# Is it socially acceptable to be an atheist in the US? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 5, 2014, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837 "2014-08-05T01:15:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/61 "2014-08-05T17:33:45Z")
It strikes me that if you mass substituted “gay” for “atheist” and sent this thread back in time about 15 years it would be totally fitting. It is okay in certain parts of the country, otherwise just keep quiet about it. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/62 "2014-08-05T17:36:53Z")
> [@spifflog](#): > > I’m surprised at the reaction by some that they have somehow been aggrieved by being an atheist. > > I’ve live in New England, Pennsylvania, Virginia, California and Washington DC and I’ve felt no effects whatsoever for being an atheists. no one has seemed to care either way. I’m equally as surprised that you don’t seem to understand the difference between the places you have lived and very large parts of the rest of the country. Do you really think that DC and California have anything at all in common culturally with Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas? I have a couple of nieces (from different sisters), both Christian but neither evangelical. One lives in Arkansas and the other in DC. If you look at Facebook pictures, one’s group of friends is all white (as are they) and presumably Christian. The others’ are a rainbow of colors and represent Buddhists, Muslims, Catholics, Protestants, and Mormons, as well as Shinto and Taoists among others. Care to guess which is which? If it needs to be spelled out, there are the places where you are likely to run into flak for being an Atheist: the Mormon West (Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming, plus less populated parts of Arizona and Nevada), the Central US, from North Dakota to Texas, Appalachia (parts of Southern and Western PA, Southern Illinois, Ohio, and Indiana,) the Old South, with North Carolina and Virginia being a mix. And yes, there are outliers like Austin and Miami and all sorts of college towns, but in general, it’s a fair assesment. ---
**Author:** ![spifflog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@spifflog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spifflog)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/63 "2014-08-05T18:03:09Z")
Sure I understand that there are different parts of the country. But in my extensive travels (all over the nation) and in my moves (as noted above), I don’t believe that overall, it’s socially unacceptable to be an atheist. YMMV and apparently does. ---
**Author:** ![rat\_avatar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rat_avatar/32/255_2.png) [@rat\_avatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rat_avatar)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/64 "2014-08-05T18:06:11Z")
> [@spifflog](#): > > Sure I understand that there are different parts of the country. But in my extensive travels (all over the nation) and in my moves (as noted above), I don’t believe that overall, it’s socially unacceptable to be an atheist. > > YMMV and apparently does. Actually there were documented studies posted earlier in the thread. But you can hand wave those away I guess but it is not the best way to win a “debate”. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/65 "2014-08-05T18:34:05Z")
I work in the software industry in San Francisco and I can’t think of a single peer of mine that’s overtly religious. Secularism is the overwhelming norm here. edit: Looking through my Facebook friends, I have 23 friends in the Bay Area who list themselves as Atheist and 7 friends who list themselves as Christian. Of the 7, one of them I knew to be a Christian and we’ve had a conversation about it. The other 6, I had no idea. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/66 "2014-08-05T18:56:22Z")
For a Fortune 500 company, there is a remarkably high proportion of BYU grads that work in both management and on the floor, certainly in the top 5 alma maters here. Given that the two state universities are #1 and #2 respectively, and this ain’t Utah, correlation is certainly giving the come hither look to causation. I’ve had more than a couple of times in my career when I’ve had to discretely maneuver around positions and people in my career for the sake of personal career advancement. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/67 "2014-08-06T02:54:12Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Could an open atheist become governor of your state or mayor of your city? > edited to add: Or Senator or Representative? Mayor of my city: probably. Representative: definitely, it’s already happened. But I live in the very secular Silicon Valley. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/68 "2014-08-06T03:09:27Z")
Everyone’s saying how social acceptability of atheism varies by region. Does it also vary by age group? Because I would expect it to, but no one has mentioned it (that I noticed), so I’m wondering. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/69 "2014-08-06T04:45:12Z")
I don’t make an issue of my atheism; I’m more likely to come out as gay than as an atheist, because the conversations get steered in that direction more easily. But there was, on Long Island, one particular coworker who claimed that I could not be an atheist. The conversation went something like this: “I’m an atheist.” “There’s no such thing.” “What do you mean?” “I can prove that you’re not an atheist.” “Don’t you think I know what I believe or don’t believe?” “No, you’re not an atheist, and I can prove it.” “Ok, prove that I’m not an atheist.” “If you’re an atheist . . . then who do you pray to?” ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/70 "2014-08-06T04:49:35Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > I don’t make an issue of my atheism; I’m more likely to come out as gay than as an atheist, because the conversations get steered in that direction more easily. But there was, on Long Island, one particular coworker who claimed that I could not be an atheist. The conversation went something like this: > > “I’m an atheist.” > > “There’s no such thing.” > > “What do you mean?” > > “I can prove that you’re not an atheist.” > > “Don’t you think I know what I believe or don’t believe?” > > “No, you’re not an atheist, and I can prove it.” > > “Ok, prove that I’m not an atheist.” > > “If you’re an atheist . . . then who do you pray to?” This belongs in the ‘Stupidity You Have Heard’ thread, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/71 "2014-08-06T05:29:10Z")
“If you’re so smart, then who made the world?” ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/72 "2014-08-06T10:35:27Z")
“Harold be his name.” ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/73 "2014-08-06T11:18:29Z")
> [@spifflog](#): > > Also, lets keep on other thing in mind. > > At most, folks here say they would get into an equivalent of a heated discussion over religion. Or fired. Or disowned by their family. Or have their car trashed. Or if they are a kid, sent off to some camp where they will be terrorized/beaten/starved into recanting their atheism. And whatever else happens, be despised and regarded as evil. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/74 "2014-08-06T12:19:35Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > Mayor of my city: probably. Representative: definitely, it’s already happened. > > But I live in the very secular Silicon Valley. Although he didn’t disclose that he was an atheist until he’d been in Congress for almost 35 years. As far as I know, the only quasi-open atheist in Congress “doesn’t like labels” and doesn’t want to be called an atheist. Of course she’s in a presumably liberal area of extremely conservative Arizona. ---
**Author:** ![leftfield6](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leftfield6/32/18780_2.png) [@leftfield6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leftfield6)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/75 "2014-08-06T12:39:23Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > Message boards are the only places the subject of one’s religion ever comes up in my life. I typically interact with an average number of people, why doesn’t anyone talk about it with me? (I’m glad they don’t) Come down to the South, my friend. It is not so easy to “fly below the radar” as a number of people in this thread have suggested. I’m an atheist living in Atlanta GA. On of the largest metro areas, and yet the reality of being an atheist is an reality I deal with constantly. It is just **assumed** that since I am a middle aged guy who was born in the South, that of course I’m a “good old Christian boy”. I get asked where I go to church at least once a week. I’m expected to pray before meals with my fellow diners, even sometimes when meeting with business contacts. My career involves public speaking, so I’ve been asked a few times to “say the blessing” at family and social events, since I’m “good at that sort of thing”. At work, my religious manager frequently slips in religious references, and gauges reactions. Just in day to day interactions, the fact that I don’t conform to christian norms is constantly just below the surface. I can’t say, or place my finger, on a specific instance when it has held me back career wise or socially. Well, other than the fact that in re-entering the dating pool after my divorce, I know that it’s going to be an issue with some percentage of prospective mates. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/76 "2014-08-06T12:41:14Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > Mayor of my city: probably. Representative: definitely, it’s already happened. > > But I live in the very secular Silicon Valley. In the case of the mayor, if you’re saying maybe, then I’m saying that probably doesn’t count as openly atheist. And as **Marley23** pointed out, the Representative sort of hid the atheism while running…and for quite a while thereafter. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/77 "2014-08-06T12:45:37Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > “Harold be his name.” O. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/78 "2014-08-06T22:01:22Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > In the case of the mayor, if you’re saying maybe, then I’m saying that probably doesn’t count as openly atheist. And as **Marley23** pointed out, the Representative sort of hid the atheism while running…and for quite a while thereafter. You asked whether an open atheist could become mayor of my city. I believe that yes, an open atheist could become mayor of my city, even though it hadn’t happened yet as far as I’m aware. Religion has never been the slightest issue in any local mayoral or city council race, and I don’t even know the religion of the current mayor. (The previous mayor was an acquaintance, so I knew he was Jewish, but it never came up in the campaign.) ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/79 "2014-08-07T00:05:18Z")
> [@bldysabba](#): > > Everyone’s saying how social acceptability of atheism varies by region. Does it also vary by age group? Because I would expect it to, but no one has mentioned it (that I noticed), so I’m wondering. Yes/no/maybe? ---
**Author:** ![Disgruntled\_Penguin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@Disgruntled\_Penguin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disgruntled_Penguin)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837/80 "2014-08-07T02:09:35Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > You get some flak for it. Some people assume all atheists are bitter people who want to believe in god but are too damaged to do so. Others equate atheism with a rejection of christianity as if those are the only options (which is like equating being sober with a rejection of gin). > > Its not horrible flak though, not from what I’ve seen. You’d get a lot more flak for being a satanist. > > US religious heirarchy (I assume, I’m guessing) > > Socially acceptable christians (catholic, protestant, etc) > weird christians (mormon, etc) > other faiths except Islam > Islam > Atheism > Satanism Then comes Scientology [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-socially-acceptable-to-be-an-atheist-in-the-us/694837.md?page=5)