In many countries—especially Muslim-majority countries—atheists live in mortal danger. Thirteen of these countries—Afghanistan, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Nigeria, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen—officially punish atheism with death. This grim reality led the Center for Inquiry (CFI) to start the Secular Rescue program, designed to provide emergency assistance to writers, bloggers, publishers, and activists who face threats because they are freethinking non-believers. In this episode, we speak to Robyn Blumner, the CEO of CFI and executive director of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science (RDFRS), about this lifesaving, heroic initiative. She told The Atlantic that Secular Rescue is “an underground railroad of sorts for non-believers in countries where simply expressing doubt about religious belief is a criminal offence or where it may lead to grave physical harm.” If you have ever been in danger for your ideas, or know someone who has, this is a must-listen episode. [NOTE: This episode was recorded on the phone while Armin was in the UK working on the Sam Harris and Jordan Peterson events, so the audio isn't great; however, we've tried to make it as clear as possible. This episode is audio only.]

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Secular Rescue page at CFI: https://secure.centerforinquiry.net/secular-rescue

Atlantic article by David Robson: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/01/the-underground-railroad-to-save-atheists/550229/

Need Asylum? Keep Calm and Read on: http://www.atheistrepublic.com/blog/alliejackson/need-asylum-keep-calm-read 

Our episode with Saudi ex-Muslim refugee Rana Ahmed: https://youtu.be/R6rRsrjFMzg

Our episode with atheist Bangladeshi blogger Raihan Abir: https://youtu.be/J7UF3LNj-64

Our episode with Ensaf Haidar, wife of imprisoned blogger Raif Badawi: https://youtu.be/cmY89AGjuHg

Saudi Arabia tries to shut down CFI at the UN Human Rights Council: https://youtu.be/CakI_sn30xg