Secular groups Monday applauded a public acknowledgment by Rep. Pete Stark that he does not believe in a supreme being, making the Fremont Democrat the first member of Congress -- and the highest-ranking elected official in the U.S. -- to publicly acknowledge not believing in God.Somehow I suspect he's far from the only atheist in Congress. But, since atheists (or non-theists, to use the admixture, above) remain the least popular religious group in America in surveys of voter sentiment toward candidates of various religions, it takes strong nerves and a safe seat to admit it.The American Humanist Assn. plans to take out an ad in the Washington Post today congratulating the congressman for his public stance and highlighting the contributions of other prominent secular humanists, such as writers Barbara Ehrenreich and Kurt Vonnegut and actress Julia Sweeney.
Fred Edwords, a spokesman for the group, said non-theistic Americans often faced discrimination for their views.
"So often throughout American history, people who are non-theistic or don't believe in a supreme being can't get elected to public office or, if they inform the public of their view, they don't get reelected," he said. "We're trying to increase the acceptance of non-theists as every bit as American as everybody else."
Stark's declaration came in response to a search by the Secular Coalition for America to find the most prominent nonbelieving politician.
--Garance Franke-Ruta
