Woolsey Teller (March 22, 1890 – March 11, 1954) was an American

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

rationalist writer and

white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other Race (human classification), races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any Power (social and polit ...

. Flynn, Tom. (2007). ''The New Encyclopedia of Unbelief''. Prometheus Books. p. 746.

Biography

Teller was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York. He was an associate editor of the leading

Freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...

journal ''

The Truth Seeker ''The Truth Seeker'' is an American periodical published since 1873. It was considered the most influential Freethought publication during the period following the American Civil War, Civil War into the first decades of the 20th century, known ...

'' of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where his cousin

Charles Lee Smith Charles Lee Smith (1887 – October 26, 1964) was an American atheist and white supremacist author and activist widely known for being the last successful conviction for blasphemy in the United States. Biography Raised a Methodist in Maud, Oklaho ...

was editor. He was a member of the

American Association for the Advancement of Atheism The American Association for the Advancement of Atheism (AAAA – 4A) was an atheistic and antireligious organization established in 1925. It was founded by Charles Lee Smith, and the organization's "only creedal requirement was a formal professi ...

. He was well versed in history, theology, and science, and his writings are a model of rational thought, loaded with appropriate quotations showing extensive reading of sources, and were very popular with readers. He was a diehard

materialist Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materialis ...

, who didn't accept any kind of spiritual dimension to the universe. Besides being a leader in the American Freethought movement, Teller was a

, and favored

eugenics Eugenics ( ; ) is a fringe set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter human gene pools by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or ...

, causing the movement to split on this issue and losing ''The Truth Seeker'' subscribers when its editors backed him. Teller argued that the

white race White is a racialized classification of people and a skin color specifier, generally used for people of European origin, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, and point of view. Description of populations as " ...

is superior. with a bigger brain size compared to the

black race Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in s ...

, which he labeled genetically inferior, always citing scientific justification. Though an

Anti-Semite Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

, he greatly admired

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

for his rejection of religion. Teller has been described as a "leading freethought bigot". In his essay "Mysticism in Modern Physics" in ''Essays of an Atheist'', Teller disputes the idea that modern physics has dispensed with

materialism Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materiali ...

, claiming that excessive use of mathematics has turned it into

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

: In his essay "Miscellaneous Notes"https://essays-of-an-atheist.blogspot.com/2012/03/miscellaneous-notes.html in ''Essays of an Atheist'', Teller ridicules mathematics as a way to become wiser in itself: In October 1947 Teller debated James D. Bales
on the existence of God.

Publications

''Evolution--or McCann''
(Truth Seeker Company, 1922)

(Truth Seeker Company, 1938)

(Truth Seeker Company, 1945)
''Bales-Teller Debate: The Existence Of God''
(1948)

(Truth Seeker Company, 1953) ith Marshall Gauvin and Herbert Cutner">Marshall_Gauvin.html" ;"title="ith Marshall Gauvin">ith Marshall Gauvin and Herbert Cutner

References

External links

Online publications
- Internet Infidels {{DEFAULTSORT:Teller, Woolsey 1890 births 1954 deaths American atheists American eugenicists American white supremacists American critics of Christianity Critics of creationism Freethought writers Writers from Brooklyn