Are Americans prejudiced against atheists?

Question

Just quoting from Richard Dawkins book titled 'The God Delusion' George Bush is quoted as having said 'No I don't know that athiests should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.' This is only one account (Robert Shermans journalist) of what Mr Bush said so dont get too wound up about it, but I just wondered if religion is part of being American?. Just substitue the word 'athiest' with 'Jews' or 'Blacks' to see how discriminatory that statement was/is. Is there room for non believers in America?

Zeus, Buddah, Mohamed, Jesus, no one religion believes in them all, (have you picked the right one?) an aethiest just believes in one less god than someone of religion.

Interesting answers thank you all. In just my opinion, when you look at the world religion really does screw it all up. Humanity is more worthwhile.

Answer 1

There is one atheist congressman (Pete Stark of California), and apparently Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders is one as well.

Still, in recent polls, Americans said that would be more likely to vote for gays or Muslims than for an atheist. We were at the bottom of all preferences. Obviously this does not bode well for the future of our nation.
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It was George Bush the father, not the current President who said the line about atheists not being citizens.
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"Dust in the Wind" (above), I sure hope you're joking. If you're serious, you're astonishingly ignorant of reality.

Answer 2

We're not popular, that's for sure.
Leaving aside the one-source Bush quote,
a 2006 survey put atheists as just about the least-trusted category in America. The type of person they least want their children to marry.(URL1)

But they are a very small minorty there, compared to many other countries
Britain 40%
France 44%
Sweden 64%
Australia 25%
USA 5% (approximately, see URL2)

On the whole, I don't think I'll wear a "Darwin Fish" jacket when I visit America in September

On the status of the Sherman quote, see URL3

Answer 3

No, Americans are not prejudiced against atheists... Christians are. I'm not saying "all"... so I'll clarify that with fundamentalists generally are prejediced against "nonbelief." Bush confuses his duty as the leader of the American people with his perceived duty to believe in a certain religion. These two aspects of Bush's life are not mutually inclusive... and I wish someone had reminded him of that long ago.

Answer 4

The Right Wing Evangelists carried Bush to power....including those on the Supreme Court. Right Wing Evangelists do expect their pound of flesh in payment.

We've already got all the papers together for a lawsuit the day they use Federal tax money to teach Christianity in our School district--with one caveat. If they teach without bias in time or emphasis all religions in the schools.

Answer 5

The US Pledge of Allegiance was altered to include the words “under God” on June 14, 1954, partially to contrast the United States from the inherently secular (“godless”) Soviet Union, so as of 2007, the pledge has been around with the words omitted about the same number of years as it has with the words included.

While our country has gone through sectarian eras and secular ones, this age of religious unrest was predicted and expected. Many humans like round numbers and like to believe that God does too, and they often assume that He will incur vast revelational changes on a timetable delineated by factors of ten. When the big ka-boom fails to happen, they suffer from a post-apocalyptic letdown, and the anticipatory devout get restless. There’s a hubbub about it every century, but shifts of the millennium are especially prone.

The problem you have observed is that folks like Bush are more inclined to (begrudgingly) accept, one by one, the inclusion of fringe groups rather than realize the inherent wrongdoing in the act discriminating against such groups as a whole. Our forefathers were less blind to the bigger picture; when we fled England to America, the bloody struggle between the Protestants and Catholics (all Christians alike) was fresh in our minds. Neither side felt the others were “true” Christians, and hence concluded their violence was justified. Despite our wall of separation, though, Christendom fails to present a unified front to this day. The devout of Jehovah’s Witnesses, or the Latter Day Saints, and the Unification Church, for example, are commonly disregarded as people of Christ, often worse than Wiccans or atheists, for being heretical rather than heathen. The protections afforded us are even more necessary for the safety of less conventional (or heretical) sects of Christianity than they are for sects of non-Christians.

Our peerless President has made his perspective clear before, when he objected to the freedoms to practice afforded to Wiccans in our military forces. Mr. Bush does not believe non-abrahamic faiths actually count as religions at all. Fortunately, he is not America, and nor does he represent the general opinions of Americans. He just happens to have to the ear of the media and has been funneling resources to the organizations of his preference. They have, in turn, developed a bit of hubris and have allowed themselves to be openly politically incorrect, often to the outrage of the quiet majority, even those in their own flock. But these open displays of intolerance can be easily confused for a state religion.

Don’t get me wrong, though. There are some parts of the States in which being openly atheist will get you lynched, but being openly black or gay will get you lynched in the same areas. When we are hateful isolationist primitives, we’re equal-opportunity hateful isolationist primitives. In the meantime, our scientific sector remains robust. Many Americans continue to study evolution, research stem cells, deconstruct the bible and practice safe sex without skipping a beat.

Answer 6

A large group of Christians are. George Bush needs to go read the Constitution. We can see by many of his other actions this is not an important document to him.

Personally, that remark alone is grounds for Impeachment. It shows his open bias to anyone not of his "kind"

Atheist American

Answer 7

I hope there is room for non-believers (we should actually say non-Christian because some of us are believers in something, just not necessarily the Abrahamic version of deity) because you're right. The second we say Atheists aren't citizens or start treating you all like second class citizens is the second we open the floodgate for discrimination against Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Pagans, and any other non-Christian.

Answer 8

it truly is no longer an concern that individuals are judgmental; it truly is an concern of individuals no longer knowledge some thing about atheism. (a twin of what percentage individuals do not comprehend some religions or there options). individuals are better terrified of what they don't comprehend (imagine of the Salem Witch hunts because the earliest social gathering of this) and act judgmental to cover it up. Plus, compared to myself, maximum individuals do not hardship to study some thing and count on stereotypes or own adventure (like after 9/11 with those who were Muslim being considered as terrorists by technique of maximum individuals). in actuality, a lot of human beings in u.s. are further up in a particular faith, they comprehend theirs purely, and are frightened and/or prejudice of others options/religions.

Answer 9

I didn't get invited to the office Christmas party and was elected by default to work on Thanksgiving and Easter, since they consider both of these religious holidays. Their answer for Thanksgiving was that I had no god to thank, as if they have the market cornered on Gratefulness.

Answer 10

Everybody is prejudiced against something that isnt what they believe...whether youre atheist, christian, muslim, whatever...unless you follow the same beliefs of the person youre talking to, the person will look down on you...its just human nature.