(Madison, Wisconsin, April 17, 2012) "Freethought Festival 2012: Reason to Celebrate"
These words are starting to pop up on the screens of Madison-area computer users. They are part of an internet ad campaign aimed at letting more area atheists know they aren't alone, and that like-minded community groups exist for them to join. The ads are being placed by the newly launched Madison Area Coalition of Reason (MadCoR), an alliance of seven freethought organizations in the city and surrounding areas.
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The MadCoR launch also heralds the upcoming Freethought Festival, the coalition's inaugural conference. This free, three-day event will run from April 27-29th in the Humanities Building on the University of Wisconsin campus. Prominent atheist blogger P.Z. Myers and Freedom From Religion Foundation Co-president Annie Laurie Gaylor are among the 21 scientists, authors and atheist activists who will be speaking. It has already drawn hundreds of online registrations from across the Midwest.
The conference is being hosted by the Atheists, Humanists, & Agnostics, a student organization at UW–Madison. "It's unprecedented for students to organize a conference of this magnitude," explains Festival Event Organizer and graduate student Chris Calvey. "It's really a testament to the fact that young people are living happy, productive and fulfilling lives without God. My generation is the least religious in American history, and our numbers are growing every year."
