ReligionLink

UPDATED NOV. 18, 2002

After the controversial July 2002 Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that the Pledge of Allegiance was unconstitutional because of its inclusion of “under God,” it seemed that the influence of atheists might be growing in how Americans acknowledge God in public settings. But the early November ouster of a professed atheist Boy Scout in Seattle is a reminder that the Supreme Court has upheld the right of private organizations to discriminate based on things like gender, sexual orientation and religious beliefs.

 Nevertheless, could the influence of atheists in America–who make up just a sliver of a multifaith nation–grow? Ellen Johnson, president of American Atheists, says her group has changed its focus from reacting to existing legislation to working to shape it on the local and national level. And Derek Davis, the director of the J.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies at Baylor University, notes that although atheists’ influence has been limited, they may benefit from the fact that their numbers are rising and America is becoming a more secular nation. How have atheists had an impact on how belief in God is acknowledged in schools, at football games, at government meetings, and in public displays in your area? Have they filed lawsuits or made complaints? What do atheists say they believe their rights are? How do people of faith – Christian, Jewish and Muslim – view atheists’ efforts? What do members of faith groups who do not profess belief in a single supreme being say about atheists’ efforts to curb public expressions of faith?

Why it matters

Since Sept. 11 there have been many organized efforts to bring religion into the public square, from a move to make “God Bless America” the national hymn to a campaign to post “In God We Trust” in all public school classrooms. Atheists claim they are the last minority that it is acceptable to marginalize. Some also say that by respecting their beliefs, Americans will protect the beliefs of all members of minority faiths, as they say the Constitution intended.

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Sources in your region

Background

• In writing about atheism, definitions count. According to Webster’s New World Dictionary:

• Read a copy of the Boy Scout Oath, which includes the phrase, “do my duty to God.”

• Visit the Boy Scouts of America homepage, which includes a statement of the organization’s position on diversity.

• A California atheist – arguing his own case – succeeded in convincing a three-judge circuit court panel that the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance violates the Establishment Clause. A roundup of coverage.

• A Colorado schoolteacher filed a federal lawsuit seeking to prevent the recitation of prayers at high school graduation, which his daughter was attending.

• Statistics on the numbers of atheists vary. The American Religious Identification Survey performed in 2001 by the City University of New York found that 14 percent identified themselves as having “no religion.” Read key findings, including a breakdown by state.

• According to a Dec. 2001 survey by the Pew Charitable Trusts, only 32 percent of Americans view atheists “positively,” while 49 percent say they view them “unfavorably.” The last number is down from 57 percent before Sept. 11. Also from Pew, a survey indicates 51 percent of Americans think the lesson of Sept. 11 is that there not enough religion in the world.

• A number of church-state lawsuits filed by atheists have made it to the U.S. Supreme Court. One of the more famous is Murray v. Curlett (1961), brought by American Atheists founder Madalyn Murray O’Hair, which ended organized public school prayer. A list of some of the more important church-state cases brought before the Supreme Court – many of them supported by atheists – can be found at religioustolerance.com.

• A 2001 survey by Public Agenda found that 75 percent of respondents identifying as “non-religious” feared that allowing more religion into the nation’s public life could “get out of hand,” and that 67% of the same group worry that there would be more prejudice towards religious minorities if American became “more deeply religious.

• In The Brookings Review, a magazine of the Brookings Institute, E.J. Dionne Jr. and John J. DiIulio Jr. discuss the role religion has played in shaping American democracy.

Hot sources

• Ellen Johnson, president, American Atheists. Johnson says the organization is changing its focus from being reactive to church-state issues to being pro-active. It recently founded its first political action committee, is planning its first “Godless American March on Washington” for November and says it hopes to train atheists to run for political office. She says that since Sept. 11 her group has had more proposed legislation to confront than ever before, and likens members’ current struggle to the rise of the Civil Rights and Gay Rights movements. “Atheists are no longer quiet or in the closet,” she said. “We are now where the gays and the blacks were 40 years ago. You are going to have to deal with us.” She places the number of non-believers in the U.S. at 14 percent. Contact 973-334-5110 or ej@atheists.org.

• Rob Boston, assistant director of communications, Americans United for Separation of Church and State. AU’s members are both atheists and religionists. It files church-state lawsuits, but its primary goal is education, not litigation. “We see lawsuits as a last resort,” Boston says. “It’s expensive, it’s time-consuming and leaves bad feelings in the community.” When they do file suits, they actively seek a cross-section of plaintiffs, both believers and non-believers. Boston says that helps the public see that church-state separation issues interest of a wide range of citizens, not just “non-religionists.” Contact (202) 466-3234 or boston@au.org.

• Tom Flynn, editor of Free Inquiry magazine and author of The Trouble with Christmas, which has chapters on the history of legal activism among non-believers. He tracks numbers of non-believers, which he places at between 5 percent to 9 percent of Americans. He says there has been “a high level of growth” in atheist and “non-religious” categories. But because atheists tend to be highly independent, they are unlikely to join groups and organize – something that can work against them when it comes to having an impact on legislation. Still, he classifies their collective impact on the American legal landscape as “significant.” Contact 716-636-7571 ext. 213 or tflynn@centerforinquiry.net.

• Anne Gaylor, president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation in Madison, Wis. The foundation’s 5,000 members include atheists and other “free thinkers.” Its primary goal is to educate the public about church-state issues and to maintain several court challenges “at all times.” In January the group won a district court victory that stopped government funding of a religiously based social service agency in Wisconsin. Gaylor says she thinks the atheist population is growing, though slowly. Contact 608-256-5800.

• Derek Davis directs the J.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Contact 254-710-1510 (after July 15), Derek_davis@baylor.edu.

In your region

State by state

• American Atheists have local chapters in 24 states. The site includes a list of other atheist groups sometimes affiliated with American Atheists.

• Another list of local atheist and secular humanist organizations across the country.

• A detailed list of local legislation currently targeted by American Atheists.

In the Midwest

• Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura declared July 4, 2002 “Indivisible Day” in response to a request from a state-wide atheist group. See Minneapolis Star Tribune article.

• An Indiana man won his battle to have a stone displaying the Ten Commandments removed from the grounds of a local courthouse.

• The Illinois Senate is considering a bill that would allow student prayer and silent reflection in public schools.

• An Ohio man unsuccessfully appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his case on appeal asking that Christmas be removed as a federal holiday. Read the AP story (Cincinnati Enquirer archives).

In the Northeast

• In New York, debate has started over whether Sept. 11 memorials should contain religious imagery, like the cross formed of steel beams found by rescue workers at the World Trade Center site.

• Ira Lupu is a professor of law at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He is also co-director of the Project on Law and Religious Institutions and the Legal Tracking Project for the Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare, a part of the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute on Government. He says atheists “have not been all that prominent” in church-state legal cases, with the exception of a few major cases, such as Murray v. Curlett. “Usually, lawyers like to look for more sympathetic plaintiffs.” He can discuss the history and scope of First Amendment legal cases – brought by atheists or others – involving church-state separation. Contact 202-994-6980 or ICLUPU@main.nlc.gwu.edu.

In the Northwest

• Read a Nov. 5, 2002 Arizona Republic article about the Seattle case of 19 year-old Darrell Lambert, an Eagle Scout who was dismissed from his Seattle-area troop one month after admitting to being an atheist.

• Read an article from Atheists.org about a Portland, Oregon woman who lost a court challenge.