creationism Archives - American Atheists https://www.atheists.org/tag/creationism/ Protecting the absolute separation of religion from government. Thu, 21 Feb 2019 16:45:56 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 125490277 American Atheists Warns States about “In God We Trust” Posters as Religious Propaganda https://www.atheists.org/2019/02/in-god-we-trust-posters/ Wed, 20 Feb 2019 19:53:36 +0000 https://www.atheists.org/?p=10248 Cranford, NJ—Today, American Atheists submitted testimony opposing two “In God We Trust” display bills. Kentucky’s HB 46 and Indiana’s SB 373 would trample religious liberty by forcing public schools to display this Judeo-Christian language. Kentucky’s “In God We Trust” Display Bill Specifically, Kentucky’s HB 46 would require schools to display “In God We Trust” in a prominent location in schools. Not only would this bill force non-believing students to view this religious message daily, it would further stigmatize children of no faith or minority faiths. As a result, bullying and harassment would likely increase. Just as bad, Kentucky taxpayer dollars would be wasted on defending this unnecessary and divisive law. KY’s education dollars should go toward educating students, not supporting religious messages by special interests. Indiana’s “In God We Trust” Display and Creationism Bill Indiana’s SB 373 is even worse than HB 46. SB 373 would force public schools to display “In God We Trust” in each and every classroom. SB 373 goes further than HB 46 in three additional and disturbing ways: School districts could teach creation science or other so-called “theories concerning the origin of life” instead of legitimate science. Courts have repeatedly made clear that teaching creation science is religious indoctrination, and therefore such a curriculum is inherently unconstitutional. Schools would encourage students to attend religious instruction and receive educational credit. This is a clear violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. Schools could not infringe “parental rights” on what is taught. This concept is so vague and the legal protections so uncertain that it would result in an unworkable educational system and a host of unintended consequences. “This bill is shockingly unconstitutional. We hope that lawmakers in Indiana are wise enough to halt this roiling mess of poorly conceived ideas, religious coercion, and unintended consequences before it becomes law,” wrote Alison Gill, Vice President for Legal and Policy. Christian Nationalism and Project Blitz Both bills are part of Project Blitz, a multi-state campaign by Christian nationalists to promote the false narrative that America was founded as a Christian nation. American Atheists is leading the charge against Project Blitz with its BlitzWatch campaign.

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]]> 10248 Creationist Encourages Kentucky Schools to Violate Constitution After Atheist Advisory Letter https://www.atheists.org/2018/09/ken-ham-response/ Mon, 10 Sep 2018 16:12:09 +0000 https://www.atheists.org/?p=8541 Grant County, KY—In response to a letter from American Atheists reminding Kentucky schools of their obligations under the constitution to maintain religious neutrality, creationist and Answers in Genesis president Ken Ham has responded by urging schools to violate the constitutional rights of students. Earlier this month, American Atheists Kentucky State Director Johnny Pike, sent advisory letters to all Kentucky schools that advised them of common constitutional issues and incidents that occur in public school classrooms and events. Ham, as president of Answers in Genesis, runs the Ark Encounter, a creationist attraction that features a representation of Noah’s Ark and is associated with the so-called Creation “Museum.” The Ark Encounter is located in Grant County, Kentucky, and has attempted to portray itself as an acceptable educational field trip for public school students. However, the Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that creationism, and a rebranded version of creationism called “intelligent design,” are unconstitutional violations of the Establishment Clause. Ham responded to the letter from American Atheists by suggesting that teachers should violate the constitutional rights of students by leading trips to his attractions which offer no educational value and are instead filled with religious propaganda. “The letter we sent to Kentucky schools was intended to inform schools about their obligations under the constitution to protect the rights of students,” said Pike. “It is important that administrators know what is permitted under the law to ensure that valuable school resources are not being wasted on litigating the already-clear legal principle of government neutrality on religious matters.” “Public schools exist to do one thing: prepare students for the future. Religious propaganda of the sort Ken Ham peddles has no place in Kentucky classrooms,” added Pike.

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