Black Secularism and the Scopes Trial: A Century of Freethought
Freethought Radio
Freedom From Religion Foundation
4.6 • 577 Ratings
🗓️ 19 February 2026
⏱️ 50 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
FFRF Communications Director Amit Pal and FFRF Multimedia Producer Leo Costello break down the latest state-church headlines, including troubling rhetoric at the National Gathering for Prayer and Repentance led by House Speaker Mike Johnson. Then, historian Chris Cameron explores the freethinkers of color who helped build a powerful tradition of Black secularism in America.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is Free Thought Radio with co-host Stan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor, Irreverent Views, News, Music, and Interviews. |
| 0:19.0 | Imagine there's no heaven. |
| 0:21.6 | It's easy if you try. |
| 0:27.6 | No hell below us, above us only sky. |
| 0:41.3 | Imagine all the people from Religion Foundation. |
| 1:03.9 | And I'm Leo Costello, producer of this show and other multimedia projects at FFRF. |
| 1:10.0 | Your usual co-host, Annie Laurie Gaylor and Dan Barker, |
| 1:13.2 | are still on vacation, but they will be back next week. This is the February 19th, |
| 1:19.3 | 2026 episode of Freethought Radio. We are recording from the Stephen Ool from the Atheist Studio |
| 1:24.3 | in Freethought Hall, our national headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin. |
| 1:29.5 | Freethot Radio is the weekly production of the freedom from religion foundation. FFRF has two |
| 1:35.4 | purposes. One is to promote non-theism. And the second is to act as a watchdog on the constitutional |
| 1:42.8 | separation, the wall of separation between state and |
| 1:46.2 | church. |
| 1:47.3 | Today we're going to be, as always, talking about the latest news in church-state separation. |
| 1:52.0 | We have a lot of news to get to today, including some national and state news. |
| 1:57.0 | But it's always good to highlight the work we're doing at the state level to show, |
| 2:08.6 | you know, the work we do all across the country. And we'll also hear some unsettling remarks from Speaker Mike Johnson and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. |
| 2:14.2 | And in honor of Black History Month, we'll hear a speech by history professor Chris Cameron about the history of black secularism in America, focusing on the Scopes trial era and the broader cultural shifts of the 1920s. |
| 2:29.0 | This week on FFRF's YouTube show Secular Spotlight. FFRF's Chris Line and Mark Dan spoke with |
| 2:36.0 | journalist Jonathan Larson to break down the 2026 National Brat Breakfast, an event that's |
| 2:43.3 | really anything but a harmless display of faith. And they'll tell you why they discuss the history |
... |
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