Join the Georgetown Secular Society
The Georgetown Secular Society’s Petition for a Secular Georgetown is our official mandate to Georgetown University. It summarizes the shortcomings of Georgetown University’s atonement initiative and recommends the only path that would allow the university to honor its commitments. Please take a moment to review the document.
Are you active in either Georgetown University’s student or alumni communities? Are you dissatisfied with Georgetown University’s atonement initiative to date? If so, please discuss joining the Georgetown Secular Society amongst your peers. This would entail two things:
- Allow us to feature your organization’s endorsement on our petition to Georgetown University’s governing body.
- Allow us to advertise your organization’s endorsement on our website.
By joining together as a coalition of student and alumni groups, the Georgetown community sends a clear message to Georgetown’s governing body:
We take your commitments to truth, racial justice and higher education seriously.
Endorsements
William Peter Blatty1
American writer, director and producer
Contact Georgetown's Administration
If you are a student or alumni of Georgetown University, the best way to assist the Georgetown Secular Society is to voice your support. Write a concise email to Georgetown's administration.
- Identify yourself: Provide your graduation year and school in your correspondence. Make sure Georgetown's administration understands that you are a member of Georgetown's community.
- State the action you want Georgetown University to take: The Georgetown Secular Society began from observing that Georgetown University failed to confront difficult truths about its participation in the U.S. slave trade. Urge Georgetown to fulfill its atonement initiative by becoming a secular institution. Stay respectful.
- Add your personal touch: The Georgetown Secular society benefits from the diverse experience of its members. In your correspondence, mention how a secular Georgetown would benefit the issues that are important to you. These can include LGBTQ rights, reproductive rights, scientific literacy, etc.
Below is a list of contact addresses you may utilize:
| Person / Organization |
Email |
| John J. DeGioia, President of Georgetown University |
president@georgetown.edu |
| Joseph Ferrara, Vice President of Georgetown University |
vicepresident@georgetown.edu |
| Adam Rothman, principal curator of the Georgetown Slavery Archive |
ar44@georgetown.edu |
| Georgetown University's Center for the Study of Slavery |
gcssl@georgetown.edu |
| Georgetown University, Board of Directors/Board of Regents |
regents@georgetown.edu |
- William Peter Blatty died on January 12th, 2017, before the founding of the Georgetown Secular Society. In the fall of 2013, however, he submitted a petition to the Vatican containing approximately 2000 signatures for the university to be stripped of its Catholic and Jesuit labels. His desire to realize a secular Georgetown was so strong, that he made arrangements for his petition to continue after his death.
William Peter Blatty was a devout Catholic. When he petitioned the Vatican, he was particularly upset that a supporter of reproductive rights was platformed at Georgetown. While William's personal philosophy and motivations starkly differed from those of the Georgetown Secular Society, we're nevertheless comfortable featuring his endorsement on our website—as long as we include this disclaimer that he probably wouldn't have shared any of our humanist views.
Per the Washington Post
