The American Humanist Association (AHA) and Center for Freethought Equality (CFE) staff met with new and returning Members of Congress on the very first day of the 119th Congress session to begin establishing important relationships and putting a face to the powerful secular constituency. Although Congress continues to be more religious than the country as a whole—CQ Roll Call survey reported that 95 percent of Senate and House members identify with a religious faith, while a Pew Research Center survey found 70% of Americans affiliate with a religious faith—there is a growing cohort of nonreligious members.
For Democrats, incoming Arizona Representative Yassamin Ansari identified as “agnostic,” incoming Washington Representative Emily Randall identified as “none” (she will also be the first openly queer Latina in Congress), and California Representative Jared Huffman continues to identify as a “humanist.” Ohio’s Dave Taylor is the one Republican who did not specify a religious affiliation. CQ Roll Call stated that, “another 21 Democrats did not specify a religious affiliation.”
Hemant Mehta recognized CFE Political Manager Ron Millar for encouraging Ansari to mark her public identifier as agnostic when they talked at an event hosted by the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC. “Ansari also won her primary by 39 votes (following a recount). She’s a reminder of why voting matters and how those votes can help change the conversation when it comes to diversity and representation at the highest levels of government.”
Mehta also wrote in his article, “Secular organizations still matter!” Ron Millar, political and PAC manager of the Center for Freethought Equality expands on that statement, “We are making advances in Congress and in state legislatures because we are doing the work to increase our community’s visibility, which makes elected officials and candidates more comfortable to identify with the humanist and freethought community. This turns into a positive feedback loop because as more elected officials publicly identify with us, the lingering bias against our community diminishes, which in turn allows more members of our community to also confidently be public as a humanist, agnostic, atheist, or nonreligious. Our efforts are making it possible for members of our community to be their authentic selves across the country.”
The CFE does extensive outreach to candidates and elected officials to indicate that there is a humanist and atheist community to support them, demonstrate that being their authentic selves will not end their careers, and encourage members of our community to run for office. Our elected officials will work against the efforts of White Christian Nationalism to build a future for a safer, saner, stronger, and more secular America. More than a quarter of our country’s population identifies as religiously unaffiliated, and are making our values known at the ballot box and running for—and winning—seats in public office.
A full list of the Center for Freethought Equality PAC’s 2024 endorsements and their election results can be found here. A list of current and former humanist and atheist federal, state, and local elected officials can be found here. You can become a member of CFE for free here. And you can always participate in AHA Action Alerts here.
At his opening day reception, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin (co-founder and co-chair of the Congressional Freethought Caucus) quoted a letter by Thomas Jefferson in reference to the current situation in Washington: “A little patience, and we shall see the reign of witches pass over, their spells dissolve, and the people, recovering their true sight, restore their government to its true principles.” That same day, Speaker Mike Johnson, the top Christian Nationalist on Capitol Hill, offered “a prayer for the nation” on the House floor that he incorrectly claimed Jefferson had written and said every day. Thankfully, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation recovered the truth and debunked this falsehood.
Now is the time to get involved and make sure our lawmakers protect our country’s democratic principles and represent all of us—no matter how they or we identify religiously.
The post New Year, New Secular Representation in Congress appeared first on TheHumanist.com.
The American Humanist Association (AHA) and Center for Freethought Equality (CFE) staff met with new and returning Members of Congress on the very first day of the 119th Congress session to begin establishing important relationships and putting a face to the powerful secular constituency. Although Congress continues to be more religious than the country as
The post New Year, New Secular Representation in Congress appeared first on TheHumanist.com.