Nevaeh is an ecovillage for Black Secular Humanists, consisting of twenty-five to fifty people. To elaborate, secular humanism is a philosophy that says that people can improve their lives through reason as opposed to religion or superstition. In view of this philosophy’s skeptical view on religion, humanism is compatible with atheism and agnosticism. However, secular humanists — alongside atheists and agnostics — are viewed as a distrusted minority in America due to the social stigmas surrounding non-religious people. From this, it can be hard for secular humanists to find a community that fosters, let alone accepts, their beliefs.
People who label their religious affiliation as “nothing in particular” — colloquially known as “Nones” — don’t identify with any organized religion. Although there is a growing number of Americans that label themselves as a None, the number of Nones that are African-Americans is slightly higher than all American adults. However, Black Nones suffer a double marginalization; they often hide their nonreligious beliefs, even from their close family members, out of fear of rejection. For this reason, Nevaeh is necessary in providing a safe living space for Black Nones to develop a supportive community.
