By Matthew Dyer, Central Ohio FFRF Chapter
Mathematics professor and atheist activist Herb Silverman ran for governor of South Carolina in 1990. Spoiler alert: he lost. Then in 1992 he went after an even more sought after role in public service than governor. A role so coveted that 33,000 other South Carolinians were simultaneously pursuing it. "After losing the gubernatorial race, and with politics now in my blood, what to do next?" Herb said as he opened the 48th annual Freedom From Religion Foundation national conference. "I decided to fulfill my lifelong dream of becoming a notary public, someone who stamps documents."
If that sounds funny, it's because it is. Herb shared the anecdote as he accepted the Freethinker of the Year award, an FFRF award which recognizes people who've won state/church lawsuits. He won the award because—that lifelong dream of his? Turns out it was a pretty lofty goal, especially for an atheist. South Carolina's constitution prohibited atheists from serving in any public office, including notary public. When his application was rejected, Herb sued the state. His case ultimately went to the South Carolina Supreme Court, who ruled unanimously in his favor, nullifying the anti-atheist clause in the state's constitution. Not bad for someone who stamps documents. [Photo: FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor presents the Freethinker of the Year award to Herb Silverman]
You can watch Herb's entire speech, along with all the others, at the Freedom From Religion Foundation's convention summary page.
Herb's speech set the tone for the entire weekend: ordinary people trying to do ordinary things who come up against barriers imposed by religion. With rational science and secularism, they push through these barriers, if not outright demolish them, and often do so with far-reaching, extraordinary results.
Nineteen-year-old Bailey Harris picked up the thread. As a child in heavily Mormon Utah, Bailey faced significant backlash and bullying from her fellow students, her teachers, and school administrators, simply for questioning religious doctrine. "It pushed me to speak my truth and educate others," Bailey said as she accepted FFRF's Out of God's Closet Diane & Stephen Uhl Memorial Student Activist Award. "What really inspired me was watching Cosmos with Neil deGrasse Tyson. Every Sunday with my family, it felt like I was taking my power back. When all the kids were at church, I was watching this show." [Photo: Bailey Harris speaking]
Bailey's love for the pro-science message spurred her to go upstairs, sit at her dad's computer, and start writing a children's book. She was 8 years old at the time. The book, "My Name Is Stardust," became the first in a series she continues to author today. An ordinary child doing ordinary things—well, mostly ordinary (not many 8-year-olds become published authors)—facing a barrier imposed by religion and moving through it with far-reaching, extraordinary results.
State Representative Mickey Dollens of Oklahoma offered practical advice in his talk, "The Citizen's Guide to Political Change." He shared a seven-point framework called FORWARD that begins with finding stakeholders and ends with driving change. It's a formula anyone can follow to engage legislators more effectively. The methodology was inspired by an unlikely story: goldfish.
A 10-year-old girl named Kaylee won a goldfish as a carnival prize, and the fish died the next day. Kaylee realized the carnival wasn't caring for the animals properly and decided to do something about it. She wrote a letter to Rep. Dollens (step 1: find a stakeholder) and he helped her take on the state law that allowed carnivals to award living animals, like goldfish, as prizes. The state didn't change the law, but her county instituted an ordinance banning pets as prizes (step 7: drive change). Four more counties followed—a genuine ripple effect. As Dollens put it: "From goldfish to Christian Nationalism, it works." [Photo: OK State Rep. Mickey Dollens speaking]
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FFRF Co-President Dan Barker invoked his wife Anne Gaylor, FFRF's principal founder, who warned that unless religion is kept in its place, all personal rights will be in jeopardy. "Our secular values must prevail if democracy is to be preserved," he said.
As the largest Freethought association in North America, FFRF provides the legal and organizational infrastructure that helps everyday people challenge everyday violations. For example, FFRF sent a cease-and-desist letter to an Oklahoma school that was piping prayers through the building's PA intercom. Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters retaliated by filing a vindictive lawsuit against FFRF, calling FFRF members "radical atheists." A Trump-appointed federal judge threw the case out. Shortly after losing, Walters resigned. This wouldn't have happened if it weren't for FFRF.
Even so, the work continues, including in South Carolina. Again. Despite Herb Silverman's win, South Carolina FFRF member Jim Rio, a veteran, still can't serve as an election poll worker because he's an atheist. And yes, FFRF has filed a federal lawsuit on his behalf, because that's exactly what they do.
I attended the convention as the Columbus chapter delegate alongside COFFRF member David Krohn. [Photo: David Krohn reads conference agenda] [Photo: Matthew Dyer asks a question during Q & A] The victories FFRF achieves aren't isolated or accidental. They're the result of the work enabled by dues-paying members like you and me. We're all everyday people doing everyday things—and some of those things wouldn't be possible without FFRF.
All FFRF dues and donations are deductible for income-tax purposes. Visit FFRF's membership page to learn about the different membership levels (a household membership is only $50/year), and become a member today.
***Mark your calendars for next year's conference: October 16-18, 2026 in Milwaukee, WI (more info).
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"The government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion."
— Treaty of Tripoli, Article 11 (1797), unanimously ratified by the U.S. Senate
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It's worth noting that today, December 1, is World AIDS Day. The World Health Organization began recognizing this day in 1988. Since the first known cases were reported in 1981, it is estimated that 44.1 million lives have been lost to date to HIV/AIDS, and an estimated 40.8 million people were living with HIV at the end of 2024. Since 1993, the President of the United States has made an official proclamation for World AIDS Day. This year, however, the Trump administration instructed American officials to not commemorate it, following cuts to HIV prevention. The theme for World AIDS Day in 2025 is "Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response." There is no cure for HIV infection. More stories below.
Trump administration won't observe World AIDS Day (November 26, 2025)
Presidential HIV council warns proposed cuts could reverse decades of progress (December 1, 2025)
Death Sentence: The real cost of Trump's aid cuts on HIV | Full Documentary (May 28, 2025)
Shades of Red event to be held on World AIDS Day (November 26, 2025)
We are having a book giveaway. The book is called The Citizen's Guide to Political Change: How to Win with Ballot Initiatives and Defend Direct Democracy and was written by Oklahoma State Rep. Mickey Dollens (book summary available). State Rep. Dollens autographed the book during the conference. For a chance to receive this signed copy for free, send an email to matthew@coffrf.org by 5pm Friday, December 5th. Put Book in the subject line. A random winner will be chosen and contacted.
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Central Ohio Freedom From Religion Foundation (COFFRF)
A chapter of the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Protecting church-state separation and educating about freethought and nontheism locally. National FFRF membership supports local chapter work.
https://www.coffrf.org
Editor's note: Convention recap article was written with editorial assistance from Claude (Anthropic). All content, observations, and examples are from the author's conference attendance; AI assistance was used for structural guidance and copyediting only.