Waay back around 2009, my dear friend Warren Bonett and his partner Kirsty Bruce of Embiggen Books (then at Noosaville) started the Sunshine Coast Atheists. I was a founding member and later, became convenor. Recently, after many years, I handed control over the group to another person who I trusted to run it responsibly. Today, I attended a very pleasant lunch gathering and, although the meeting was quite different to those I organised, I was pleased to see it well attended and reflecting the change of leadership. It wasnt until we were packing up to go home that one of the new members presented me with his card. I am horrified to report that Mike Holt, leader of the extremist anti-Muslim right-wing political group, Restore Australia, was at our meeting today. My reaction was instant and explosive. I was horrified that our little local atheist group had been infiltrated by this racist scum. I have no idea who invited him and I dont care, frankly. I feel tainted by being in the same place - and aghast that a group that I nurtured over years has apparently become a haven for racists. It is not that I am for Islam any more than I am for Christianity. But, I recognise that Muslims live in and contribute to this country and have a right to practice their religion providing they do so peacefully. Restore Australia seeks to ban Islam and has, apparently, rewritten the Constitution. I am shaking as I write this. My dear friend Hugh Wilson of the Australian Secular Lobby may wish to elaborate on this hateful, nasty little narrow minded group of bigots. I just wanted to get in immediately and completely disassociate myself from Restore Australia and the Sunshine Coast Atheists and anyone in that group who thinks it is appropriate to have that kind of person associated with the group. Vale SCA. We did love you - once.
Posted on: Sun, 23 Nov 2014 05:35:46 +0000
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