Belva Ann Lockwood: We are researching Belva Ann Lockwood, an out and open atheist who ran a full presidential campaign in 1884 and 1888. We are exploring her connections to Western New York and plan to create a dedicated section on our site to share our findings. This will be a hub for research, with the goal of inspiring a formal paper on her life and local legacy. In the meantime, here are some good links: Belva Ann Lockwood Wikipedia, The Great Escape: Royalton Ravine Park and more history. Provide your feedback and suggestions for our research in progress.
Legislative Action: Recognizing the interest in legislative action, we have created a new section with resources to help you engage with lawmakers. This section is ready for people to take action with a Senate account you can set up now to vote on bills online and a resource center with a list of bills to vote on, which all starts at unyft.org/legislation with a petition you can sign today.
Re-Emergence of the AHA Buffalo Chapter: We are making a call for the American Humanist Association (AHA) Buffalo chapter to re-emerge. If you’re an AHA member in Western New York, we’d like to hear from you. We are looking to connect with interested individuals to begin the process of re-establishing the chapter. Please share your name and email with us to get started.
Call for Local Content: The Western New York page is a dynamic resource. We encourage you to contribute local content that can enrich our efforts, whether it’s related to our projects on Belva Ann Lockwood, legislative action, or the re-emergence of the AHA Buffalo Chapter. For example, we welcome information on local freethought events, such as the American Freethought panel that took place in Buffalo. Your contributions will help us keep keep our communityct updated and vibrant.