What we’re about
What is SCSC?
If you are currently a leader or a member of a secular group (humanist, agnostic/atheist, freethinker etc.) in Southern Cal, this is a great group to join. Our goals include:
1. Networking to build group cohesion and effectiveness within and between our various secular groups throughout SoCal.
2. Helping our groups to grow by broadening their offerings per the "CASE model":
- building Community
- increasing Advocacy and Political Action
- creating programs for Service and Social Causes
- providing Education for our groups as well as collective mobilization.
3. Sharing best practices with each other.
Our first Annual SCSC Virtual Conference was in 2021; link to videos are HERE.
We had our Second Annual SCSC Virtual Conference on Nov. 12th, 2022. You can catch recordings of some of the fantastic speakers we had HERE.
SCSC currently has weekly planning meetings every other Friday at noon. If you'd like to join one and become engaged, please message Dave (Organizer) or Rhett (Co-Organizer) or Judy (Co-Organizer) on Meetup. This Meetup page can help steer anyone looking for secular connections to great events happening throughout SoCal, and also be an excellent place for group leaders to share ideas of general interest and help provide greater connection. Looking forward to hearing from you. Let us know if you have questions.
Also, visit us here for more info:
SCSC Website
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Atheists United Summer Beach Party 2025Dockweiler State Beach (Tower 51), Los Angeles, CA
We’re hosting the largest atheist beach party in Southern California!
We'll bring some music, snacks, and non-alcoholic drinks. You bring the godless energy (and some snacks to share)!
PLEASE RSVP SO WE KNOW HOW MANY DRINKS TO BUY:
https://events.humanitix.com/atheists-summer-beach-party-2025Every season we host a community party that brings together the Southern California atheist community. This summer we invite you to join our family-friendly beach party!
Park on the north side of the parking lot. We'll grab a section of beach near the fire pits around Lifeguard Station #51 at Dockweiler State Beach. Look for the Atheists United signs and tents.
Event is from 10pm - 2pm, but feel free to continue partying long after we pack up if you want. Freedom is our community's number one value.
Don't forget to bring everything you need to make a trip to the beach a good time: sunscreen, towel, hat, beach chairs, beach games, snacks, etc.We'll set up tents, chairs, and a few games everyone can enjoy.
Paid parking is available right next to the beach for about $15.
Bathrooms are nearby.
Guests are encouraged!
Experiencing a cold, flue, or COVID symptoms? We insist you stay home, heal, and protect the community from illness.
Contact evan@atheistsunited.org with any questions.
All attendees agree to follow Atheists United's Code of Conduct policies.
- Mary Beth O'Connor: From Junkie to Judge…Without GodLink visible for attendees
Our Program: Mary Beth O’Connor will describe her history of methamphetamine use. She will describe how she responded when her rehab insisted she comply with the God-based approach of Alcoholics Anonymous and how she built a secular recovery program. She will provide an overview of substance use disorder and treatment options. This will include six peer support groups and a study comparing the efficacy of several of them. She will explain the benefits of building a personalized secular recovery program and the obstacles to doing so. Mary Beth will provide recovery resources and take questions.
Our Speaker: In her award-winning memoir, From Junkie to Judge: One Woman’s Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction, Mary Beth shares her three-phase journey: the abuse and trauma that drove her to shoot methamphetamine at 17, the resulting chaos from her addiction, and how she developed a personalized recovery plan, without a higher power, that led to twenty-nine years of sobriety so far.
Mary Beth is a Board Member for She Recovers Foundation and a Director for LifeRing Secular Recovery. She regularly speaks on behalf of these organizations and about multiple and secular paths to recovery. She published an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, I Beat Addiction without God, and one in Recovery Today, How I Attained 28 Years Sobriety by Rejecting My Rehab’s Submit to AA Order.
Professionally, 6 years into recovery, Mary Beth attended Berkeley Law School. She worked at a large firm, then litigated class actions for the federal government. In 2014 she was appointed a federal Administrative Law Judge and retired in 2020.
