#BNChangesLives and Lives Changed by Black Nonbelievers, Inc.
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2018/05/10
Mandisa Thomas is the Founder of Black Nonbelievers, Inc. One of, if not the, largest organization for African-American or black nonbelievers or atheists in America. The organization is intended to give secular fellowship, provide nurturance and support for nonbelievers, encourage a sense of pride in irreligion, and promote charity in the non-religious community.
I was lucky enough to have a short conversation with Thomas about a new hashtag campaign of Black Nonbelievers, Inc. (BN). When I asked about the reason for the campaign, #BNChangesLives, Thomas pointed to the consistent theme of hearing the personal stories of members and allies of BN.
Many people who felt as though they were helped in the transition out of their faith and to be able to find a community. With campaign on social media and elsewhere, the messages that are shared can be a few words and even a couple paragraphs in order to share their story. This sharing of personal narratives can help bridge the gap of aloneness for many nonbelievers and help bring them together with fellow atheists and nonbelievers, Thomas noted.
BN has been around for about 6 years now. Thomas explained, “We wanted to give people the opportunity to be able to share how we have done that. We wanted to give supporters – people who support our organization – who do not know how we have made an impact. This is a way to tell members how we connect with the overall community.”
When I questioned about specific stories of lives greatly improved by activities of BN or other organizations, Thomas pointed to a woman who was “very heavily involved in her church. She questioned the Bible and decided to leave. She was lacking community. She saw the need to help build that community and help find other nonbelievers. In contacting myself and wanting to get involved with the organization, we started the Portland, Oregon affiliate. She is connected with other black nonbelievers in general, in her area.”
Thomas talked how they have begun to work on some events together in order to create a cultural connection in a community. Where once there was a church, they have one means of nonreligious community, even online forums for the members of BN. In particular, Thomas talks about one person who was contemplating suicide based on emotional trauma that came from being a believer.
She found BN and saw a means to connect with another community and express inchoate frustrations. While BN does not put themselves out there as an alternative to mainstream medical professionals, as Thomas makes clear, people with trauma from a religious community who can find another community feel a place in which to heal is BN.
Thomas talked about how the community helped this woman deal with suicidal tendencies. “Her frustrations were that family member who was a pastor or deacon in the church had molested her,” Thomas stated, “She was sexually assaulted by a family member who was a leader in the church. That is not frustrating [Laughing]. That is traumatic.”
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