The Government is today bringing to the Dail a Bill to protect Catholic LGBT teachers from discrimination. While that part of the Bill is obviously a good thing, the Bill also reinforces the right of state-funded schools to discriminate against atheist and minority faith teachers. The Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill has already been passed in […]
This is my fifth Atheist Song of the Week. As it is the weekend of the Atheist Ireland AGM, I’ve gone for Banana Republic, a stinging critique of the Ireland of my teens by The Boomtown Rats. It was written in 1980 after the Rats had been banned from playing gigs in Ireland. “Everywhere I […]
This is an overview of progress towards secularism on the occasion of Atheist Ireland’s 2015 AGM at 11 am today in the Ambassador Hotel in Cork. It will be followed by a public meeting at 2:30pm in the Ambassador Hotel. When Atheist Ireland was founded seven years ago, one of our first priorities was to […]
Saint Dominic’s College in Cabra, the Catholic girls’ secondary school that cancelled its invitation for me to speak to its final year students, has now reversed that decision. The Principal brought the issue to the Board of Management, which has decided to honour the original invitation. We now have to arrange a new date. Atheist […]
This is my fourth Atheist Song of the Week. It’s a rejection of the imaginary revelations of man-made gods by English alternative rock band New Model Army. It was the B-side of their 1986 single 51st State, and also appeared on their 1994 compilation album B-Sides and Abandoned Tracks. “I will bow to the earth, […]
The Irish Times has reported on the Dominican secondary school that has cancelled its invitation to me to speak to its final year students. Here’s the report by Carl O’Brien.
Extract from my debate on Wednesday with David Quinn about new proposed classes about religion or belief and ethics in Irish schools. The host is Pat Kenny on Newstalk Radio.
The Catholic school that cancelled an invitation for me to speak to its final year students is now reviewing the situation and is considering re-issuing the invitation. The principal has said that the school will contact Atheist Ireland regarding the matter in due course. I was scheduled to speak yesterday to the final year students […]
I was scheduled to speak today to the final year students at a Dublin-based Dominican girl’s secondary school. It would have been the first time that a representative of an atheist advocacy group had spoken at a Catholic school in Ireland. However, the school has since canceled the formal invitation, in order to uphold and reflect […]
This is my third Atheist Song of the Week. It’s a tribute to our place in the universe by atheist hard rock band Monster on Sunday, on the ballad rock end of their album Baby Eater. “Mysterious and beautifulViolent and cruelIt’s amazing how the universeIs so much like you” See also my regularly updated list […]