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| | For 2015, CFI reported gross income of $5.1 million and assets at the end of that year of $1.6 million. President Ronald Lindsay drew a salary of $99,215.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.centerforinquiry.net/docs/2015-cfi-990.pdf|title=Center for Inquiry IRS Form 990|format=PDF|accessdate=January 10, 2017}}</ref> | | For 2015, CFI reported gross income of $5.1 million and assets at the end of that year of $1.6 million. President Ronald Lindsay drew a salary of $99,215.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.centerforinquiry.net/docs/2015-cfi-990.pdf|title=Center for Inquiry IRS Form 990|format=PDF|accessdate=January 10, 2017}}</ref> |
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| − | == Center for Inquiry accused of sexism by the atheist Rebecca Watson == | + | == Center for Inquiry and accusations of sexism == |
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| − | ''See also:'' [[Atheism and sexism]] and [[Atheism and women]] | + | ''See also:'' [[Atheism and sexism]] |
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| − | According to the atheist [[Rebecca Watson]], the atheist [[Lawrence Krauss]] sexually harassed a woman onboard a cruise ship conducted by the Center for Inquiry.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wI_kS3lrYs Jeffrey Epstein, Lawrence Krauss, and Firing your Heroes into the Sun]" by [[Rebecca Watson]]</ref> Specifically, Watson said Krauss propositioned the woman to engage in a threesome and the woman complained to CFI about the matter.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wI_kS3lrYs Jeffrey Epstein, Lawrence Krauss, and Firing your Heroes into the Sun]" by [[Rebecca Watson]]</ref> | + | [[File:Rebecca watson portrait 2011.jpg|thumbnail|right|225px|A 2011 portrait of [[Rebecca Watson]] ]] |
| | + | In ''[[The Nation]]'', Katha Pollitt wrote in ther article ''Atheists Show Their Sexist Side'': |
| | + | {{Cquote|At the 2013 Women in Secularism conference, Ron Lindsay, CEO of the Center for Inquiry, gave what was widely regarded as a condescending lecture to the women in attendance, accusing them of feminist bullying. (After a huge outcry, he apologized. That was good.)<ref>[https://www.thenation.com/article/atheists-show-their-sexist-side/ ''Atheists Show Their Sexist Side''] by Katha Pollitt, ''The Nation''</ref>}} |
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| | + | === Center for Inquiry accused of sexism by atheist Rebecca Watson === |
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| | + | ''See also:'' [[Atheism and women]] |
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| | + | According to the atheist [[Rebecca Watson]], the atheist [[Lawrence Krauss]] sexually harassed several women onboard a cruise ship conducted by the Center for Inquiry.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wI_kS3lrYs Jeffrey Epstein, Lawrence Krauss, and Firing your Heroes into the Sun]" by [[Rebecca Watson]]</ref> Specifically, Watson said Krauss propositioned the woman to engage in a threesome and the woman complained to CFI about the matter.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wI_kS3lrYs Jeffrey Epstein, Lawrence Krauss, and Firing your Heroes into the Sun]" by [[Rebecca Watson]]</ref> |
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| | Rebecca Watson indicates the CFI decided to bury this complaint and allowed Krauss to be on one of its subsequent cruises.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wI_kS3lrYs Jeffrey Epstein, Lawrence Krauss, and Firing your Heroes into the Sun]" by [[Rebecca Watson]]</ref> | | Rebecca Watson indicates the CFI decided to bury this complaint and allowed Krauss to be on one of its subsequent cruises.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wI_kS3lrYs Jeffrey Epstein, Lawrence Krauss, and Firing your Heroes into the Sun]" by [[Rebecca Watson]]</ref> |
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| − | == Sikivu Hutchinson criticizes Center for Inquiry's all white board of directors == | + | == Center for Inquiry and its lack of racial diversity == |
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| | + | === Sikivu Hutchinson criticizes Center for Inquiry's all white board of directors === |
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| | ''See also:'' [[Western atheism and race]] and [[Atheism and racism]] | | ''See also:'' [[Western atheism and race]] and [[Atheism and racism]] |
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| | The [[secular humanism|secular humanist]] document Human Manifesto II, which was written in 1973 by Paul Kurtz and Edwin H. Wilson, decried racism and it declared: | | The [[secular humanism|secular humanist]] document Human Manifesto II, which was written in 1973 by Paul Kurtz and Edwin H. Wilson, decried racism and it declared: |
| | {{cquote|The beginnings of police states, even in democratic societies, widespread government espionage, and other abuses of power by military, political, and industrial elites, and the continuance of unyielding racism, all present a different and difficult social outlook. In various societies, the demands of women and minority groups for equal rights effectively challenge our generation.<ref>[http://americanhumanist.org/humanism/humanist_manifesto_ii Humanist Manifesto II]</ref>}} | | {{cquote|The beginnings of police states, even in democratic societies, widespread government espionage, and other abuses of power by military, political, and industrial elites, and the continuance of unyielding racism, all present a different and difficult social outlook. In various societies, the demands of women and minority groups for equal rights effectively challenge our generation.<ref>[http://americanhumanist.org/humanism/humanist_manifesto_ii Humanist Manifesto II]</ref>}} |
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| | + | === Atheist Kavin Senapathy on Center for Inquiry's lack of racial diversity === |
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| | + | The atheist Kavin Senapathy wrote on the Center for Inquiry's lack of racial diversity |
| | + | {{Cquote|Last October, however, I received a letter from CFI suggesting that “we part ways” and dismissing me from my role as co-host of Point of Inquiry. I believe the dismissal was a response to my outspoken views on CFI’s negligence toward matters of race and diversity — issues that the organization has often sidestepped in the past. If that is indeed the case, it sends a discouraging message. At a moment when racist pseudoscience is making a disturbing comeback, skeptics shouldn’t shy away from talking about race — and we can’t afford to overlook the white privilege among our own ranks. |
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| | + | THE CENTER for Inquiry has frequently been criticized for its indifference to matters of race, diversity, and social justice. That indifference is reflected in its demographics. At the last three CSIcons, I was the only non-white presenter in the lineup. The Center’s 10-member board of directors includes just one non-white person and two women.<ref>[https://undark.org/2020/02/20/center-for-inquiry-race-pseudoscience/ Opinion: The Skeptics Movement Can’t Afford to Ignore Racial Inequality] by Kavin Senapathy</ref>}} |
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| | + | In response to atheist Kavin Senapathy's criticism of CFI's lack of racial diversity, CFI pulled all the articles/episodes of Senapathy from their website.<ref>[https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2020/03/19/the-depth-of-cfis-commitment-to-free-speech-can-only-be-measured-with-an-atomic-force-microscope/ The depth of CFI’s commitment to free speech can only be measured with an atomic force microscope] by PZ Myers</ref> |
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| | + | == Center for Inquiry's website loss of Google referral web traffic == |
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| | + | ''See also:'' [[Internet atheism]] |
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| | + | [[File:Center for Inquiry Google referral traffic SEMRush 7-29-2022.png|thumbnail|1200px|center|The Center for Inquiry's website lost a large majority of its Google referral web traffic from its peak Google referral traffic according to the leading web marketing website SEMRush. |
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| | + | Google uses over 200 factors to evaluate the quality and the relevance of a website to various topics.]] |
| | + | == Demographics of web visitors to the Center for Inquiry website. Majority of its web visitors are men == |
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| | + | ''See also:'' [[Atheist websites appear to receive significantly less traffic from women]] |
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| | + | [[File:Demographics of website visitors to the Center for Inquiry website as of 1-16-2023 Similarweb.com data .jpg|center|thumbnail|1500px|According to SimilarWeb.com, the [[Center for Inquiry]] website receives a majority of its web traffic from men.<ref>[https://www.similarweb.com/website/centerforinquiry.org/#demographics Demographics of web visitors to the Center for Inquiry website - Similarweb.com]</ref> ]] |
| | + | {{Clear}} |
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| | + | == Richard Dawkins and Center for Inquiry translation project to reach more Muslims == |
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| | + | ''See also:'' [[The Translations Project]] and [[Atheism vs. Islam]] and [[The God Delusion]] |
| | + | [[File:Richard Dawkins Cooper Union.jpg|thumbnail|200px|right|[[Richard Dawkins]] ]] |
| | + | ''The Guardian'' reported about [[Richard Dawkins]]' book ''[[The God Delusion]]'': |
| | + | {{Cquote|Richard Dawkins is responding to what he called the “stirring towards atheism” in some Islamic countries with a programme to make free downloads of his books available in [[Arabic]], [[Urdu]], [[Farsi]] and [[Indonesia]]n. |
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| | + | The scientist and atheist said he was “greatly encouraged” to learn that the unofficial Arabic pdf of the book had been downloaded 13m times. Dawkins writes in ''[[The God Delusion]]'' about his wish that the “open-minded people” who read it will “break free of the vice of religion altogether”. It has sold 3.3m copies worldwide since it was published in 2006 – far fewer than the number of Arabic copies that Dawkins believes to have been downloaded illegally. |
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| | + | The [[Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science]] recently merged with the Washington DC-based Center for Inquiry. Dawkins said the CFI decided on “a more systematic programme” of translating his work in ebook form following “stirrings toward atheism in [[Iran]] and other Islamic countries”. It will be the first time his work has been made available in Arabic, Urdu, Farsi and other languages of Islamic countries.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/mar/20/richard-dawkins-to-give-away-copies-of-the-god-delusion-in-islamic-countries Richard Dawkins to give away copies of The God Delusion in Islamic countries], The Guardian</ref>}} |
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| | + | The Center for Inquiry indicates on its website: |
| | + | {{Cquote|Announcing The Translations Project, a program of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science, part of the Center for Inquiry. |
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| | + | The books of Richard Dawkins—including ''River Out of Eden'', ''The Magic of Reality'', ''The Blind Watchmaker'', and ''The God Delusion''—are being professionally translated into languages such as Arabic, Urdu, Farsi, and Indonesian and made available to download free of charge.<ref>[https://centerforinquiry.org/news/introducing-the-translations-project/ The Books of Richard Dawkins, Professionally Translated for Free Access in the Muslim World], Center for Inquiry website</ref>}} |
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| | == Richard Dawkins' Twitter post about a video comparing feminism to radical Islam == | | == Richard Dawkins' Twitter post about a video comparing feminism to radical Islam == |
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| | == Criticism of the Center for Inquiry in relation to its financial management == | | == Criticism of the Center for Inquiry in relation to its financial management == |
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| − | ''See also:'' [[Atheist nonprofit scandals]] | + | ''See also:'' [[Atheist organizations and scandals]] |
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| | David Gorski at Scienceblogs wrote about atheist/skeptic organizations and financial mismanagement: | | David Gorski at Scienceblogs wrote about atheist/skeptic organizations and financial mismanagement: |
| | {{cquote|In any case, this makes me wonder: What is it about rationalist/skeptic groups that make them seemingly have such a hard time running their organizations well from a financial standpoint? After all, just a couple of months ago the Center for Inquiry (CFI) sent out letters desperately begging for more contributions. The reason was that CFI had one large benefactor whose yearly contribution funded approximately 20-25% of the yearly CFI budget. As clueless as I may be about finances, even I know that you don’t use such donations to run the operating expenses of an organization, because you can’t count on them from year to year and it’s too big a chunk. You use this money for special short-term projects and a rainy day fund. Not surprisingly, when this mysterious donor stopped donating earlier this year, suddently CFI was in deep doo-doo from a financial standpoint, prompting the desperate plea for donations and deep budget cuts. I realize that the down economy has played havoc with many nonprofit and charitable organizations, but these issues with skeptical organizations seem to go beyond just that.<ref>[http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2010/10/24/richard-dawkins-sues-josh-timonen/ Richard Dawkins sues Josh Timonen], Posted by David Gorski on October 24, 2010</ref>}} | | {{cquote|In any case, this makes me wonder: What is it about rationalist/skeptic groups that make them seemingly have such a hard time running their organizations well from a financial standpoint? After all, just a couple of months ago the Center for Inquiry (CFI) sent out letters desperately begging for more contributions. The reason was that CFI had one large benefactor whose yearly contribution funded approximately 20-25% of the yearly CFI budget. As clueless as I may be about finances, even I know that you don’t use such donations to run the operating expenses of an organization, because you can’t count on them from year to year and it’s too big a chunk. You use this money for special short-term projects and a rainy day fund. Not surprisingly, when this mysterious donor stopped donating earlier this year, suddently CFI was in deep doo-doo from a financial standpoint, prompting the desperate plea for donations and deep budget cuts. I realize that the down economy has played havoc with many nonprofit and charitable organizations, but these issues with skeptical organizations seem to go beyond just that.<ref>[http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2010/10/24/richard-dawkins-sues-josh-timonen/ Richard Dawkins sues Josh Timonen], Posted by David Gorski on October 24, 2010</ref>}} |
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| − | Richard Dawkins, who is on the Center of Inquiry's board of editors, accused one of the staff of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science of embezzlement.<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/an-ungodly-row-dawkins-sues-his-disciple-2115632.html An ungodly row: Dawkins sues his disciple]</ref> See: [[Atheist nonprofit scandals]] and [[Atheism and stealing]] | + | Richard Dawkins, who is on the Center of Inquiry's board of editors, accused one of the staff of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science of embezzlement.<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/an-ungodly-row-dawkins-sues-his-disciple-2115632.html An ungodly row: Dawkins sues his disciple]</ref> See: [[Atheist organizations and scandals]] and [[Atheism and stealing]] |
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| | ==Center for Inquiry's affiliated programs== | | ==Center for Inquiry's affiliated programs== |
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| | *[https://centerforinquiry.org Center for Inquiry website] | | *[https://centerforinquiry.org Center for Inquiry website] |
| | + | *[https://cfiwny.org/ Center for Inquiry - Western New York] |
| | + | *[https://cfidc.org/ Center for Inquiry - Washington, D.C. branch] |
| | + | *[https://twitter.com/center4inquiry?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor Center for Inquiry - Twitter] |
| | + | *[https://www.facebook.com/cfiwny/ Center for Inquiry - Facebook] |
| | + | *[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp7LPFmh6pyFpWQY6htER3A Center for Inquiry - YouTube] |
| | *[https://nyheritage.org/contributors/center-inquiry-center-inquiry-libraries Center for Inquiry libraries] | | *[https://nyheritage.org/contributors/center-inquiry-center-inquiry-libraries Center for Inquiry libraries] |
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