Non-Believers Giving Aid
In response to the tragedy in Haiti, several organizations representing ‘non-believers’ and others have set up a disaster relief fund called Non-Believers Giving Aid. In an appeal for donations, the website of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science (RDFRS) states:
Spurred by the horrific suffering in Haiti, the RDFRS has set up a dedicated bank account and PayPal facility to collect donations to non-religious relief organizations. This account is in new name of Non-Believers Giving Aid, with all of the money donated being distributed to disaster relief.
“It’s all well and good to say that we nonbelievers are just as moral as believers (we are, but that’s a philosophical point) — actions count more than words and real donations are where the theoretical rubber meets the practical road. This is our time to pony up and show the world our true character.”
Clearly the immediate need is for the suffering people of Haiti, and all the money raised by this current appeal will go that cause, but the new account will remain available for future emergencies too. There are, of course, many ways for you to donate to relief organizations already, but doing it through Non-Believers Giving Aid offers a number of advantages:
- 100% of your donation will be go to these charities: not even the PayPal fees will be deducted from your donation, since Richard will personally donate a sum to cover the cost of these (capped at $10,000). This means that more of your money will reach the people in need.
- When donating via Non-Believers Giving Aid, you are helping to counter the scandalous myth that only the religious care about their fellow humans.
It goes without saying that your donations will only be passed on to aid organizations that do not have religious affiliations. In the case of Haiti, the two organizations we have chosen are:
You may stipulate using a dropdown menu which of these two organizations you want your donation to go to; otherwise, it will be divided equally between them.
Preachers and televangelists, mullahs and imams, often seem almost to gloat over natural disasters — presenting them as payback for human transgressions, or for ‘making a pact with the devil’. Earthquakes and tsunamis are caused not by ‘sin’ but by tectonic plate movements, and tectonic plates, like everything else in the physical world, are supremely indifferent to human affairs and sadly indifferent to human suffering. Those of us who understand this reality are sometimes accused of being indifferent to that suffering ourselves. Of course the very opposite is the truth: we do not hide behind the notion that earthly suffering will be rewarded in a heavenly paradise, nor do we expect a heavenly reward for our generosity: the understanding that this is the only life any of us have makes the need to alleviate suffering even more urgent. The myth that it is only the religious who truly care is sustained largely by the fact that they tend to donate not as individuals, but through their churches. Non-believers, by contrast, give as individuals: we have no church through which to give collectively, no church to rack up statistics of competitive generosity. Non-Believers Giving Aid is not a church (that’s putting it mildly) but it does provide an easy conduit for the non-religious to help those in desperate need, whilst simultaneously giving the lie to the canard that you need God to be good.
$50,000 has already been raised in the first 24-hours! Get in on the action now and show your support. Please help us to help the suffering people of Haiti.
