What is your name? (Real or pseudo)

Vivian Vacca

What is your date of birth?

March 10, 1972

What is your gender?

Female

What is your race?

Human, but to be more specific, hispanic.

What is your e-mail address? (optional)

Vivian@marketronics.com

What is the name and URL of your homepage? (optional)

None.

Where do you live? (City, State, Country)

Sunrise, FL, USA

How would you best describe your form of freethought? (Atheist, Agnostic, Humanist, etc.)

I am a proud atheist and secular humanist.

Were you raised as a freethinker or to be religious?

I was raised as a Catholic who went to an all-girl Catholic school, which celebrated a half an hour mass every school morning and taught religion class for two hours, three times a week. Fortunately, my mother, although a believer, was not a fanatic and didn't even attend mass. We never discussed god(s) or beliefs.

What originally set you on the path to freethought?

By accident, my mom couldn't register me for 4th grade in a Catholic school so I went to a more secular one, which taught religion but also allowed the teaching of evolution. I still remember the day my history teacher told us how we evolved and how we shared a common ancestry with apes. At that moment, something ticked! From then on, I started asking questions such as: Where do we come from? - If God made us, who made God? - If we know what's beyond the skies (planets, stars, gases, cosmic matter, etc.) and what's beneath the earth (mostly rocks), where are heaven and hell? - Why is praying so ineffective? - Why do bad things happen to good people? - Why is our religion the best while others are unworthy?

Those questions were dismissed by comments such as, Are you insane? Good girls don't ask such questions. And so I went looking for help to my best friends, the books. I developed a passion for astronomy, geology, and biology.

When I went back to Catholic school the next year, it was too late. That history teacher had already planted in me the seed of thirst for knowledge. Later in life, after marrying a Catholic man and having a child, I tried to be complacent by attempting to reconcile science and faith. I started attending mass again. However, I reached the point of no return less than two months later. In sermon after sermon, the preacher would lash out against abortion, homosexuality, contraceptives, and the lust for money. I found that terribly distasteful and hypocritical. I knew it was statistically impossible that every church-going Catholic in our congregation followed the rules unquestionably. But most shocking was to see how the clergymen despised those who had money by preaching its sinfulness, but at the time to collect the offering they would go out of their way to make us feel kind, generous, and thankful for having all this money in our lives. They even went to great lengths assuring us that by sharing our wealth it would multiply even more. That's it, I said to myself! I've had it! I was totally disgusted and wasn't going to take it anymore.

When did you "come out" as a freethinker to family/friends/public, and how did it go over?

Internally, it was the most exhilarating experience I've ever had. I had never felt freer in my whole life: no more myths, superstition, fear of ghosts. The realization that I don't have a predestined life and am responsible for my own future was at first frightening and then empowering. All of a sudden, after more than twenty years, I had totally assimilated the idea that praying won't make the outcome any different if I didn't take matters into my own hands. Externally, it was a fairly good experience. Although my husband, relatives, friends and co-workers didn't share my disbelief, they respected my decision and were never satirical, critical, nor discriminative, without being supportive, of course.

Do you feel it necessary to continue to hide your beliefs in any circumstances, and if so, why?

Absolutely not! My lack of religious belief is a great part of who I am and what has shaped my moral conduct and strong desire to fight for our civil liberties and against discrimination (be it racial, sexual, religious, social, physical).

Have you ever been the victim of discrimination or abuse because of your beliefs?

Honestly, the only day I've felt discriminated against based on my godlessness was when President George W. Bush declared Friday, September 14th, a Day of Prayer and Remembrance.

In what types of freethought activism, if any, do you participate?

I belong to the FFRF and am constantly writing letters to the media, politicians, and public figures who have either expressed their respect for atheists, publicly voiced their hate against us, or have the power to influence laws or views directly affecting us.

What do you feel is the best part of being a freethinker?

The ability to live without fear; the ability to look inside me and determine what's right instead of blindingly turning to a higher authority for guidance; the ability to think for myself and arrive at my own conclusions; and the ability to challenge tradition and authority when they seem wrong constitute, undoubtedly, the best part of being a freethinker.

What do you feel is the worst part of being a freethinker?

The notion that in most parts of the world the lack of faith is punishable by law; that it brings about discrimination by family, relatives, friends, and fellow citizens; or that it is the cause for becoming a second-class citizen is probably the saddest part of being a freethinker.

What is the societal atmosphere for freethinkers where you live?

Sadly, I am the only freethinker I know of in this tri-county area, South Florida. I've looked unsuccessfully for freethinking groups in my city and communities near by. The closest I know of is in Orlando, which is a three-hour trip from here. However, the diverse cultural and racial composition of our people makes this a mostly tolerant and open-minded region.

How do you define "freedom of religion" and do you think your country attempts to grant this?

In the United States of America, the First Amendment of our Constitution protects our religion freedom. However, we face an uphill battle due to the repeated and incremental attacks we suffer against it. Organizations such as FFRF are fundamental to safeguarding present and future generations that might suffer if our freedom of religion rights are not warranted and respected.

If you could share one thought with whoever might read this profile of you, what would it be?

Humans have always been able to justify and rationalize almost anything, hiding behind religion. It is time we take responsibility for our actions. It is time we understand that there are no gods, no evil, and no miracles. There are only humans, their actions, and the consequences.