Godless Patriots is a clothing brand designed to promote a positive, patriotic message for non-theists in the United States and beyond. Read more
Godless Patriots is a clothing brand designed to promote a positive, patriotic message for non-theists in the United States and beyond.
About this project
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!
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Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.
Rewards
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Pledge $3 or more
0 backers
For $3 donations, you will receive a 2-1/4" Godless Patriots button featuring the GP flag and our URL in Kickstarter Green. These buttons are exclusive to the Kickstarter Campaign and a great way to show off your support of the Godless Patriots brand.
Estimated delivery:Only ships to: United States -
Pledge $5 or more
10 backers
Donors of $5 will receive a 2-1/4" Kickstarter edition of our ATHEISM IS NOT A CRIME button featuring the Godless Patriots URL. These buttons are a great way to be assertive of your beliefs and to initiate positive interactions and conversations in public.
Estimated delivery:Only ships to: United States -
Pledge $20 or more
8 backers Limited (32 left of 40)
For $20 donations, you will receive your choice of either our Moral Atheist Patriot shirt (for atheists or non-theists) or our Non-Theist Friendly shirt (for people of Faith who are supportive of our struggle for tolerance).
Shirts are available in men's or women's cuts, sized S, M, L, or XL. Please specify whether you'd like a men's or women's shirt, the size, and which of the two designs you want with your donation.
Estimated delivery:Ships anywhere in the world -
Pledge $22 or more
9 backers Limited (11 left of 20)
For $22, you will receive our most ambitious design yet: an international (Union Jack) Godless Patriots shirt! This shirt is white on red and reads: Keep Calm and Embrace Reason.
This shirt is available in men's or women's cuts, sized S, M, L, or XL. Please specify whether you'd like a men's or women's shirt and the size with your donation.
Estimated delivery:Ships anywhere in the world -
Pledge $25 or more
7 backers Limited (23 left of 30)
For $25, you will receive exclusive Godless Patriots designs (Moral Atheist Patriot or Non-Theist Friendly) in Kickstarter Green featuring the Kickstarter logo. These shirts will only be available on this Kickstarter Campaign and are the most exclusive GP designs you can get! Wear this shirt with pride and let others know that you were among the first to stand up for Godless Patriots!
Shirts are available in men's or women's cuts, sized S, M, L, or XL. Please specify whether you'd like a men's or women's shirt, the size, and which of the two designs you want with your donation.
Estimated delivery:Ships anywhere in the world -
Pledge $50 or more
4 backers Limited (6 left of 10)
Not only will $50 donors receive the KS-exclusive t-shirts described above (in either the Moral Atheist Patriot design or the Non-Theist Friendly design), but for truly going above and beyond the call of duty in support of non-theists everywhere, these top donors will receive the opportunity to make themselves known to the world by having the option to post their photo and a paragraph about themselves on godlesspatriots.com!
What better way to show that you were willing to show support from Day 1 than to get your face on our website!?! $50 donors will have the option to submit a photo (preferably in their GP shirt) to me directly along with a brief paragraph on what it's like to be an non-theist in the United States of America (or in any country of their choice). Are you a person of Faith AND a $50 donor? EXCELLENT! The world needs more people like you! Please use this exposure as an opportunity to appeal to other religious people as a person of faith and tolerance. These (entirely optional) short biographies will remain on godlesspatriots.com for all to see. Take your stand and make your voice heard for the sake of tolerance for all.
Shirts are available in men's or women's cuts, sized S, M, L, or XL. Please specify whether you'd like a men's or women's shirt, the size, and which of the two designs you want with your donation.
LOCAL DELIVERY OR PUB MEETUP AVAILABLE FOR AUSTIN DONORS!
Estimated delivery:Ships anywhere in the world -
Pledge $100 or more
0 backers Limited (5 left of 5)
The biggest goal of my mission is to promote a positive societal view of non-theists by providing shirts with a cohesive message to motivated people who would be willing to represent the non-theistic community. In the interest of putting my time where my mouth is: THE FIRST FIVE (AUSTIN-ONLY) DONORS OF $100 OR MORE WILL RECEIVE TWO HOURS OF MY PERSONAL TIME FOR DISCUSSION AND PUBLIC SERVICE. This is how it works: $100 donors will receive two-hours of my time on any weekend in Jan or Feb (to be discussed as soon as the Kickstarter Campaign ends). They may use up to 1 of these hours to have me attend a public, religious function (a service, discussion, or social gathering) in hopes of making myself available as an atheist to respectfully take questions and, more importantly, for me to hear their message (no proselytizing, please). The remaining time (up to 2 hours) will be dedicated to myself (and perhaps a few friends) performing public service in the name of any institution who chooses to support this option. This could be a church-sponsored service project (manual labor, soup kitchens, etc. no protests, please) or I will donate my time to a local cause in the name of your church/institution if you don't have any events during this time. Keep in mind that this pledge entitles you to at least 2 hours of my time. If I feel comfortable and supportive of your service project, I will gladly stick around for as long as I can afford to. THIS REWARD PROVIDES AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ANYONE CURIOUS ABOUT ATHEISM TO TALK TO ME DIRECTLY. I WILL ALSO USE MY TIME TO PERFORM COMMUNITY SERVICE IN THE NAME OF YOUR INSTITUTION. While I would prefer to wear one of my designs while dedicating these two hours of my time, I could be convinced to leave my GP shirts at home (though I will be wearing a button).
Estimated delivery:
Funding period
- (45 days)