Lost in all the rhetoric of angry, militant, and other derogatory perceptions of Atheists, is all the good that has come out of the Atheist community. For instance the community has donated generously to the education funds of
students who have spoken out for secular values, even as the same students are ostracized by their own local communities.
But it's not just about generosity within the Atheist community. Time and time again, Atheists show their compassion for the larger community that is all of humanity.
The Foundation Beyond Belief is currently collecting donations for relief efforts after the devastating Moore, Oklahoma tornado.
This morning we have selected Operation USA and the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma to receive our donations. These organizations were chosen for their long records of outstanding work, their high ratings and transparency, and their current direct work in the disaster zone addressing the primary needs of food, shelter, and medical aid.
Donations will be forwarded continuously during the emergency period. FBB retains no portion of donations. All donations to and through Foundation Beyond Belief are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
According to their front page as I write this, FBB has already collected over $14,000 for the OK Tornado crisis, and nearly a million dollars overall since its launch.
The FBB's mission:
To demonstrate humanism at its best by supporting efforts to improve this world and this life, and to challenge humanists to embody the highest principles of humanism, including mutual care and responsibility.
Some of the FBB's other beneficiaries:
We’ve helped open a new school for girls in Pakistan and funded a four-year college scholarship for indigenous Guatemalans. We've added humanist voices and dollars to the fight for LGBT rights, empowered adoptions, helped feed the hungry, and worked to protect the most vulnerable – refugees in war, victims of torture, women under threat of religious violence, political asylees, people struggling with addiction, and those seeking dignity at the end of their lives.
You can donate to Foundation Beyond Belief's OK crisis fund here.
In addition to the FBB, according to Hemant Mehta:
We Are Atheism is also raising funds that will be directly distributed to the people affected:
How can we guarantee this will go directly to people that need assistance? Well, for the first time since we started this charity, we plan to hand deliver aid to people in that town once the rescue workers leave and people try to rebuild their lives. We have local contacts that will assist us in finding those in need. We will physically spend up to a week there (if need be) to help give money and help to those that need it but haven’t gotten it.
Obviously, how you choose to contribute is unimportant, so long as you have the desire to contribute at all. But this way, you can also support the efforts of Atheists to show that belief in a higher power is not needed to have compassion for your fellow man.