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Linda Stephens, Co-Plaintiff in Town of Greece v. Galloway

Linda Stephens was one of the two plaintiffs in Town of Greece v. Galloway, the 2014 Supreme Court case that legalized religious invocations at government meetings (with a few caveats).

She worked as a librarian for two decades, served as president of the Greater Rochester Chapter of the National Organization for Women, and was vice president of a local chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

We spoke about the worst moment of the oral arguments, how she followed SCOTUSblog.com to get updates on her own lawsuit, and why losing the case has ironically worked out in atheists’ favor.

Notes:

Here’s a link to Dale Carpenter‘s excellent book about the Texas sodomy case, Flagrant Conduct: The Story of Lawrence v. Texas.

Matt Dillahunty, Master Debater and Co-Host of The Atheist Experience

Matt Dillahunty is a former fundamentalist Christian who now debates religious apologists. He was the President of the Atheist Community of Austin for several years and co-hosts The Atheist Experience call-in show. He recently began a video series teaching viewers how to respond to frequently-used apologist arguments.

Jessica spoke with Matt about his religious upbringing, why he loves debates, and what he sees as the future of faith.

Dianna E. Anderson, Purity Culture Critic

Dianna E. Anderson grew up in South Dakota, and after stints as an English teacher in Japan and a radio producer in Chicago, she’s turned her focus to writing.

Her first book, out now, is called Damaged Goods: New Perspectives on Christian Purity and it’s all about the intersection of the church and sexuality.

We spoke with Dianna about why sex is often seen as shameful in parts of Christianity, what conversations the broader evangelical culture is having about sex, and whether the church can ever become sex-positive. Lots of sex. #Sex