Humanists come out against bias
Written by David A. Niose -- (Metro Boston)
May 7, 2008

Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.) has come out of the closet, but not in the way we typically use the term. Stark, who, last fall, accepted the Harvard Humanist Chaplaincy’s “Humanist of the Year” award, is the first congressman in history to openly acknowledge his atheism.

The lawmaker’s public disclosure of nonbelief comes at a time when books by so-called “New Atheist” authors — Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Tufts professor Daniel Dennett and Christopher Hitchens — are topping bestseller lists. Considering America’s reputation for religiosity, this popular emergence of atheism and humanism is intriguing. A 2006 University of Minnesota poll found that atheists are the most distrusted group in America, ranking below gays, Muslims and recent immigrants. More Americans (48 percent) would be unwilling to vote for an otherwise qualified atheist than any other group.

Stark’s status as the only open atheist in Congress evidences the perceived public bias against nonbelievers. Representing a liberal Bay Area district, perhaps Stark sees little risk in stepping out as an atheist, but, to date, none of his colleagues are willing to join him. (The Secular Coalition for America, the group through which Stark came out, confirms that numerous other legislators have privately acknowledged their nonbelief, but the SCA will not “out” any of them without their consent). Somewhat like gays of a generation ago, atheists today are unlikely to suffer overt discrimination so long as their atheism is kept relatively private. But should one publicly express one’s atheism, particularly in a political context (by objecting to government-sponsored prayer, for example), then the scorn of the majority will quickly be felt.

 Historically, as a class, atheists cannot claim that the public’s prejudice against them is as widespread, harsh or blatant as that experienced by racial minorities and women, but the distorted and irrational prejudice against atheists nonetheless runs deep and has a price. By exalting religiosity and scorning nonbelief, the public and the media help to validate the religious right and its agenda. Progressives should take interest in today’s identity politics of atheists and humanists. Higher visibility for atheists and humanists can help to debunk the myth that nonbelievers are immoral and thereby weaken the religious right’s claims of moral superiority. With religious fanaticism motivating terrorists abroad, and religious conservatism having an alarming impact on public policy at home, the nontheistic community sees the time as ripe for an emergence. As such, one must wonder whether Stark will be the sole congressional nontheist for long.

David A. Niose is an officer of the American Humanist Association and an adviser to the Secular Coalition for America.