Atheists Banned From Public Office in 7 State Constitutions

Views: 213

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Now watch: the councilman's removal based on Article VI of the US Constitution will be overruled. The very SECOND that happens, a move will be sponsored by a bunch of right-wing religionists for a recall election! When that happens (I don't say "if" because, from where I sit, the likelihood very closely approaches certainty!), I think that atheists need to come out in support of the councilman and say, "Okay ... what's your justification for recall, other than this man's lack of religious belief?"

It may be time to confront this irrational fear of those of us who rely on critical thought rather than belief in an undemonstrated and unprovable deity, using this situation as the vehicle.
Such all laws have long been unconstitutional. The Supreme court incorporated the 1st Amendment "freedom of religion" by way of the 14th Amendment to include the states in a number of opinions, and held that this includes the right to hold pubic office. The only recent justice I know of who has dissented from the view that the "freedom of religion" clause prevents state endorsement of religion is Justice Thomas of course. To be honest, I don't really trust Justice Scalia when it comes to religion, but he is surprisingly reliable on issues that touch on free speech, and I'm confident he would find this law to violate the US Constitution by way of 14th Amendment.
Text is always helpful for those with abysmally slow computers/internet connections.

I believe she said seven, but the map only shows six: Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Maryland.
They didn't include North Carolina, the state the story is about.
Ha! I didn't think my math was that bad.
Being a resident of one of the states with a "no one who doubts the Supreme Being" clause in its constitution, I am writing in embarrassment and as a member the Americans United for Separation of Church and State as well as the Council for Secular Humanism to say that it is time for some person in the State of Texas to stand up, run for office as a freethinker, agnostic, or especially atheist and allow the objectionable clause to become a constitutional issue. (Although the federal court condemned the state's anti-sodomy law, it stayed on the books for years. The problem there was equal protection, since straights could have oral and anal sex -- to say nothing of S&M, B&D, et al., one presumes -- but same sex couples could not.)

The "must believe in a Supreme Being" laws are blatantly unconstitutional, and even as their affront to the U. S. Constitution is made clear to Texas lawmakers, they will resist legislative efforts to consign the law to the scrap heap of delusional politicians' unwise ideas. So we must have a test case. We have at the moment no standing to prod our pols by court action, and probably could not be said to have it until we run for office and get told by the other pol or a third party (city secretary, secretary of state, attorney general) that one is barred from election due to his or her disavowal of the most absurd myth, the worst of the mass delusions in the history of mankind.
In most states, such an initiative would not win broad public support. The best way to defeat this measure is to run for public office and have someone who actually support the ban on atheists in office challenge your candidacy on the basis on the law. Then you would have standing in court to oppose the law. Keep in mind that courts do not hear friendly cases; you cannot ask another who opposes the law to challenge you simply for the purpose of overturning the law. The plaintiff must be a supporter of the ban who challenges you fitness by relying on the ban. Perhaps running for the local school board will be enough to bring out a supporter of this ban.

At any rate, such bans are unconstitutional, and most people realize this. However, should an atheist run for office, expect opponents to frequent comment on the fact the the candidate is atheist. Such statements are constitutional.
Well, you can run for office in Texas and "believe in a Supreme Being"..such as the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Lol that's what I'd do.  "I believe in the invisible pink unicorn in all of her invisible and pink holiness."  Doesn't surprise me my state has one of these laws on the books. 
It would be lovely to do, if not for the fact that if you run as a known atheist, you will not be elected. Instead, you must come out of the closet on accident after being elected in order to stand a chance. And as it's Texas, finding a Republican atheist is not all that easy, as a democrat would be unlikely to win, as well. >.X

RSS

CONNECT WITH ATHEIST NEXUS

Latest Activity

Madhukar Kulkarni replied to Maia Rodriguez's discussion Tornado Survivor Did Not Thank God
"What a candid and courageous reply! A million congratulations to her."
13 minutes ago
Madhukar Kulkarni liked Maia Rodriguez's discussion Tornado Survivor Did Not Thank God
16 minutes ago
Madhukar Kulkarni replied to matthew greenberg's discussion Pope Francis says even Atheists go to Heaven
"I am a do-goodder old man waiting for death. I should be thankful to the pope for clearing my way to the heaven. Should I really be?"
24 minutes ago
Debra Stevenson posted blog posts
1 hour ago
Teresita Mattox posted a status
1 hour ago
Teresita Mattox posted a blog post

Best Free Online Dating Sites

Free Online Dating Site - Whereloveisfound.comFalling in love might feel closer to a daydream than possible for many with busy lives. But it is possible and the WhereLoveIsFound team have created a dating experience "100 percent dedicated to the community and providing a place for people to find genuine love and happiness." Below they explain why loveless singles should try their site.What inspired WhereLoveIsFound?Whereloveisfound.com was inspired by love, building a community for people all…See More
1 hour ago
Loren Miller replied to Loren Miller's discussion Latest Activity?
"After a bit of thought, I've come up with a list of the basic items which used to be found on a member's profile page and whether they are currently present in the new profile, at least as it is displayed on mine: Member's name &…"
1 hour ago
Loren Miller commented on John Hutcheson's blog post Are the media too giddy over the Pope?
"Wouldn't know, really.  The last couple days, the US news media has been focused (for good or ill) on this EF-5 tornado which wiped out a considerable portion of Moore, Oklahoma.  When you only have half an hour to report national and…"
2 hours ago

© 2013   Atheist Nexus. All rights reserved. Admin: Richard Haynes.

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service