General US Attitude To Atheist Leader

[suranyi]

@Der_Trihs

That he’s a Satanist/Communist/the Antichrist/Muslim. And yes, I’ve run into people who think that atheists are Satanists.

Polls have shown that atheists are deeply distrusted in America; we are assumed to be morally corrupt, no one wants their children to marry an atheist, that sort of thing. She’d be hated and feared and despised, and I’d be surprised if she lived through her first term if she was a US politician and somehow got elected President. And most Americans would cheer her assassination.

This must be a regional thing. Maybe it’s true in the South. But in the West, where I live, nobody cares if you’re an atheist.

[Rodgers01]

Yeesh, reading this thread you’d think we were on the brink of a bloody inquisition against all heretics and non-believers…

I don’t deny that prejudice against atheists exists in the US, and I certainly don’t deny that it’s a handicap for politicians. But in my experience, anyways, being an atheist is generally not a big deal. Frankly, religion often doesn’t even come up. Unlike the person below, I’ve never had to justify to anyone why I don’t go to church on Sunday.

Recent experience: a few weeks ago I was visiting relatives in rural Pennsylvania (the “Alabama” part of the state, as James Carville would put it). It’s rural, red, religious country. We went to a county fair, and nestled among the tents run by boy scout troops and Baptist churches was one representing a local atheist organization, complete with signs, bumperstickers, pamphlets, etc. I think I even saw T-shirts. I stopped and poked around, took a pamphlet to be polite, and moved on. A couple other people were doing the same. Nothing seemed amiss, and while it was noticeable that the tent was there at all (odd to see organized atheist groups, IME), there weren’t - as this thread might lead people to believe - angry crowds picketing and spitting on the atheists, bomb threats, firebombings, or anything remotely similar. I walked past several more times later that day, and it was the same. At one point a group of teens appeared to be debating one of the staffers, but it looked very calm and normal.

Now, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the people walking past the tent were angry or annoyed or wanted to keep their children away. I wouldn’t even be surprised if they got some glowers. But it was faaaar from the bloodlust hatred people are claiming in this thread. And that’s been pretty much my experience as an atheist.

Just another person’s experience to add to the mix -

[Rodgers01]

@fluiddruid

Keep in mind, though, in the US, even having someone too far away from Protestantism is not likely at the Presidential level. Forget atheists, there’s no way we’re getting a Jewish or Buddhist president in the foreseeable future, and even some branches of Christianity would be problematic.

Why? A full decade ago there was an observant Jew on a major party’s presidential ticket; fifty years ago a Catholic won. A Mormon has been a serious contender, and while he faced some religious discrimination it was generally considered his personality rather than his religion that knocked him out of the running. Most presidents are going to be Christians for some time to come because of demographic reasons, but the prejudice aspect will decline and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a non-Christian president in my lifetime.

[Really_Not_All_That_Bright]

We’ve already got a Muslim.