The Secular Student Alliance is one of the most important organizations atheists have in their corner. It’s doing some of the most important work there is, answering Campus Crusade for Christ (and its various incarnations and emanations) by establishing and supporting (in many brilliant and valuable ways) secular student clubs on college campuses and American high schools.
They provide money, resources, training, how-to kits, legal and organizational advice, and more, to existing clubs, and actively work to create new clubs, and (most of all) keep them going (since continuity is a major difficulty as student club leaders graduate and leave). They are creating opportunities and maintaining a visible presence for atheists, actual and potential, to plug themselves into a valuable information and social support network, which increases the amount of atheist activists and supporters not only in schools, but then beyond.
Being an annual supporting member of the SSA does give you some voting power, but it mostly just keeps their coffer filled. It’s very affordable to sign up for an automatically-renewing annual membership ($10 for cash-strapped students, $35 for anyone else, or more if you want) and I can’t think of any reason an atheist in the U.S. shouldn’t sign up for this, and give SSA more numbers and more dollars, at very little cost to yourself. They are doing great work. And valuable work.
I blogged about this last year, and you can read that for more backstory if you want (The SSA Is Our Future). But you can also just go to the SSA Supporters Page and sign up for an annual membership. Now is also a good time to send them a special bonus donation: as they have a matching offer in play once again this year, until May 6: all donations (and memberships) clocked before then will be doubled! For details (and how to give a special one-time donation to grab more of those matching funds) see SSA Week 2013.
/I can’t think of any reason an atheist in the U.S. shouldn’t sign up for this/
I have a reason, I don’t care
Yet you cared enough to spend time reading the article and then post a comment saying you don’t care.
Issues, much?
Mr. Ham, is that you?
Dude, im going to start my own atheism movement and devote all my intellectual capacity to it. It will be about humanism, animal rights and ecology. I will disgrace and disown you in public if you will not associate yourself with this movement and OUR values. Stop being so angry and let me help you to grow as a better person Richard.
Because that has all to do with the SSA and its value to the world and our nation.
Oh, wait. No it doesn’t. This is a comment completely off topic, pointlessly insincere, entirely inappropriate to this thread, written by someone too immature to hold a reasonable conversation about anything.
Note to my readers: I suspect the SSA will play a key role in making fewer atheists like this “Dude” loser, and training up more atheists who are mature of mind and heart and care about making the world a better place instead. All the more reason to throw some support their way!
I would love to give. But my wife and I took a 10 percent pay cut as WI teachers under Gov. Walker and now struggle to meet our mortgage and monthly bills. We cannot do what our friends in the private sector do. I wish we could help.
I know where you’re coming from. I’ve been there myself (wanting to help but too struggling to give anything). There is no shame in that. Work toward getting financially better off. Until then, when it comes to helping orgs like the SSA, those of us making a little surplus can do our part for you.