Our Oprah ads were on CNN this weekend

The Boston Atheists social media campaign were featured on CNN.

It's great that we're seeing yet more traction with our efforts to alert Oprah Winfrey to the insensitivity of her comments about atheism. This weekend on CNN's "Faces of Faith" segment, Chris Stedman of the Humanist Community at Harvard did a fantastic job speaking to the need for dialogue across the knowledge/belief gap dividing religious and nonreligious communities in the US. A full transcript appears below.

The anchors, interestingly, were, like seemingly uneasy with or unclear as to how an atheist could experience awe and wonder. Mysteriously, the "atheist group" that demands an apology from Oprah isn't anywhere identified as the Boston Atheists! Not that we are surprised that the media would rather reach out to a Humanist representative before an atheist one, to speak about the experience of being a nontheist. 

We know we have a PR challenge ahead of us, insofar as American really do think that atheists aren't good or happy people. That fact is really at the core of Oprah's thoughtless comments.

Please continue to share the #atheistawesome tag on social media, to invite @Oprah and @OWNtv to dialogue about the issue of atheist identity. And share the images in our Boston Atheists Oprah images gallery, as featured on the Friendly Atheist blog! You can find the full set on Facebook.

Transcript of the CNN piece:

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#12)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, won't you tell your audience that atheists have feelings too? #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#11)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, you've spoken up for equality so many times... how about now? #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#10)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, when you deny someone's identity, you dehumanize them.. #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#8)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, any time is a good time to apologize for insensitivity. #atheistawesome

#atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#7)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, do you know how many of your viewers and readers are atheists?  #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#6)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV,  the damage done by thoughtless words can be undone with dialogue.  #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#5)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, a lot of people were hurt when you denied your guest's atheist identity.  #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#4)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag #atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, atheists sure can feel awe & wonder. If you don't get it, let us educate you! #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#3)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag #atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@OWNTV, atheists want to know if @Oprah is willing to reexamine the bias her comments showed. #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#2)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag #atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, are you talking to anyone in the secular community? We're hoping for a response! #atheistawesome

For Oprah: Don't relabel atheists! (#1)

In response to Oprah Winfrey's biased comments against atheists in an October 2013 interview, the Boston Atheists are asking for support in asking her for an apology and some gesture of acknowledgment and affirmation toward the secular community. Whether that means inviting she invites Edwina Rogers, Eddie Izzard, and Stephen Fry for a sit-down on camera to talk about secular activism and atheist aesthetics, depends entirely on how much noise we can make about this! Please spread these images widely, and credit them to the Boston Atheists(a local affiliate of American Atheists. More will be posted in coming days, under the tag atheistawesome.

Tweet this image to the Oprah team! Suggested language:

@Oprah and @OWNTV, are you talking to anyone in the secular community? We're hoping for a response! #atheistawesome

Looking for Newton atheists!

From the Secular Coalition for Massachusetts:

There's an event coming up -- the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast -- that the SCMA would like to use as an occasion to talk with various civic leaders about inclusion and SOCAS. If you are a Newton resident who'd be willing to talk with the SCMA about participating in our effort to engage the Mayor's office over this issue, please let us know: massachusetts@secular.org.  

In light of the potential fallout from coming forward as an atheist representative or activist, let us assure you that discretion will be afforded you, as well as anonymity if you require it.

Boston atheists needed to engage mayoral candidates on secular issues!

From the Secular Coalition for Massachusetts:

With the various mayoral candidates' forums coming up, the SCMA would like to know who in Boston would be willing to serve as resident representatives of the local nontheist community. We're going to want to ask the candidates how they intend to represent all Bostonians -- including nontheists -- if they are elected. 

If you are a Boston resident, please let us know if you'd like to be part of the team that puts these questions out there. In light of the potential fallout from coming forward as an atheist representative or activist, let us assure you that discretion will be afforded you, as well as anonymity if you require it. 

Contact: massachusetts@secular.org.

Two easy actions for secular culture...

.. that you can do today.

1. SIGN this petition, being presented to the White House, which asks that that "under God" clause be removed from the Pledge of Allegiance (which, as James Croft of the Harvard Humanist Chaplaincy pointed out, should really be asking that the Pledge be RESTORED to its original no-god form.)

2. SHARE your stories of discrimination against atheists, in order to raise awareness of this form of prejudice, and to show solidarity with others who are exposed to the same sort of bias. From The Friendly Atheist:

A writer from BBC News is working on an article about atheist discrimination in the workplace and it’d be great to tell some of our stories in the hopes that other people will understand what some atheists have had to deal with. The reporter writes, "I have seen a few stories on this site about people who felt excluded by their co-workers or even lost their job after expressing their beliefs. I would like to talk to people who have been through such an experience." In case you’re curious, the folks at Think Atheist have verified the posting — he is who he says he is." 

The writer's contact information can be found at this post on the Think Atheist forum.

Tell your rep: Support SOCAS and Vote No on "In God We Trust"

The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee will vote today on whether to reaffirm "In God We Trust" as the national motto of the United States, and encourage its public display in all public buildings, public schools, and other government institutions. The text of the resolution says in part, "... in times of national challenge or tragedy, the people of the United States have turned to God as their source for sustenance, protection, wisdom, strength, and direction." Some Americans have found in their religion the strength to bear up against difficult times; others have found reason in their religion to deny medical care to children, to commit murder, to collude with terrorism, to deny other Americans their equal part of civil liberty, and other anti-social behavior.

Congressman Randy Forbes (R-VA) is behind this resolution -- it may be said that he's leading the current legislative effort to confuse church and state. He and 64 co-sponsors (nearly all Republicans -- see list below) are hoping that the resolution's passage will encourage public display of "In God We Trust" in public schools and buildings -- a wholly unsavory practice that establishes one religious perspective (that of theism) as official, national, and patriotic, and promotes the notion that another religious perspective (that of atheism) is subversive, elitist, and un-American. Forbes is known for his promotion of Judeo-Christian doctrines and values, and for equating theism with patriotism e.g. "Recognition of the Supreme Being is the first, the most basic expression of Americanism."

The same bill failed last year -- can we do it again? How excellent it would be good if a significant portion of the large and growing population of secular Americans, would come forward and ask their Congresspeople to represent them just as well as their theistic neighbors, by voting against this resolution.

Congressman Forbes recently told Politico, "to a lot of people, the fact that this country was built on faith, the fact that faith is important, 'In God We Trust' is important." Of course, to a lot of people, that sounds like balderdash. This country was built on a Constitution, and according to that Constitution, the government use its authority to promote any position on the questions of religion, theistic or atheistic.

On this subject, Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State challenges the notion that efforts to change the national motto are motivated by anything other than the intention to adopt a slogan that represents ALL Americans. "No organization or group of graffiti artists is going around trying to cover up" the motto, Lynn told CNN, "the motto should be 'In God, or in no God, or in multiple gods we trust.'"

The text and status of House Continuing Resolution 13 can be found online at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d112:hc13:.

AN EASY WAY TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
Americans United has a webform which will allow you to instantly contact your Congressperson, at http://action.au.org/au/issues/alert/?alertid=35875506.


The following U.S. Representatives have co-sponsored Randy Forbes' bill to reaffirm the national motto. Is your rep listed below? If so, please call 202-224-3121 today and say, "I'd like you to reconsider your co-sponsorship of House Continuing Resolution 13. The national motto 'In God We Trust' is a statement of religious belief, contrary to the letter and spirit of the First Amendment, and fails to adequately represent the diversity of views present in America. I want you to represent my interests, and the interests of all your constituents, by not affirming a divisive national motto."

CO-SPONSORS of "IN GOD WE TRUST"

• Rep Aderholt, Robert B. [AL-4] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Akin, W. Todd [MO-2] - 3/3/2011
• Rep Alexander, Rodney [LA-5] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Bachus, Spencer [AL-6] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Bartlett, Roscoe G. [MD-6] - 3/3/2011
• Rep Bishop, Rob [UT-1] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Black, Diane [TN-6] - 3/3/2011
• Rep Blackburn, Marsha [TN-7] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Boren, Dan [OK-2] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Broun, Paul C. [GA-10] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Burgess, Michael C. [TX-26] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Calvert, Ken [CA-44] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Camp, Dave [MI-4] - 2/11/2011
• Rep Canseco, Francisco "Quico" [TX-23] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Chaffetz, Jason [UT-3] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Coffman, Mike [CO-6] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Conaway, K. Michael [TX-11] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Crenshaw, Ander [FL-4] - 2/11/2011
• Rep Davis, Geoff [KY-4] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Ellmers, Renee L. [NC-2] - 2/16/2011
• Rep Emerson, Jo Ann [MO-8] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Flores, Bill [TX-17] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Foxx, Virginia [NC-5] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Garrett, Scott [NJ-5] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Gingrey, Phil [GA-11] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Goodlatte, Bob [VA-6] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Griffin, Tim [AR-2] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Griffith, H. Morgan [VA-9] - 2/16/2011
• Rep Hall, Ralph M. [TX-4] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Harper, Gregg [MS-3] - 3/3/2011
• Rep Huizenga, Bill [MI-2] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Jenkins, Lynn [KS-2] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] - 1/26/2011
• Rep King, Steve [IA-5] - 2/28/2011
• Rep Kingston, Jack [GA-1] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Kline, John [MN-2] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Lankford, James [OK-5] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Latta, Robert E. [OH-5] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Lipinski, Daniel [IL-3] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Manzullo, Donald A. [IL-16] - 3/16/2011
• Rep McCotter, Thaddeus G. [MI-11] - 2/11/2011
• Rep Miller, Candice S. [MI-10] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Miller, Gary G. [CA-42] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Miller, Jeff [FL-1] - 2/16/2011
• Rep Neugebauer, Randy [TX-19] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Nunnelee, Alan [MS-1] - 2/16/2011
• Rep Pence, Mike [IN-6] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Poe, Ted [TX-2] - 3/16/2011
• Rep Pompeo, Mike [KS-4] - 2/17/2011
• Rep Rahall, Nick J., II [WV-3] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Roe, David P. [TN-1] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Ross, Dennis [FL-12] - 2/8/2011
• Rep Ross, Mike [AR-4] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Shuster, Bill [PA-9] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Simpson, Michael K. [ID-2] - 2/8/2011
• Rep Stearns, Cliff [FL-6] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Turner, Michael R. [OH-3] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Upton, Fred [MI-6] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Walberg, Tim [MI-7] - 2/8/2011
• Rep Westmoreland, Lynn A. [GA-3] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Wolf, Frank R. [VA-10] - 1/26/2011
• Rep Young, Don [AK] - 3/11/2011
• Rep Young, Todd C. [IN-9] - 3/3/2011

Is your Congressman listed above? If so, please call 202-224-3121 and encourage him or her to defend freedom of conscience and the separation of church of state, by voting against this resolution.

MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
Use this webform, http://action.au.org/au/issues/alert/?alertid=35875506, to instantly contact your Congressperson.

NB: NB: A petition campaign to support this resolution is being led by Chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt. More about him at http://blog.au.org/2009/04/24/naval-maneuvers-exchaplain-admits-hes-not-all-he-appeared-to-be (and elsewhere online).

[Please circulate.]