Atheism: The Forbidden Topic

Mike Whitney has a daring article on the Axis of Logic website. He says, "Let's Let Atheists Back Into Politics."

There is a glaring error or two in Whitney's essay (The founding fathers of the American Revolution [1776] were not influenced by the French Revolution [1789]), but the experience of discrimination that prompted his article is real. He says,

Face it, atheism in America is a lonely experience. Atheists are widely distrusted and there is a palpable undercurrent of discrimination directed at them, even though it is less noticeable than the prejudice aimed at other groups. In many ways, atheists are social pariahs; America's leper colony. Just about everyone is wary of atheists, as the polls repeatedly indicate. . . .

The fact is, atheism simply doesn't exist in America. It is the forbidden topic, like homosexuality 20 years ago. . . . Regrettably, in our "free" society, no one is even allowed to openly debate the issue.

I am in frequent contact with atheists and agnostics. They are an embattled minority. Some are frightened by the militancy of evangelical Christians. Others are getting angry and militant themselves. The Religious Right has been using them as a scapegoat and foil to stir up theocratic sentiment and action for more than a generation. As is currently happening in Idaho, they are the one's who are really being denied a voice in the public square.

At times, atheists can be as fanatical as evangelical Christians in expressing their religious convictions. The chief difference being that atheists are eager to engage in genuine dialogue with people who question the reasons for their unbelief, while most evangelical Christians systematically avoid genuine dialogue with anyone who questions their beliefs.