Who the hell are you?



I'm Hemant Mehta (pronounced HEH-mint MEH-tuh). For seven years, I was a National Board Certified high school math teacher and head coach of our school's forensics/Speech team. Now I discuss atheism (and how it impacts politics and culture) full-time. I graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with degrees in Mathematics and Biology and obtained my Masters in Math Education from DePaul University. I've worked with the



I'm Hemant Mehta (pronounced HEH-mint MEH-tuh). For seven years, I was a National Board Certified high school math teacher and head coach of our school's forensics/Speech team. Now I discuss atheism (and how it impacts politics and culture) full-time. I graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with degrees in Mathematics and Biology and obtained my Masters in Math Education from DePaul University. I've worked with the Center For Inquiry and the Secular Coalition for America . I've also served as chair of the Secular Student Alliance and the Foundation Beyond Belief . I'm vegetarian. My initials are HAM. I also have a Wikipedia page . My ex-girlfriend once edited it to say I received no love as a zygote. I didn't notice for months. It has since been changed back.

Uh-huh. But do you BLOG?



I do! For more than a decade, I've been writing about atheism at



I do! For more than a decade, I've been writing about atheism at FriendlyAtheist.com , which is on the Patheos network. The site publishes several items every day, hosts a team of excellent contributors, and receives millions of pageviews each month. It has been cited in multiple books and media reports and takes up 98% of my waking life. Sometimes, I write and eat simultaneously to save time. The people at the local Jimmy John's know my name. (I tell them it's "Bob." It's just easier that way.)

That's nice. Got anything tangible to show for your "activism"?



I've written a few books!



(Patheos Press, 2012) is all about the struggles young atheists face and how all of us (parents, teachers, friends, etc.) can support them. Someone gave it a 1-star review on Amazon because it assumes "God's nonexistence." I did not find that review helpful.



(Hyperink, 2013) is a compilation of several of my blog posts dealing with topics such as politics, LGBT issues, and religion in public schools. You may think you can just read these posts for free on my website. You may be correct.



More recently, I edited and published a book called I've written a few books! I Sold My Soul on eBay (WaterBrook Press, 2007) documents my journey visiting Christian churches around the country. I once went on a TV show to promote it and the host accidentally said it was a bestseller. Since anything people say on television is true, that means I've written a bestselling book. Suck on that, Malcolm Gladwell. The Young Atheist's Survival Guide (Patheos Press, 2012) is all about the struggles young atheists face and how all of us (parents, teachers, friends, etc.) can support them. Someone gave it a 1-star review on Amazon because it assumes "God's nonexistence." I did not find that review helpful. The Friendly Atheist: Thoughts on the Role of Religion in Politics and Media (Hyperink, 2013) is a compilation of several of my blog posts dealing with topics such as politics, LGBT issues, and religion in public schools. You may think you can just read these posts for free on my website. You may be correct.More recently, I edited and published a book called Queer Disbelief , written by a former contributor to the site, Camille Beredjick. It's all about the intersection of religion/atheism and LGBTQ rights. It's really, really informative. Really.





Meh. I don't read. What else you got?



I created videos for a popular YouTube channel called The Atheist Voice. All of the videos have comments about the thickness of my eyebrows. That has since morphed into



That's it? One podcast? I created videos for a popular YouTube channel called. All of the videos have comments about the thickness of my eyebrows. That has since morphed into my own channel in which I do all the writing and editing myself! I've also appeared on CNN Fox News Channel (really), and several other media outlets to talk about religion. So far, no shouting matches. (Success!) And thanks to Patreon supporters, I was able to begin a podcast called the Friendly Atheist Podcast in the summer of 2014. It took a long time to come up with that name. Don't bother asking about the acronym.

No! There's another one! In 2019, I published a lengthy four-part series on the history of the Pledge of Allegiance. It's part of a series called

No! There's another one! In 2019, I published a lengthy four-part series on the history of the Pledge of Allegiance. It's part of a series called The Supreme Court vs. Church/State Separation

You were a math teacher. You must be filthy rich. Why are you here?



It takes a substantial investment of time to write/edit posts for the website, get the videos prepared for YouTube, and tape podcasts. I also pay my contributors for their work on the site because they deserve it. Many people have wondered if there's any way to help support these endeavors, and I felt this was a perfect way to facilitate that. Also, it's so much better than throwing more ads on my site.



While everything

(except the books) will continue to be available for free, the donations just help keep them going and give me the opportunity to work on new ways to spread atheism, promote critical thinking, and save the world. In that order.





Okay, I found my wallet. How much do you want?



Anything helps! All of the reward levels are listed on this page, though you're welcome to support what I'm doing without asking for anything in return. God will reward you in the afterlife for that. Or so I've heard.







Have you done anything productive since starting this Patreon page?



I have! Thanks to the contributions of many generous people, here's an ever-growing list of what we've done so far with the help of your donations:





More to come soon!