Aron Ra

Aron Ra (formerly L. Aron Nelson, born October 15, 1962) is an atheist activist. Ra is the host of the Ra-Men Podcast and a member of the American Atheists board of directors. He had previously served as president of the Atheist Alliance of America and ran as a Democratic candidate for Texas' District 2 Senate seat.

Early life and education
Aron Ra was born in Kingman, Arizona, and baptized as a Mormon. Despite his religious upbringing, he states that he has been a skeptic from a young age.

He studied paleontology at the University of Texas in Dallas. He holds an Associate's degree from Dallas College and, in 2022, earned a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology from the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University.

Career
A vocal critic of theism and creationism and an advocate of the inclusion of evolution in science curricula,  Ra produces YouTube videos on the topics of skepticism, free thought, and atheism.

He has engaged in live debates with young Earth creationists, including Ray Comfort, and presented at skepticism conferences in Europe. As a member of the Unholy Trinity, he toured the United States and Australia with two fellow atheist activists—Seth Andrews of The Thinking Atheist, and Matt Dillahunty formerly of The Atheist Experience.

He appeared in the documentary films My Week in Atheism, directed by John Christy, and Batman & Jesus, directed by Jozef K. Richards. He published his first book, Foundational Falsehoods of Creationism, in 2016.

Political candidacy and views
In March 2017, Ra resigned from his position as president of the Atheist Alliance of America to run for the Texas State Senate against Republican incumbent Bob Hall. The first Democratic candidate to run for the District 2 seat since 2002, he dropped out of the race after failing to secure the Democratic Party endorsement.

Books

 * Foundational Falsehoods of Creationism (2016)
 * We Are All Apes (2022)