Greta Christina felt excluded as an atheist during the Inauguration. And yes, she heard the shout-out to non-believers.
Like many of us, she appreciated the gesture. But she wonders whether that is it. Is that all we get?
Amidst the excitement of hearing the phrase “and non-believers” in Barack Obama’s speech, did atheists notice just how often we heard about God?
The Inauguration told Greta Christina exactly where she stands in the pecking order and she’s not happy about it:
You can’t spend all day talking about how God’s grace is upon the nation, and how everything that happens comes from God, and how equality and freedom and opportunity are promised to us by God, and how the elected leader of a democratic country is God’s servant, and how forgetting God is a sin that requires forgiveness — and then mention once that some of the people making up the strong patchwork of this country are non-believers — and call that real inclusivity and recognition of non-believers.
Any more than you can spend all day talking about how same-sex couples shouldn’t be allowed to marry, and non- discrimination laws shouldn’t be expanded to cover sexual orientation, and LGBT people shouldn’t be allowed to serve in the military — and then say, “Oh, no, I’m not homophobic.”
The inclusion of the phrase “non-believers” was a baby step in the right direction.
Baby steps are thrilling the first time you see them. But they get old fast.
When will we get to run like everyone else?