti-discrimination laws…another example of one rule for the religious, another for everyone else. This is blatant discrimination.

To run an event the size of the Global Atheist Convention must cost a lot of money, even though all the speakers have generously donated their time, and the Convention is relying on ticket sales for funding. Consider the millions of government dollars that will help fund the Parliament of World Religions and the $120m the World Youth Day cost Australian tax payers (and let’s not even start on the civil liberty restrictions associated with World Youth Day…) – it’s time the atheists received some of the same support.

It’s time our “representatives” actually represented us and supported the Global Atheist Convention.

We are Australian atheists and it’s time the government heard us.

Please help us by spreading the word – raise this issue on blogs, in conversation and anywhere else the politicians might hear you.

David Nicholls, president of the Atheist Foundation of Australia, and head of the convention committee, says, “The buzz surrounding the convention is amazing! The news is spreading like wildfire across the internet, and it’s being mentioned in blogs from the USA to India. We’re getting enquiries from across the world.”

Nicholls attributes the excitement to the quality of speakers and the breadth of subject matter to be discussed at the convention. Speakers include world-renowned scientists Richard Dawkins and PZ Myers; philosophers Peter Singer and AC Grayling; broadcasters Phillip Adams and Robyn Williams; politician Lyn Allison; authors Tanya Levin and Russell Blackford; and human rights activist Taslima Nasrin.

While the Gold Weekend Passes have sold out, Nicholls says there are still plenty of seats available. “We anticipated that the convention would generate a lot of interest – that’s why we chose the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre for our venue.”

Tickets are on sale at The Rise of Atheism Global Atheist Convention website at http://www.atheistconvention.org.au .

Contact:

David Nicholls

President

Atheist Foundation of Australia Inc
Private Mail Bag 6
Maitland SA 5573
Australia

Phone:
Australia – (08) 8835-2269
International – +61 8 8835-2269

E-Mail
info@atheistfoundation.org.au

Convention Website

http://www.atheistconvention.org.au

President of the Atheist Foundation of Australia (AFA), David Nicholls, says that inquiries about the convention have exceeded all expectations and interest continues to grow as organisers confirm some of the leading names of the ‘New Atheism’ movement as speakers.

Leading the lineup is author of The God Delusion, British evolutionary biologist, Richard Dawkins, along with American biologist, Professor P. Z. Myers, host of the world’s top-ranked science blog, Pharyngula.  Also confirmed is Dan Barker, a former evangelical pastor.  Barker, author of Losing Faith in Faith, now heads America’s Freedom from Religion Foundation and hosts America’s first atheist radio program, Freethought Radio on Air America.

Australian speakers include; philosopher and professor of bioethics, Peter Singer, broadcaster Phillip Adams, and Age columnist, Catherine Deveny.  More information on the convention is available at:  http://www.atheistconvention.org.au

The enormous contemporary interest in atheism as a social and political movement has been fueled by global religious conflicts and the increasing politicisation and influence of the ‘religious right’. A number of best-selling books on the subject, including Dawkins’ The God Delusion, Sam Harris’ The End of Faith, and Christopher Hitchens’ God Is Not Great:  How Religion Poisons Everything,  have inspired thousands to join non-theist organisations and online atheist communities.

AFA president, David Nicholls says, “Non-religious Australians are fed-up with an unrepresentative Christian minority influencing important civil rights issues like abortion, euthanasia, stem cell research and gay marriage – all issues which the majority of Australians support.  They’re also concerned about the amount of tax-payers’ money being pumped into religious schools at the expense of the public education system.”

“People contact us at the Atheist Foundation every day, saying, ‘What can we do to stop this?’” says Nicholls.

Surveys show that only 7.5% of Australians attend church regularly. While the official Census figures show Australia’s ‘non-religious’ make up 20% of the population, several major international studies reveal that this figure is vastly underestimated.  Nicholls estimates that non-believers in Australia are probably closer to 50%.

The Rise of Atheism Convention will bring together atheists from around the country, and across the world.  “Make no mistake,” says Nicholls, “this is not just going to be a talk-fest.  The incredible level of interest should be a huge wake-up call to politicians and Christian lobbyists, alike, that non-religious Australians are preparing to stand-up and be counted.  Atheism is on the rise, and the non-religious will no longer sit quietly on the sidelines while good policies are derailed by religious dogma and prejudice.”

Relevant Statistics

Nationally, only 7.5% of Australians attend a place of worship weekly. Source: Zuckerman, Phil (2005), Atheism: Contemporary Rates and Patterns, Cambridge University Press

A survey by Germany’s Religion Monitor (2008) found that 31% of Australians do not believe in God, a divine power or life after death, while a further 26% were uncertain to varying degrees.  Source: Religion Monitor (2008), ‘Australia: High level of religious identity paired with low level of Belief’, Bertelsmann Stiftung Foundation, Sydney/Gütersloh (Germany)

Contact:

David Nicholls

President

Atheist Foundation of Australia Inc

Private Mail Bag 6

Maitland SA 5573

Australia

Phone:  (08) 8835-2269

International: +61 8 8835-2269

Email: info@atheistfoundation.org.au

Web: http://www.atheistfoundation.org.au

Forum: http://atheistfoundation.org.au/forums/

Convention: http://www.atheistconvention.org.au