About this project
$2,113
45
Godless Patriots is a line of t-shirts inspired by elements of punk rock and skating culture centered on a common theme of morality, reason, and patriotism of non-theists. The goal of this KickStarter Campaign is to expand the current line of t-shirts available on godlesspatriots.com by crowd-sourcing the development of several new designs (with KickStarter exclusives, of course). Any support beyond the KickStarter goal will go a long way to promote Godless Patriots both online and at conferences around the United States.
There are currently individual t-shirt designs available online for non-theists, but it is difficult to find an actual dedicated clothing line. The fractured nature of the market makes it difficult to establish any cohesion among the shirts and many of them are far too disparaging of religion to be worn in public. What sets Godless Patriots apart (in addition to offering women's sizes) is a design philosophy centered around presenting a clear, assertive, and respectful message: Non-theists are just as moral and just as valuable to society as anyone else.
KICKSTARTER REWARDS:
Feel free to ignore the additional international charge if the shirt is shipping to active-duty servicemen and servicewomen overseas. To charge extra for getting t-shirts to those in the military would go against the message of this brand.
Risks and challenges
The biggest threat to fulfilling orders on time lies in overwhelming my supplier. While my long-term goal is to fund the purchase of necessary screen-printing equipment that would allow me to produce these shirts on my own, I am currently dependent upon a local supplier to produce my shirts. My supplier is a family friend with a very successful (and busy) t-shirt company. In the interest of getting these orders out in time, I have decided to limit the number of available shirts to 100 total for the Kickstarter Campaign (but buttons are unlimited). With your help, I will be able to make non-Kickstarter versions of these designs available permanently on godlesspatriots.com.
I have already partnered with the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF, militaryatheists.org) to produce a line of co-branded GP/MAAF shirts designed to promote awareness for MAAF and to provide a supplemental revenue stream for their organization. These shirts are currently available on shop.godlesspatriots.com or by clicking our link on militaryatheists.org and were entirely funded using my personal finances. My goal for Godless Patriots is to eventually be able to make similar co-branded shirts for other non-theistic non-profit organizations that promote social progress (though this is NOT part of the KickStarter Campaign). By making co-branded shirts available in advance of this Kickstarter Campaign, I hope to have proven that I am capable of producing quality (100% cotton, screen-printed) t-shirts for men and women. The purpose of this campaign is to expand my product line by launching several new Godless Patriots designs.
If you would like to help me make my designs available in the future (including the coveted ATHEISM IS NOT A CRIME shirt featured in the header), please show your support by giving what you think is fair. Once the Kickstarter Green merchandise is sold out, it's gone, but the non-KS-exclusive designs will move to shop.godlesspatriots.com.
I trust that the online community will be supportive of my cause. While I am realistic in my fund-raising goals, I want to be clear on how any additional funding would help Godless Patriots get off the ground:
First $2000: Offset costs of production and shipment of 100 GP/Kickstarter shirts.
$2000-$4000: Help get Godless Patriots to participate as a vendor at the 2013 American Atheists National Convention in Austin Texas (March, 2013) and to The Amazing Meeting 2013 (Summer, 2013, Las Vegas). I need help paying registration fees and ensuring that I will have enough merchandise in stock at both conventions as well as being able to pay for travel and lodging to get to TAM.
$4000-$5000: Help launch new designs on shop.godlesspatriots.com as well as keeping plenty of shirts in stock.
$5000+: If I receive SIGNIFICANT support for my project, I will be able to realistically start pricing used screen-printing equipment and supplies as well as start looking for an affordable warehouse space to use for production! My dream is for Godless Patriots to become a fully self-sustained company representing non-theists around the world. I need equipment in order to make this my day job! It would take a few months of research, but if I receive significant Kickstarter support I would be able to make this dream a reality in 2013!
Learn about accountability on KickstarterQuestions about this project? Check out the FAQ
Support this project
Funding period
- (45 days)