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I'm not sure that atheism is really in need of defence, though you might be able to make a case for US atheists. This wikipedia page has some info, in particular to a study I remember reading here.
From the article,
From a telephone sampling of more than 2,000 households, university researchers found that Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, gays and lesbians and other minority groups in “sharing their vision of American society.” Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry.
Even though atheists are few in number, not formally organized and relatively hard to publicly identify, they are seen as a threat to the American way of life by a large portion of the American public. “Atheists, who account for about 3 percent of the U.S. population, offer a glaring exception to the rule of increasing social tolerance over the last 30 years,” says Penny Edgell, associate sociology professor and the study’s lead researcher.
The wikipedia article also quotes some state constitutions that make it a requirement to acknowledge a vague deity in order to hold public office. I don't think it is that big a deal, since atheists don't have a chance of getting elected in the US if I understand the political climate correctly, but it should be an outrage to formally discriminate against a group in this way. |
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