Interview with an Atheist
Dateline: April 29, 1999
Part 1:
More and more, young people are forming humanist, freethought, and atheist clubs in their universities and schools. Sometimes, their efforts are met with opposition and difficulty. I interviewed Micah White, a high school student who has managed to start an active club in his school, but his path hasn't always been smooth....
*How long have you considered yourself an atheist?
I started to consider myself an atheist in the summer of ninth grade. Prior to that time i never really took religion seriously, and barely went to church. But it wasn't until ninth grade that i realized, "yeah i really do think the very idea of god is absurd."
*Do you have any idea what event, events, people, etc. lead you to this? Was it a magazine or book you started reading? Someone in your life?
The summer of ninth grade my brother got me to start reading Ayn Rand's books. But i'm not sure if it was her books in particular that made me realize i was an atheist, but more that her books made me question what i did believe, and therefore lead me to an understanding that i had never really believed in god.
*Did you have any religious upbringing?
I was raised in a catholic environment, so yeah, my upbringing was religious, however it was never fanatical, nor strict. I went to sunday school and we went to church occassionally, but other than that religion was never a big part of my life. I stopped going to church after my first confession, and haven't completed any more catholic sacraments.
*Is Catholicism dominant in your family? Any freethinkers which have been "kept in the closet" out of embarassment? (This really does happen - a person becomes an atheist, then finds out that aunt Jane was one, too - but no one wanted to talk about it)
My dad is catholic, and he attended catholic seminary for a few years before he met my mother. However our household is very liberal so there are no atheists in the closet or pressures not to be atheist.
*Do you now/ have you always had many/any nonbelieving friends?
Not many of my friends in Grand Blanc are avid atheists, but most, if not all of them, question their faith/beliefs. In friendships i really value intellectualism and this personality trait is not usually found in fundamentalist people. So although only a couple of my friends would describe themselves as "atheist" they are by no means religious.
*What is your sense about the religiosity among your peers? Do you find it increasing? Or do you find that religion is more of something they simply do because their family insists?
In grand blanc i am finding that most people call themselves religious irregardless of how "sinful" their lives may be. I have talked to many people who are shocked by the proposition that someone could possibly deny the existence of god. Religion, at least in my high school, is an accepted thing. However, extremely religious behavior isn't the norm.
*How do your parents feel about your atheism? How do other family members feel?
My parents support my atheism. I think both of them understand my reasons for atheism are well founded, and very defendable. My parents are very religiously liberal and have always supported intellectual pursuits. My brother is an atheist, and is a supporter of my atheism.
*Has this caused any strains with people outside the immediate family (it's not unusual with, say, grandparents who tend to be very religious)?
We haven't told my grandparents about the atheist club precisely because they are very religious. The other relatives who are aware of it haven't said anything negative to me. But this is most likely because we have only told those family members who we know will not be horrified by the atheist club.
*When/how did you get the idea to start an atheist club at school?
I first got the idea to start an atheist club back in ninth grade. I was attending school in Maryland, and i remember one day hearing an announcement for bible study. The very idea of a bible study shocked me, and i, at the time, didn't realize that bible clubs have become a part of most high schools. So i got the idea to start an atheism club, but never followed through with it. Then when i came to Michigan, the level of fundamentalism took my breath away, and i realized it was time to start an Atheist Club and hopefully bring some people back to their senses.
*So, the religious climate at the new school was very different - any other related differences? Is the political climate very different? Less openness to "alternative" clubs/people? Is there any sort of gay/lesbian student group, or a group which works for civil liberties?
The political climate of my highschool is also completely different from where i used to live. Most people here are republicans, and most students hold onto republican ideals without a realization that they are doing so. For example, many students will come out against affirmative action and act shocked when anyone disagrees. This is also true for other classic topics, such as welfare. There are no gay/lesbian clubs or civil liberty clubs.
*What was the initial reaction of the school? How did they oppose you?
The initial reaction of my school can be explained only as shock. When i talked to my vice principal the first time about starting an atheism club, he was immediately against it. He told me that i wouldn't be able to solicit members, couldn't use the PA system, or put up signs. However, since he really had no reason for this, the next step the school took was just to ignore and intimidate me. I was actually ran from in the hall, and they threatened to suspended me. However, when they realized i was serious about starting the club and wouldn't be giving up, they focused on getting my teacher sponsor to drop me. They obviously hadn't read the laws, and didn't realize the existence of the sponsor is of little consequence to the formation of a club. After the second letter to my school they realized either they gave us the club, or we would be suing them.
*What is your teacher sponsor like? Is s/he an atheist? Or doing it because s/he feels that it is right to have one, even if there is no agreement with atheism itself?
I'm not quite sure whether the teacher who was going to be my sponsor is an atheist. I think he simply is a very liberal minded person who had no open disagreement with atheism, so therefore decided it was only fair to help me. unfortunately he did get a lot of heat from the administration as well as other teachers in the school.
*How did you find this sponsor, and how did you approach him/her?
He was my social studies teacher. I simply asked him if he would monitor the room. Which is the only actual job of a sponsor. I should make it clear that in the end he ended up not being my sponsor, and we are now a sponsor-less club. This is important because many students may not be aware that to require a sponsor may be in violation of the equal access act.
*If you could change anything about how you did this, what would it be?
I probably would have secured two or three friends from the start who would be willing to do part of the work. Starting and running the atheist club is the most time consuming activity that i have done in high school. Other than that, there really is nothing i could have done differently. If you continued up the total time i spent talking to my administration in the two months i tried to form the club you would find it is almost nothing. Most of my time was spent in correspondence with my lawyer and in planning. The school simply ignored me until they realized they would lose a legal fight.
Don't miss the other section:
Part 2: More Reactions & More about the Club
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