Reading Time: 6 minutes In an essay for MSNBC’s website, columnist Zeeshan Aleem calls for a “new style of atheism” that could address both the growing threat of Christian nationalism and the decline in community that’s been hastened by people leaving organized religion. The first point, about Christian nationalism, has been repeatedly discussed on this site. It’s a very real, […]
Nonreligious News
In 2022, atheists make up only 0.09% of the federal prison population
Reading Time: 4 minutes There are 157,064 people in the U.S. federal prison system, and exactly 134 of them identify as atheists. Those self-described atheists made up a mere 0.09% of the federal prison population. That’s according to a Freedom of Information Act request I filed earlier this year with the Federal Bureau of Prisons. I made similar requests […]
A Gen Z shock: Among Zoomers with no religion, women outnumber men
Reading Time: 3 minutes Not since Madalyn Murray O’Hair has the image of non-religiosity been defined by a woman. That may change with Generation Z. A new analysis of data by sociologist Ryan P. Burge finds that, among people born after the year 2000, known as Gen Z, more women than men identify with no organized religion. The Zoomer […]
Survey: A record-low 20% of Americans say the Bible is literally true
Reading Time: 3 minutes The good news is that a record-low 20% of Americans believe the Bible is literally true, according to a Gallup poll released today, down from a record-high of 40% in 1984. The bad news is that it feels like every single one of those people is in elected office somewhere… The same poll saw an […]
A new Republican lie: Biden’s State Dept. wants to ‘promote atheism worldwide’
Reading Time: 5 minutes Today, in a letter addressed to President Joe Biden and the State Department, 15 Congress members on the “Republican Study Committee” claimed the U.S. government is using taxpayer dollars to “promote atheism worldwide.” If that sounds bizarre to you, you’d be right, because that’s not even close to what’s actually happening. Here’s the backstory: In […]
Atheist sues company that fired him for not coming to daily prayer meetings
Reading Time: 3 minutes A lawsuit filed Monday by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) claims that two employees at a North Carolina-based company were fired for not participating in the daily Christian prayer meetings. The complaint was filed on behalf of John McGaha (an atheist) and Mackenzie Saunders (an agnostic) against Aurora Pro Services, a company that handles […]
What Colombia’s presidential election can teach us about change
Reading Time: 7 minutes On June 19, Father’s Day took a back seat in Colombia to a second presidential run-off, the last part of a process that began with legislative elections in March. At that time, candidates were also chosen for the presidential race, which had its first run-off in May. Because no candidate passed the key threshold, the […]
Gallup: Americans’ belief in God just plunged to an all-time low
Reading Time: 2 minutes A new Gallup poll out today finds that the percentage of Americans who believe in God is at an all-time low. In 2017, 87% of Americans said they believed in God. That number has now dropped to an astonishing 81%, according to the group’s Values and Beliefs poll, which is all the more fascinating considering […]
Canadian Armed Forces announces its first Humanist chaplain
Reading Time: 2 minutes The Canadian Armed Forces just got its first Humanist chaplain, and she’s hopefully going to be the first of many. In an official endorsement announced yesterday, the Royal Canadian Chaplain Service said Captain Marie-Claire Khadij would be the first person to have that title (though she was already approved by the CAF on May 18). […]
Boston man arrested for trying to burn down The Satanic Temple headquarters
Reading Time: 2 minutes On Friday, a man wearing a “GOD” shirt tried to burn down The Satanic Temple’s headquarters in Salem, Massachusetts. And there are pictures. Temple co-founder Lucien Greaves said they’re figuring out how much damage occurred outside the house, but thankfully, the fire didn’t get inside. There were people inside the building when the arson occurred. […]