Along with religion, politics is one of the most sensitive subjects in any culture. Throughout history, the two have often fed off of each other, producing disastrous results which almost inevitably include the loss of freedom and a heavier imposition of church or state upon the individual. It was for such reasons that the idea of separating church and state became popular and made its way into American government, French government, and Spanish government. No person wants the government telling them what to believe, and no one wants any single religion to receive special political advantage above all the others (well, some do, but only when that religion is their own).

It is no big secret that some religious denominations have clear political agendas, but what about atheism? If we are to believe the reports of Sean Hannity and FOX News, there is already an 'atheist agenda' being pushed by the liberal elites. However, anyone who is connected to the real world knows that many liberals are in fact Christians, and even some conservatives are atheists. Just from that simple truth alone, we see that the association of political ideologies with atheism is not exactly a black and white issue.

I. Atheism is Not a Political Philosophy

During the Red Scare paranoia of the 1950s, many people began equating atheism with communism after witnessing the terrifying regimes of Joseph Stalin and Mao Tse-tung. Still in the minds of many Americans today - especially conservative capitalists - it is thought that communism and socialism are governments founded upon atheism. I have dealt with this issue more at large in my article on Atheist Atrocities, but the main thing to realize is that atheism is not a political philosophy, nor are any political views implied in it. Atheism is merely the rejection of theism, it is responding with, "I don't believe that" or "I'm not sure I believe that" when someone tells you about any particular god. In short, being an atheist is like being a skeptic toward religious claims.

Atheism and communism/socialism are not synonymous, because any further details beyond the rejection of theism are relative to the personal philosophy of each individual. The majority of atheists do not wish to squelch out religion by violence or by force, and there are several others who do not even consider it to be harmful. There is also no evidence that rejecting the notion of a god served as a foundational principle in communism or socialism. The famous atheist philosopher Bertrand Russell outspokenly opposed the regimes of Lenin, Hitler, and Stalin, often comparing their practices to those of dogmatic religious zealots.

These misconceptions are most frequently propagated by the Religious Right, who seek to smear atheists, communists, socialists, and liberals, typically lumping them all together under one category as a scare tactic intended to rally those who buy into the buzz words without bothering to learn what it is they are afraid of or in opposition to. Atheism is unaffiliated with politics, and there are many atheists who are conservative, liberal, Republican, Democrat, capitalist, socialist, communist, anarchist, and everything in between, just as there are also religious believers in every one of those political ideologies too.

II. A Call to Reason and Freedom

In my article, What Can Atheism Offer Us?, I explain that the central focus of the atheist can be considered one of rationality, critical thinking, and reason. Faith in God is questioned and abandoned as the result of increased analysis, objective scrutiny, and general inquisitiveness. Even the most uninformed atheist has asked the crucial question, "why do I need religion?" So in keeping with this spirit of skepticism and free thought, I believe that in politics atheists ought to embrace the positions which advocate the most benefitial amounts of reason and freedom. Let me state that this is only my opinion though, and not any concept inherent to atheism. I simply feel that it logically follows from the conclusions and reasoning exercised by many atheists.

When a person confirms their disbelief by recognizing that religious claims are not well supported by evidence or that many of the claims are detrimental to humanity and the pursuit of peace, it is important to take those same realizations into political matters. There is no rationally defensible reason for restricting the freedoms of an individual, unless they infringe upon the equal and basic freedoms of another person. Failing to acknowledge that every citizen is equal will be detrimental to humanity, the society, and the pursuit of peace. Until a revolution in America replaces our current government with a new institution, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights should be respected as the laws of the land. Both documents permit high levels of freedom and responsibility to the American people.

Additionally, whenever certain policies conflict with the governing documents, or just don't make sense and have little evidentiary support, I believe it is in our best interests to object. Fundamentalists claim 'tradition' and cite fraudulent studies in order to deny gays the same marriage rights that heterosexual couples enjoy. No document in our government establishes or defines marriage, but more importantly, there is no justifiable grounds for denying basic freedoms to one group of people, while you openly allow them to every other. The Fourteenth Amendment clearly tells us that all American citizens are to be guaranteed the same rights. America is a democracy, a form of government set up for the people, by the people. For these reasons, I feel that no rational atheist should endorse political views that suppress our social freedoms or operate contrary to reason and evidence.

III. Atheists Crossing the Line

Not all atheists are rational people, and a few have unfortunately aligned themselves with political philosophies that are neither reasonable nor supported by the Constitution. Some non-believers assert that all prayer should be kept out of schools, while the separation of church and state actually prevents prayers sanctioned or mandated by the administration - students are free to pray whenever they please, so long as it does not interrupt or disrupt school activities. Yet these cases may just be misunderstandings, seeing how the media rarely clarifies the issue, preferring to sensationalize the news by only presenting headlines such as, 'Prayer Not Allowed in Public Schools!'

I have encountered a few atheists who fervently argue that religion should be outlawed, but in my opinion such an idea is hardly benefitial. To deny people their right to believe whatever they choose to believe and worship however they choose to worship is to ignore a fundamental part of our nation's history, and it is quite hypocritical to fight for the social acceptance of atheists, only to turn around later and attempt to criminalize religion. The Pilgrims came to America in order to escape religious persecution, and the founders made no secret of protecting the freedom of religion in the Bill of Rights. Banning religion is not the goal of atheism, and in fact it directly conflicts with the values most atheists confer on reason and freedom.

Atheists ought to be well informed of the political issues they take a side on, they should never cheat or use dishonest tactics to accomplish political goals, and they must always remember that it is important to respect the freedom of those you disagree with. Leave the deceptive, ignorant and hateful behavior to fanatics like Ben Stein. Most people will notice and respect integrity, even among those who they vehemently disagree with.

IV. Organizations for Atheism in Politics

Few atheists are politically active, because there is no overarching authority among our group, and the widespread demographic distribution and differences of opinion make it difficult for atheists to unite. However, I feel that uniting all atheists under a central authority would be contrary to what atheism is, and would give the impression of an 'atheist church' to a lot of outsiders, which should be avoided. There are some organizations that welcome atheists though, and mainly take action to educate the public, or when the separation of church and state is threatened.

Freedom from Religion Foundation - aims to 'promote the constitutional principle of separation of state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism'.

American Humanist Association - 'actively educates the public about Humanism, brings Humanists together for mutual support and action, defends the civil liberties and constitutional freedoms of Humanists and leads both local and national Humanist organizations toward progressive societal change'. Earlier members have included Bertrand Russell, Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Julian Huxley, and Albert Einstein.

Committee for Skeptical Inquiry - supports the 'critical investigation of paranormal and fringe-science claims from a responsible, scientific point of view'. Fellows of the organization include famous atheists like Richard Dawkins and Steven Weinberg.

Atheism and politics only overlap when religion and politics climb into bed together, and sadly it happens often. The presidential debates of 2008 were held in the megachurch of Rick Warren, a popular evangelical pastor. There have been numerous reports and lawsuits of military branches pressuring soldiers and cadets into attending religious services or tolerating imposed religious practices by senior officers [1]. Frequent debates and court cases arise over religion receiving special treatment in public schools too, from organized prayer to the proposals of non-scientific creationist textbooks. But atheists are not alone in opposing these issues. The separation of church and state exists to protect and respect all religious views, and there are Muslims, Jews, and even some Christians who recognize this as well as atheists. Atheists do not participate in politics to destroy religion or remove God from every facet of America - we simply advocate freedom from religion as the necessary partner to freedom of religion.

1. Conn, J. & Boston, R. Army Base Cannot Coerce Soldier Trainees to Attend Church.... Retrieved June 16, 2009.