The Atlas Society

The Atlas Society (TAS) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that "promotes open Objectivism: the philosophy of reason, individualism, achievement, and freedom originated by Ayn Rand".[1] It is part of the Objectivist movement that split off from the Ayn Rand Institute in 1990 due to disagreements over whether Objectivism was a "closed system" or an "open system".[2] David Kelley is the founder of TAS, and Jennifer Grossman is its current CEO.[3]

The Atlas Society
Formation1990
TypeResearch and Education Organization
Legal status501(c)(3)
FocusAyn Rand and Objectivism
Location
Jennifer Grossman
WebsiteAtlasSociety.org
Objectivist movement
  • Philosophy portal

History

The Atlas Society was founded by philosopher David Kelley as the Institute for Objectivist Studies in 1990. It was renamed The Objectivist Center in 1999. That same year, the Center founded "The Atlas Society" as an interest group targeted at people who read Rand's novels but were not familiar with other Objectivist literature.

On June 5, 2006, the organization announced its decision "to use The Atlas Society as our official name, which will help us promote our ideas to Rand readers as well as to the general public, while reserving The Objectivist Center name for our more academic and scholarly activities".[4]

In 2011, Aaron Day took over as the operational executive of The Atlas Society.[5] On March 1, 2016, The Atlas Society announced Jennifer Grossman as its new CEO.[3]

The society continues to host conferences, including an annual Atlas Summit, conduct scholarly research and student training, issue pamphlets, recordings, op-eds, and monographs and provide speakers to the media and campus groups.

Views

Kelley espouses Objectivism as an open system, hence the organization has advocated what he terms "a policy of tolerant, open debate and free discussion" at its forums. It has also been willing to cooperate with certain libertarians on joint projects, and to carry works by individuals such as Nathaniel Branden, with whom Rand broke in the late 1960s.[6]

References
  1. "What We Stand For". The Atlas Society. Archived from the original on October 30, 2013. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  2. Burns, Jennifer (2009). Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 281. ISBN 978-0-19-532487-7. OCLC 313665028.
  3. "The Atlas Society Welcomes Jennifer Anju Grossman as Its New CEO". The Atlas Society. March 1, 2016. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  4. "The Atlas Society and The Objectivist Center Names". The Atlas Society. June 5, 2006. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007. Retrieved June 16, 2006.
  5. "The Atlas Society Announces Aaron Day as New CEO and Appoints New Board of Advisors" (Press release). PRWeb. October 19, 2012. Archived from the original on November 28, 2013.
  6. Kelley, David (2000). The Contested Legacy of Ayn Rand: Truth and Toleration in Objectivism. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. ISBN 0-7658-0060-8.

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