COMPLIMENTARY COPY | JOIN FFRF NOW!

Vandals can’t Evolution and How to keep up with Atheism: best increase our activist member friends forever political clout? PAGE 6 PAGE 14 PAGE 17

Vol. 34 No. 1 Published by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. January / February 2017 Solstice sing-along FFRF sues to abolish W. Va. bible classes The Freedom From Religion Foundation filed its first lawsuit of the year in mid-January, to end egre- giously unconstitutional “Bible in the Schools” classes in Mercer County Schools, W. Va. Joining FFRF as primary plaintiffs are Jane Doe, an atheist and member of FFRF, and her child, Jamie Doe. FFRF and Jane Doe contend Jamie next year faces “an untenable choice” — whether to participate in unconstitutional bible indoctrination or face likely ostracism by conspicuously opting out. The bible instruction, taught by itinerant teach- ers who possess “a degree in bible,” begins in first grade. Classes are held in 15 elementary schools, one intermediate school and three middle schools. The classes meet weekly and last 30 minutes in elementary schools and 45 minutes in middle schools. Defendants are Mercer County Board of Educa- Photo by Ingrid Laas tion, Mercer County Schools and Superintendent Guitarist and singer Ken Lonnquist performs for FFRF members and staff during the Winter Solstice Deborah S. Akers. celebration at FFRF’s office in downtown Madison, Wis., on Dec. 21, 2016. FFRF Co-President Dan Barker Bible indoctrination classes have been taught in also performed and accompanied Lonnquist on the piano on several songs, and everyone joined in to Mercer County Schools for more than 75 years. Be- sing “Auld Lang Syne.” For more photos from the annual event, see the back page. tween 1939 and 1985, the bible classes were designed, financed, administered and staffed by a small group of Mercer County citizens. Following complaints by See Lawsuit on page 13 Your dues help stop their don’ts! FFRF continues to the winning side of dozens of com- different states, showing that our Don’t trump the First plaints against public entities that reach is truly nationwide and that fight for everyone’s mingle religion with their business. violations can occur anywhere. Amendment! constitutional rights On page 5 of this issue is a recap FFRF’s legal department in- of FFRF’s 2016 legal battles, which cludes Managing Staff Attorney Your membership in the Free- includes more than 260 victories Rebecca Markert, Staff Attorneys dom From Religion Foundation coming out of 1,073 complaints. Patrick Elliott, Andrew Seidel, gives us the opportunity to fight We also highlight the four lawsuits Sam Grover, Elizabeth Cavell, Le- for you and all Americans when FFRF won in 2016 and list the eight gal Fellows Madeline Ziegler and it comes to keeping state and lawsuits that are currently filed. Ryan Jayne, Legal Intake Clerk church separate, as the Establish- On pages 10 and 11 of this Seth Wrinkle and Legal Assistant ment Clause of the U.S. Constitu- issue we detail the 26 legal Whitney Steffen. tion guarantees. victories we’ve won since our last If you see a violation of the sep- Since our last issue of Free- issue of the paper was published. aration of state and church, con- thought Today, FFRF has been on Those victories came in 18 tact FFRF at ffrf.org/legal/report. Freethought Today has a new look FFRF has updated and rede- design team of Jake Swenson and tency that the paper previously signed much of Freethought Roger Daleiden. lacked. We will be using a stan- Today, as you can see by this Some of the specific changes: dard blue for section headers, month’s issue. • The most noticeable change bylines and column names. This is the first true redesign is to our masthead at the top • Black Collar Crime, while still Photo by Chris Line since the newspaper debuted in of the page. It now includes in the same font size, has been During FFRF’s Winter Solstice celebration, September 1983, but it’s entirely three small photos as part of the changed to a light face, which Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor showed the a visual change. All of the content “teasers” for what’s inside the gives it more readability. guests a copy of the full-page ad FFRF placed on you have come to expect from issue, which means the teaser box • One thing that we did not Bill of Rights Day in the Dec. 15 issue of The New Freethought Today will still be at the bottom of the page is no change was the text font. We de- York Times. The ad tells readers: “Don’t let the included. “We feel the redesign longer necessary. cided to keep the Baskerville font Religious Right trump the First Amendment. The gives the paper a modern, crisp • The headline fonts have gone (created by a freethinker!), which framers of our secular Constitution knew the look that emphasizes readability,” from a serif font to a sans serif, studies have shown is one of the only wall we need is between church and state.” says Editor PJ Slinger. which give the headlines a more easiest newsprint styles to read. A black-and-white version of the ad can be seen The newspaper redesign proj- dynamic look. We hope you enjoy the in this issue’s wrap. ect was handled by FFRF’s graphic • There will be a color consis- changes! Page 2 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 Darwin Soder: On the origin of a name Name: Darwin Soder in my sophomore year at Kansas State, Where I live: On Florida’s West coast when I enrolled in a philosophy class. in Sarasota since 1980. While the professor was careful not to Where and when I was born: Wichi- reveal his own beliefs, he selected a ta, Kan., in 1943. textbook which included a full chapter Family: I am the oldest of four on the existence of God. I was shocked brothers. Two of them became devout to read that there were valid reasons to Christians while my youngest brother challenge the very existence of a God. followed me in nonbelief. We all grew I am fortunate to be a close acquain- up in a traditional Midwestern house- tance of Barbara G. Walker, who has hold where we attended church every authored several persuasive articles in Sunday. Freethought Today. Her many carefully Education: My parents preceded me researched histories of biblical mythol- by attending college and were able to ogy have persuaded me to reject Chris- enter the surging middle class at the tian dogma regarding the “life” of Jesus. beginning of WWII. As a result, I was Before I die: I am a life member of afforded the opportunity to attend Final Exit Network, a national organi- Kansas State University, where I earned zation devoted to helping people die a an undergraduate degree in econom- good death. FEN evaluates members’ ics. I then completed a master’s degree requests for education and even assis- in economics and secured a job teach- tance in facilitating their own death. ing in a small Kansas college. If they are of sound mind, but unwill- Occupation: After getting a second ing to endure severe pain, or to waste Darwin Soder stands in front of El Faro Lighthouse Hill in the harbor of Mazatlan, master’s degree in labor statistics and family financial assets by a prolonged Mexico, on the Pacific coast. industrial relations at Michigan State, stay in a nursing home, an exit guide I breezed into a job as an economist Mirage trimaran on the warm green will come to support their Final Exit. with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics MEET A MEMBER waters of Sarasota Bay all year long. At I hope that I will die suddenly, but if in Washington, D.C. Two years later, I an earlier age, Sunday motorcycling that good fortune is denied, I am pre- relocated to the U.S. Maritime Admin- time in rural Iowa. with other riders was a great way to pared to employ fast and mostly pain- istration. Living in a houseboat on the Where I’m headed: At age 74 and avoid road congestion and church at- less alternatives. Potomac River, I began my life-long never married, life has been really good tendance. Finally, I’m learning a new Ways I promote freethought: For love of boating and sailing. In 1979, and just too easy. I have no children, so outdoor activity — sporting clays and at least a decade, my car’s license tag I departed Washington and sailed to my living expenses have been minimal. trap shooting. has read “SKPTIC.” My motor home Florida, where a few years later I start- Person in history that I admire and These are not: Continuous blath- also displayed the name “APOSTATE” ed a firm managing other people’s why: I have always admired Carl Sagan er by radio and television newscasters on its front bumper. I loved that word money in the great stock market boom and particularly relish his book, The about the president-elect and his entou- because most people had to ask me of 1983-1999. After a lucrative career, I Demon-Haunted rage. Along with what it meant. I have always mount- retired in 2003. World. Sadly, he many like-minded ed a Darwin fish symbol on my vehi- How I came to be called Darwin: I died in 1996 at individuals, I “cut cles, along with a smaller evolve fish am the grandchild of a horticulturalist, age 62, but he au- I was inclined to be skep- the cord” follow- holding a wrench. In 2000, I became Albert Soder, who lived in rural Iowa at thored 30 books, tical of the Christian bible and ing the election. I an early member of the first nonthe- a time where there was no electricity, and though a clos- of“ supernatural entities, but don’t like seeing ist group in Sarasota — the Human- no running water, no radio and no en- et humanist who still liked the deist inclination the voluntary dis- ists of Sarasota Bay (HUSBAY). When tertainment. He didn’t attend college, cautiously avoided of our Founding Fathers. play “In God We I told the club’s founder that I had but educated himself by intensive read- questioning the Trust” on many just retired from a career in financial ing from the greatest books written in deeply held faiths — Darwin Soder Florida license services, he asked me to be its treasur- the late 1800s. One of those books was of the general plates. This phrase er, a post I held for 10 years. We now Charles Darwin’s The Descent of Man. population, he fos- is also displayed have almost 130 active members. In Albert was so inspired by this ground- tered a love of scientific thinking over on our state seal in government offices 2008, I gathered several of my fellow breaking publication that he and his myths and superstition. statewide. Should we sue to remove it? humanists together to adopt one of wife Nellie agreed to name their sec- A quotation I like: “I no more be- My doubts about religion started: I our county’s largest parks. The coun- ond child “Darwin.” That revered lieve in the biblical God than I believe was raised in a family of religious mod- ty erected a permanent sign with our name was passed on to me. Albert in Zeus, Isis, Thor and the thousands erates who belonged to a unique Con- association’s name near the park en- also purchased Robert G. Ingersoll’s of other dead gods that lie buried in gregational church ministry, which trance. Finally, in 2010, I created a Prose-Poems and Selections (1884), Thom- the mass grave we call mythology. I proclaimed that members could accept public Facebook page called Sarasota as Paine’s Age of Reason (1794) and doubt them all equally and for the Jesus as the son of God and the savior Humanists. I serve as the administra- John E. Remsburg’s The Bible (1903). I same reason: a lack of evidence.” (Au- of humankind, or as a natural-born hu- tor and we have nearly 100 followers, still have Albert’s books and owe much thor unknown) man being who taught us how to wor- many of whom are HUSBAY members, of my own conversion to nontheism These are a few of my favorite ship God and to respect each other. By too. The site is packed with humorous to my grandfather, who was an active things: Sharing a weekly 12-mile ride my late teen years, I was inclined to be nontheist cartoons, photos and mem- member of the International Congress with my partner Susan on our low- skeptical of the Christian bible and of ber comments. I am proud to be a for Progressive Thought. He attended slung recumbent trikes that combine supernatural entities, but still liked the Life Member and After-Life Member its 27th National Convention in St Lou- joyful exercise and no worry of falling. deist inclination of our Founding Fa- of FFRF in support of its outstanding is in 1904. He was a skeptic ahead of his In addition, we sail her 18-foot Hobe thers. I became much more skeptical achievements.

MOVING? Don’t miss your copy of Published by Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc.

Moving? Don’t miss a single issue of Freethought Today P.O. Box 750 Madison WI 53701 [email protected] FFRF.org Notify Us of P 608.256.8900 F 608.204.0422 Your Address Change EDITOR P.J. Slinger [email protected] FFRF Memberships: Promptly! EDITOR EMERITUS Bill Dunn $40 single; $50 household; [email protected] EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER Annie Laurie Gaylor $100 gung-ho; $250 sustaining EMAIL GRAPHIC DESIGNER Roger Daleiden Memberships are tax deductible! CONTRIBUTORS Freethought Today is The Post Office does not Philip Appleman, Dan Barker, Jerry Coyne, Molly Hanson, Jimmy Holcomb, published 10 times a year. forward third-class mail. Susan Jacoby, Ingrid Laas, Chris Line, Rebecca Markert, Amit Pal, Carl FFRF cannot be responsible for replacing Scheiman, Lauryn Seering, Andrew Seidel, Preston Smith back issues if we have not been notified prior to your move. P.O. Box 750 • Madison, WI 53701 The only freethought newspaper in the United States ffrf.org/donate January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 3 Words of wisdom for 2017

FFRF honorary board Daniel C. Dennett whelmingly rejected Trump (and the of the Christian sects will stay silent, or The greatest danger, I think, is let- young overwhelmingly rejected Brexit strongly support his actions as long as members speak out ting the truth slide into oblivion. I and its underlying xenophobia in the public money With the start of a new year and a hope we can carefully, scrupulously UK). If they organize to fight back, we continues to be new presidential administration, FFRF record and annotate the current state may be OK. diverted into asked its honorary board members to of the nation Sapolsky is a neurologist, Stanford pro- their schools briefly answer this question: at the close of fessor and author who has a new book com- and they contin- “Given all the changes politically Obama’s pres- ing out in May called Behave: The Biology ue to enjoy their in the United States (and around the idency, the of Humans at Our Best and Worst. special tax privi- world), how can we freethinkers best promises and leges. I remem- deal with these challenges in 2017?” assertions made Steven Pinker ber Cardinal Here are the answers (edited) from by Trump (to- FFRF honorary president Terence Cooke those who responded. gether with the First, we mustn’t overinterpret telling Amer- evidence of ly- Trump’s electoral victory as suggesting ican troops in Sorel Rebecca Newberger Goldstein ing and prom- that history is on the side of Trumpism, Vietnam, “You Some people are energized by an- ise breaking, but should re- are friends of Christ because you are ger and confrontation, others drained. the evidence for Photo by Ingrid Laas member that far here.” I think we’ll hear a variation on Dennett I belong to the second category, which illegal arrange- more people vot- that theme when Trump gets us into makes me a delightful companion ments and activities and the time and ed for Clinton another holy war. but a wimpy activist. In the present effort devoted to pushback on prepos- than for Trump, Good luck to us all in the New Year. circumstances, I’ve vowed to battle terous proposals and schemes). that President Sorel is a satiric cartoonist who is a regu- my even-temperedness and keep my The nation shouldn’t have to be con- Obama’s ap- lar contributor to The Atlantic and The New outrage stoked stantly correcting, rebutting, chastising, proval rating is Yorker, and whose caricatures have been ex- and focused on deploring or demanding apologies at an all-time hibited at the National Portrait Gallery. His resistance. I’m from a naughty-little-boy president. If high, and that newest book is the critically acclaimed Mary afraid that, with he would just behave like a grown-up, Trump’s support Astor’s Purple Diary. Photo by Brent Nicastro time, this will we could all get a lot more done. was concentrat- Pinker prove hard even When the nation gets tired enough ed among older Susan Jacoby for those more of this, we want to have more than voters, who will die someday and be re- I think that the advances made by inclined to fe- enough undeniable grounds for im- placed by more liberal cohorts. secular Americans in recent years are rocity than I. peachment so that it will sail through Also, we should remember that a under grave threat from the adminis- The tactics of Congress with bipartisan support. functioning democracy does not con- tration of President Donald J. Trump — the new presi- Dennett is a professor of philosophy at sist of electing a ruler, but depends on an irony-laden situation, since Trump dential adminis- Newberger Goldstein Tufts, and author of the bestselling book an enormous distributed infrastruc- never displayed any particular interest tration were laid about religion, Breaking the Spell. ture: legislators who have to respond in religion until he began running for clear in the campaign and have con- to constituents and lobbyists, judges the nation’s highest office. Trump may tinued, fast and furious, since Election Sean B. Carroll with reputations to uphold, bureau- not be any more interested in religion Day. They consist in so overwhelming The surprising 180-degree turn has crats who are responsible for the mis- now, but Vice President Mike Pence us with outrages — sometimes as many many of us working in science and edu- sions of their departments, and the and many mem- as six impossible things before break- cation wondering how best to respond tens of millions of people who have bers of the cabi- fast, as the White Queen said to Alice to the shift in climate (pun intended). to carry out their jobs in order that net are about as — that we can’t fully give any single I find myself looking back to other the government and society function. far right as it gets one of them their due before our atten- eras when cul- These are pressure points at which in American re- tion is swept away by yet another. The tures slammed citizens can continue to exert an in- ligious discourse result is that the individual items in the into reverse, and fluence, even when the election is a and public pol- onslaught become blurred in memory, how people re- distant memory. icy. From these and we end up feeling much less than sponded. I wrote Pinker is a professor of psychology at government we would if only one or two of them a book a few years Harvard and is author of The Blank Slate. leaders — espe- had occurred. Soon, the whole limbic ago about Al- He has been elected to the National Academy cially if, as I sus- Photo by Ingrid Laas system just shuts down in exhaustion. bert Camus and of Sciences. pect, Trump is Jacoby It’s a phenomenon that psychologists Jacques Monod, basically indifferent and has delegated ought to study, as they have “compas- who were more Jerry Coyne all religious matters to Pastor-manqué sion fatigue.” It could be called “out- clear-eyed than With respect to the U.S., the unex- Pence — we can expect nothing but at- rage fatigue,” and I expect the next few many in antici- Carroll pected election of Donald Trump as tacks on women’s reproductive rights, years will give us ample opportunities pating the misery that was about to be- president has made freethinkers think attempts to funnel tax money to reli- for observing it. fall France upon occupation in 1940, a freely about gious charter schools, science-denying Newberger Goldstein is author of 36 country that was very much divided be- how we might initiatives on everything from climate Arguments For the Existence of God: A fore and during their long ordeal. respond to change to evolution, and every other Work of Fiction and a research associate in Like them, I think we have to sum- the challenges imaginable attempt to erode the barri- Harvard’s psychology department. mon hope and courage, resist paralysis, that are sure to er between church and state. We must and get on with our work — convinced come. There is fight these initiatives at the local, state Robin Morgan that in time, the tide will turn back in of course a need and national level with every dollar and Never forget that the reason for this favor of reason. for the usual let- every iota of reason we possess. worldwide anti-progressive backlash Carroll is scientist, author and educator ter-writing and My contribution to this fight this — in this country whitelash and male- at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute donations to year is going to be a rewrite of my 2008 lash — is in fact because we have made and University of Wisconsin. worthy organiza- Photo by Ingrid Laas book, The Age of American Unreason, to such progress. tions (including Coyne take into account the explosion of ir- The ferocity of Robert Sapolsky FFRF!), but I’ve also pondered wheth- rationality that elected Trump. Eight the response to I assume that like everyone reading er I might have to reassume my ’60s years ago, I could not possibly have everything we this, I’ve been horrified by all that has mentality and get involved in public imagined the depths of unreason that stand for tells us happened politically since long be- demonstrations, including acts of civil would claim our country in the 2016 just how terri- fore Election Day — horrified, angry, disobedience. The Supreme Court is a election. I consider it my duty to try fied the patriar- scared, amazed at how little I appar- worry, but I see nothing we can do about to make some historical sense of this chal systems are ently understand what this country is that. However, if Trump tries to cut back phenomenon. I believe that all free- of losing their about, wondering if this is how Berlin our civil liberties, or build his odious thinkers have a duty — to our country power. Which felt in 1931, etc. wall between Mexico and the U.S., then and our world — to use our talents and they will, they Critical thinking, counter-arguments, it may be time to take to the streets. experience to fight a movement that will. As Susan B. Morgan even facts will Coyne is professor of ecology and evolu- disdains knowledge, ridicules those Anthony told us, not make a dent tion at the University of Chicago, and is who think before they speak, and re- “Failure is impossible.” with the new author of the book, Why Evolution is True. gards 140 characters as a suitable form My New Year’s resolution I plan to administration. of communication between an elected take to heart is from the great quote from Nor will empa- Edward Sorel leader and the public. These are the former Congresswoman Pat Schroeder: thy, compassion Concerning the Trump years ahead, times that try men’s and women’s souls. “You can’t wring your hands and roll up and decency. I suspect they will bear some some Jacoby is author of several books, most your sleeves at the same time.” All that’s resemblance to the Vietnam years recently Strange Gods: A Secular History Morgan is a feminist pioneer, global ac- keeping me of protest in the 1960s. There will be of Conversion. She earned many grants tivist, author of the groundbreaking Sister- from despair one or two religious leaders who pro- and awards from the National Endowment hood is Powerful and more than 20 books. is the fact that test against the unconstitutional tac- for the Humanities and the Guggenheim, Check out her blog at robinmorgan.net/blog. the young over- Sapolsky tics of Trump, but the heads of most Rockefeller and Ford Foundations. Page 4 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 Clerical assistant enjoys making HEADS UP the world a better place A Poetry Column By Philip Appleman Name: Renee Oberhart. LAST-MINUTE MESSAGE FOR A TIME CAPSULE Where and when I was born: April I have to tell you this, whoever you are: 14, 1990, in Waterford, Wis. Education: Bachelor’s degree in ele- that on one summer morning here, the ocean mentary education. pounded in on tumbledown breakers, Family: Mom, Dad, brother (30) and sister (31). a south wind, bustling along the shore, How I came to work at FFRF: I saw whipped the froth into little rainbows, an ad online. After looking into FFRF, I started thinking it would be a really and a reckless gull swept down the beach good place to work and it would allow as if to fly were everything it needed. me to help people. I thought of your hovering saucers, What I do here: I’m the part-time clerical assistant, so I make and send looking for clues, and I wanted to write this down, out prospect packets and new member so it wouldn’t be lost forever — packets, do laundry, shred papers, help with packaging merchandise, help with Photo by Chris Line that once upon a time we had sending out thank yous, etc. Renee Oberhart meadows here, and astonishing things, What I like best about it: My co- zation and I didn’t think through the workers are super supportive and fun actions and words when I did/said swans and frogs and luna moths people. Our office them. Because and blue skies that could stagger your heart. environment is of this, I didn’t laid back, yet we all MEET A STAFFER get anything out We could have had them still, work really hard. I of church and and welcomed you to earth, but love that I feel like I’m contributing in a I started to feel like religion was all positive way to society. about rules and what we shouldn’t do. we also had the righteous ones What gets old about it: Paper cuts! Throughout college and afterwards, I who worshipped the True Faith, and Holy War. I spend a lot of time thinking about: began having more doubts like, “How Self improvement, health, and how to do you know that your religion is the When you go home to your shining galaxy, make the world a better place. right one, and does everyone else go say that what you learned I spend little, if any, time thinking to hell because they guessed wrong?” from this dead and barren place is about: This is an interesting question be- It got hard to believe in a religion cause now I have to think about what I when so many parts of it are illogical. to beware the righteous ones. don’t usually think about! I suppose that Things I like: Playing piano, build- I don’t think about sports very often. ing things out of wood, my cat. © Philip Appleman. My religious upbringing was: Cath- Things I smite: Cottage cheese, ig- Philip Appleman is a Dis­tinguished Professor­ Emeritus­ olic, which included Catholic school norance and lack of critical thinking. at India­ na­ Univer­ ­sity.­ His published volumes of poetry from preschool through eighth grade In my golden years: I will be a cat include New and Selected Poems: (1956-1996), Perfidious and church once or twice a week. lady. Proverbs and Other Poems: A Satirical Look at the Bible My doubts about religion started: If I could have any superpower, (2012), Darwin’s Ark (new 2009 edition) and Karma, When I got out of my small town and what would it be?: I would want to be Dharma, Pudding & Pie (2009). His newest book is The started college, I was exposed to a lot able to experience how other people Labyrinth: God, Darwin and the Meaning of Life. He and his of new ideas. One of my first problems think and feel, emotionally and phys- playwright wife, Marjorie Appleman, are both “After-Life” with Catholicism was that they don’t ically. Ideally, everyone would have Members of FFRF. Phil’s books: ffrf.org/shop. agree with gay people getting married. these same capabilities, but we could I thought people should be able to be turn them off when needed. More peo- happy and love who they wanted. In ple would experience empathy, and addition, I felt like everything we said hopefully not many would choose to OVERHEARD and did in church was from memori- permanently turn off this superpower. White evangelicals decided the pres- Northwest Freethought Society, a FFRF welcomes 81 new ‘Lifers,’ idency. They still have colossal pow- local chapter of FFRF er. Strangely, they chose a president CDA Press, 12-20-16 ‘7 After-Lifers,’ ‘6 Immortals’ who contradicts evangelical morality. Trying to fathom America’s religio- “The Complete Essays” by Michel de FFRF is excited to announce and Jayne, June Jeffries, Opal Frazier John- political tides is bewildering. Montaigne. This book should, in my welcome our 81 new Life Members, son (gift from Lifer dad Ben A. John- James Haught, editor emeritus of The humble opinion, replace Gideon in seven new After-Life Members and six son), Cary Jones, Chuck Kahn, Thom- Charleston Gazette-Mail hotel bedside tables the world over. Immortals since the last issue. as Kivlahan, Beverly Kobrin, Catherine Tribune News Service, 11-30-16 Actress Tilda Swinton, in answer to a Warmest thanks to our newest Im- Kozminski, Joseph Anthony Levesque, question about her 10 top books mortals: Jeff and Donna Dutkofski, Clifton Levin, Patricia Lewis, Steven I believe it should not be a separation. The New York Times, 12/25/16 Marjorie Holden, Barbara Leuthner, R. Linke, Michael Marquez, Elizabeth It should be a wall. It should be a gulf. Paul Loveless and Sherri Wilhoite. “Im- Morig, Norm Moyer, James Roland It should be a moat The idea that we are our brother’s mortals” is a designation for those kind Myers, Jay Nagdimon, Raymond Neth- in which there are keeper and our sister’s keeper. That we members who have contacted FFRF to erwood, John W. Nicholson, Tony W. alligators, crocodiles, should treat others as we would want report that they have made provisions Nodine, Dr. David Nolley, Lori Olson, prehistoric creatures to be treated. And that we care for the for FFRF in their estate planning. Harvey Ostensen, Michael L. Parker, whose sight alone sick, feed the hungry, and welcome Thanks to our seven newest Dr. Ulises J. Pesce, Andrew Rakowski, kept people at bay. the stranger, no matter where they After-Life Members: William Arnold, Dr. Krishna Rayapudi, Austin Rial, Lisa FFRF Emperor Has come from, or how they practice their John Doody, Loren Howerter, Jef- Rial, Alan Ritter, Paul T. Rodts-Palenik, No Clothes Award- faith. Those are values that helped frey LaVicka, Scott Romanowski, Dr. Daniel Rosenbloom, Douglas Royer, ee Nebraska Sen. guide not only my family’s Christian George E. Snow and Stephen Strickler. Lawrence Rubin, Jonnie S. Rupp, Judy Chambers Ernie Chambers, faith, but that of Jewish-Americans, After-Life Memberships are $5,000 for L. Saint, Michael Schubmehl, David J. discussing the sep- and Muslim-Americans, nonbelievers those who wish their donation to live Schuller, Dr. E. C. Sheeley, Jack Calla- aration of church and state regarding and Americans of all backgrounds. on after them. way Shelp, Lloyd Sinclair, Dr. James V. holiday displays in the Nebraska State A holiday message from the Obamas to FFRF’s 81 new Life Members are Sisk, James R. Smart, Tim Smyth, Don Capitol Americans, recognizing nonbelievers Moses Altsech, Linda S. Becker, Kath- Stahl, Philip M. Walsh, John F. Weber, Lincoln Journal-Star, 12-19-16 WhiteHouse.gov, 12/25/16 leen Anne Beer, Robin Bernstein, Dr. Arden D. Wellington, Nicholas Alan John Bills Jr., Michael Bourque, Bob White, Dr. Dale F. Wiley, Laurie Wil- We will have Christmas trees, we give Overall, the religious lineup looks a lot Butler, Rebecca L. Byers, Lawrence liams, Terrell K. Williams, Dr. Albert presents, we enjoy all the wonder the like 2012. In terms of voting, the GOP Clark, Dr. Jeffrey Michael Collins, Wil- Ye, Michael Yessik and one person who children can see in this even without is basically the party of white Christians, liam D. Cramer, Paula Crook, Herbert wished to remain anonymous. religion involved. We enjoy Santa and and the Dems are the party of religious A. Davis Jr., Christine Doyle, Mason Individual Lifetime Memberships the flying reindeer. We don’t discour- minorities and the nonreligious. Ferratt, Carol Fischer, Holly Gant, Ron- are $1,000, designated as membership age that fun sort of storytelling, we just John Green, director of Ray C. Bliss ald Gerstl, Joel Gewirtz, Don Glessing, or membership renewal and are de- don’t believe in the religious aspect. Institute of Applied Politics at the David Goldan, Michael Gompertz, Rus- ductible for income-tax purposes, as FFRF Life Member Jim Hudlow, University of Akron sell Gregory, Judy Grunberg, Stephen are all dues and donations to FFRF, a president and treasurer of the Inland Akron Beacon Journal, 12-28-16 Wayne Hackney, Alyssa Jarrett, Dorothy 501(c)(3) nonprofit. January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 5 FFRF earns over 260 victories in ’16 By Rebecca Markert 4. Government funding to religious organizations n 2016, the Freedom From Religion 5. Prayer or religious statements by Foundation earned more than 260 government officials Isolid victories to keep religion out 6. Elections (churches electioneering of government after sending out 1,073 or churches serving as polling places) formal letters of complaint. 7. Holiday displays The total number of victories will 8. Cross displays certainly grow, as many complaints 9. Prayer at legislative meetings, lodged in 2016 will still roll in this such as city councils and county boards year. FFRF wrote letters to errant pub- 10. In God We Trust displays (most lic officials in 49 states (all but Wyo- being decals added to law enforce- ming) and the District of Columbia ment vehicles) and Puerto Rico. To assist in processing these com- The number of total formal letters plaints, FFRF hired a full-time legal sent out do not include the many fol- intake coordinator (Seth Wrinkle) low-up letters sent or the time FFRF’s and a full-time legal assistant (Whitney FFRF and a local member sued to remove a 14-foot Latin cross from a Santa Clara, legal staff spent responding to questions Steffen) to replace FFRF’s first legal as- Calif., city park, in 2016. It came down in mid-January this year. from FFRF members and members of the sistant, Calli Miller (who left FFRF to general public. More attend Harvard Law than 4,500 queries School). FFRF wins four lawsuits about potential vio- The total number of victories FFRF staff attor- Last year was a remarkably success- was lawful for the sheriff to put crosses lations were lodged will certainly grow, as many neys were also busy ful litigation year for FFRF. It won: on the back of its patrol vehicles (for with FFRF last year, complaints lodged in 2016 assisting our network • FFRF v. Antelope Valley Union High. shame!). Bravo to Kevin Price and Jes- most through our of attorneys in litiga- FFRF, Antelope Valley Freethinkers se Castillo, both FFRF members and online form: Re- will still roll in this year. tion cases around the and David Dionne sued the school dis- atheists, our brave plaintiffs. The cross- port a State/Church country. In the first trict in April 2016 for refusing to ad- es came down almost immediately and Violation. half of the year, FFRF vertise our freethought scholarships, the case was closed by June. Mass mailings were not included in filed a whopping eight lawsuits and two while promoting religious scholar- • FFRF v. New Kensington-Arnold the above total, either. FFRF staff attor- of those quickly settled in FFRF’s favor. ships. The case was victoriously settled School District. FFRF won an appeals neys often send mass educational letters For all of 2016, 11 new lawsuits were within two months! court ruling in August 2016, indicating to government officials, most of which filed. (See sidebar for lawsuits.) • FFRF v. Chino Valley School District. ultimate victory in sight in its school involve letters to superintendents edu- Staff attorneys also filed seven amic- On Feb. 18, 2016, a federal court ruled Ten Commandments case. The 3rd cating them on the law with regard to us briefs with courts around the coun- strongly in favor of FFRF and our 22 U.S. Court of Appeals ruled in our fa- religion in public schools. try, including in two cases regarding eager plaintiffs against opening the vor that plaintiff Marie Schaub, who Of the 1,508 letters sent as mass religious exemptions in the Employee board of education with prayer and bi- received FFRF’s “Atheist in a Foxhole mailings last year, most (1,390) were Retirement Income Security Act (ERI- ble readings. The board foolishly voted Courage Award” last year, has standing to superintendents in Kentucky, SA). FFRF filed an amicus curiae brief 3-2 to appeal to the 9th Circuit, but the as a mother of a student to sue over the Tennessee, West Virginia, Indiana, in Dane County Circuit Court to sup- district’s been ordered to pay $200,000 6-foot-tall Ten Commandments monu- and Ohio warning against public port the city of Madison levying taxes in legal costs. ment in front of a Pennsylvania high school field trips to the Ark Park, and on property that the St. Raphael’s con- • FFRF v. Concord Community Schools. school. The case was remanded to the to registers of deeds (99) regarding gregation owns and the court ruled in We have a partial victory. FFRF’s law- same judge who two years ago found in religious marriage certificates. favor of taxation. Another amicus brief suit with “John Doe” families ended our favor against a similar monument The top 10 states (where FFRF sent was filed against a Florida Christian an egregious half-century tradition at a junior high in Connellsville, Pa. the most letters of complaint) were: school that wants to broadcast pregame of public schools hosting a live nativ- We hope for speedy final victory. 1. Texas prayers at state championship football ity performed by students as part of a 2. Florida games. FFRF supported the American Christmas concert in Elkhart schools, FFRF files eight lawsuits 3. California Humanist Association in two of its cases, Ind., as teachers read from the New The total includes the two new cases, 4. Ohio filing amicus briefs in cases involving a Testament. In September 2016, the above, settled successfully in 2016, and: 5. Wisconsin cross display in Bladensburg, Md., and federal judge ruled against the live • FFRF v. City of Santa Clara. FFRF 6. Indiana school board prayer at Birdville Inde- nativity. Stay tuned, as the judge said a with a local member sued to remove 7. Illinois tied with Tennessee pendent School District in Texas. Final- non-live nativity at a school function is a 14-foot Latin cross from a California 9. Alabama tied with Georgia ly, FFRF submitted a brief in defense of just fine. city park. FFRF just won this case. We’ll The top 10 legal issue areas were: free speech in an ongoing case regard- • FFRF v. Brewster Co., filed in fed- have full coverage in our March issue. 1. Religion in the public schools ing Minnesota’s assisted suicide law. eral court in March 2016, made Texas • FFRF v. City of Shelton. FFRF and 2. Miscellaneous issues Rebecca Markert is the FFRF’s managing Gov. Greg Abbott eat crow. Before our Member Jerome H. Bloom sued in 3. Religious displays staff attorney. suit was filed, the governor insisted it March after city officials in the Con- necticut town refused our right to erect a display in December, while permit- Winter wonder ting the American Legion to put up a religious display. • Dan Barker v. House of Representa- tives. Although Dan’s U.S. representa- tive kindly invited him to open a session with an invocation, the Catholic priest as chaplain barred him as an atheist. Boo! • Kondrat’yev v. City of Pensacola. FFRF and the American Humanists are suing over a 25-foot cross in Bayview Park, Pensacola. • FFRF v. County of Lehigh. FFRF and local members filed suit in August to remove a Latin cross from the official county seal and flag. • FFRF v. Gov. Abbott. You’re a mean one, Mr. Governor. We sued Abbott in February for removing our duly permitted Bill of Rights “nativity” dis- play from the Texas State Capitol. • Gaylor v. Lew. It’s back to feder- al court for Dan and Annie Laurie, who’ve been denied their “housing al- lowance” refund, which clergy are eligi- ble for under discriminatory IRS regs. • Hart v. Thomas. FFRF and ACLU- KY are representing FFRF member Photo illustration by Chris Line and Roger Daleiden Ben Hart, after Kentucky Department Winter has given FFRF’s Freethought Hall a distinguished and distinctive look in downtown Madison, Wis. of Motor Vehicle officials denied him a license plate saying “IM GOD.” Page 6 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 A visual timeline of bigotry

December was a busy month for FFRF Lifetime Member Preston Smith, who worked with the city of Boca Raton, Fla., for several months to gain approval for “equal time” displays in a public park. But some people didn’t care for his additions to the park and repeatedly vandalized or stole several of FFRF’s signs and his personal satanic inverted pentagram.

Preston Smith stands in front of the two displays he was authorized to put up in December. Vandals can’t keep up Barely a day after they were put up in Boca Raton’s Sanborn Square Park to counter a life-sized nativity scene, FFRF’s Winter Solstice banner and with activist member Smith’s pentagram display were spray-painted and defaced. By Preston Smith Dec 21: Protests were held outside my school, but atheists gathered in my s a Lifetime Member of FFRF defense. — and a militant atheist at Dec 24: FFRF banner got shredded Aheart — I decided to test the with a knife. limits of a local public park zoned as Dec 28: Pentagram base was re-weld- a free-speech area. For 27 years, a life- ed and resurrected with a new First sized nativity scene and menorah went Amendment banner. unopposed. Then, Satan spawned in Jan. 2, 2017: Banner and penta- downtown Boca Raton, Fla. gram were both knocked down. Last summer, I submitted an ap- Jan 6: We removed the display from plication to the city outlining plans the park. A police investigation is on- for a 6-foot-tall inverted pentagram, going into possible hate crimes. painted blood red, with a holy symbol Many people wondered why there of Baphomet as the centerpiece, and wasn’t a camera monitoring the site. several sacred slogans above. It helps Well, the city refused to place a video when your mom is a freethinker and camera to oversee the park so as not to your dad is a custom welder, a liberal impede on anyone’s First Amendment Christian, and a supporter of the cause. rights. Oh, the irony! Placing a person- Not wanting to appear as just another al video camera proved to be a logisti- Smith replaced the vandalized FFRF banner a new FFRF message, only to town lunatic suffering from religious cal nightmare. Plus, there’s the reluc- have it stolen a week later. delusions (too late?), I proposed that tance of adding a personal camera out FFRF include one of its Winter Solstice of the sheer principle of the matter. banners. It was crucial to balance the I know there are concerns that these sculpture of fictional Satan with a repu- displays seemed to suggest that FFRF table organization fighting for the sep- condones devil worship, since the two aration of church and state. displays sat adjacent to each other, but One does not simply place a monu- that was not my goal. What this social ment to Lucifer in a taxpayer-funded experiment successfully did was expose park and return to normalcy. Here’s the religious hypocrisy it intended to. what unfolded in December and early Moreover, I’ve painstakingly educated January: the media as to what the metaphor Dec. 6, 2016: FFRF banner No. 1 of Satan represents (short answer: ev- and pentagram were erected. erything organized religion opposes). Dec 7: Both were spray-painted. Sure, the research shows that most Dec 12: Pentagram was restored and people are far more inclined to lis- FFRF banner No. 2 was installed. ten to and consider your viewpoint if Dec 16: FFRF banner was stolen you’re nonconfrontational. But caustic and pentagram was overturned. A Fox activism grabs people’s short attention News camera crew ambushed me at my spans. My goal as an activist is to con- place of employment, a middle school. tinually marginalize religion, akin to Dec 17: FFRF banner No. 3 was in- the Four Horsemen of New Atheism. FFRF provided Smith with a third different banner after the previous was stalled and the pentagram was chained And if you disagree, that’s fine; there’s stolen. This one was then “slashed to pieces,” Smith said. to tree. a full spectrum of approaches. Indeed, Dec 19: The head of the PTA of we need all the help we can get. my middle school petitioned that I be Preston Smith is a public school teach- fired as a teacher. er who enjoys lazy beach days and Rocky Dec 20: Pentagram was dragged by Mountain summer getaways. He also do- a truck with a chain and the base was nates to environmental causes and supports destroyed. death with dignity.

Freedom from Religion Foundation P.O. Box 750 • Madison, WI 53701 • (608) 256-8900 • FFRF.org What is the Freedom From Religion Foundation? Founded in 1978 as a national organization of freethinkers (atheists and agnostics), the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc., works to keep state and church separate and to educate the public about the views of nontheists. The Foundation’s email address is info@ rf.org. Please include your name and physical mailing address with all email correspondence. Foundation members wishing to receive online news releases, “action alerts” and “Freethought of the Day” should contact info@ rf.org. Smith used the back side of the original (spray-painted) banner and created a new sign for FFRF reciting the First Amendment. January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 7

Making a difference from coast to coast FFRF members and affiliates were able to put up displays in 2016 all around the country, from California and Washington to Virginia and Florida and many points in between. There were 16 sites that hosted FFRF Winter Solstice or Bill of Rights “nativity” displays during the most recent holiday season. Below is a sampling of some of the places (and people) where FFRF signs and banners were displayed. Go to ffrf.org/news (December) to view other activism.

W.P. Meyer and Ryan Bell set up the whimsical Bill of Rights “nativity” on FFRF’s Winter Solstice exhibit was displayed in the Illinois Capitol the grounds of the Grundy County courthouse in Morris, Ill., for the second building in Springfield for the eighth year in a row. It was installed by straight year. FFRF Member Kathryn Koldehoff.

Freethinkers of Hastings-on-Hudson displayed FFRF’s “Reason’s Greetings” banner in VFW Park in the New York village. FFRF State Representative Dr. Paul Novak of Iowa stands next to FFRF’s Bill of Rights “nativity” at the State Capitol in Des Moines.

For the 21st year, FFRF’s Winter Solstice “no gods” sign was displayed in the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, Wis. Joining the display in the rotunda for a second year is FFRF’s whimsical Bill of Rights “nativity,” which depicts FFRF and its Metropolitan Chicago chapter displayed their annual secular Founding Fathers Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Solstice exhibit in Daley Plaza in the heart of the city. Washington gazing in adoration at a “baby” Bill of Rights. We need your help in restoring vandalized banners In what unfortunately has become a holiday tradition, several FFRF Win- ter Solstice banners and signs have Please join FFRF’s been stolen or vandalized. Resurrection Pledge Beginning in late 2015, FFRF cre- ated a Resurrection Pledge Fund Fund campaign at: so that banners and displays can be ffrf.org/donate resurrection-pledge “resurrected” in a timely manner and the vandals/thieves will actually be helping FFRF’s cause. Donors may pledge any amount, but pay only if Fund drive, 95 freethinkers answered any of FFRF’s displays are stolen or the call, pledging a total of $889 for destroyed. each FFRF display that was stolen or Sure enough, in early December vandalized. 2016, one of FFRF’s signs was cov- If you want to join in the effort to ered in spray paint in Boca Raton, protect FFRF’s freethought displays, Fla., within 24 hours of it being put then join FFRF’s Resurrection Pledge up. (See Preston Smith’s story on FFRF’s banner was vandalized in a Connecticut park. Fund campaign. With your help, we page 7.) Shortly thereafter, a Winter can ensure that thieves and vandals Solstice “Let Reason Prevail” banner mas. The Foundation is offering a In the current pledge drive, 133 cannot censor FFRF’s freethought Manassas, Va., was stolen. And in $2,000 reward for information lead- FFRF members have pledged near- message without triggering a dona- Shelton, Conn., a banner was slashed ing to the arrest and conviction of ly $5,000 in support. In the inaugu- tion that will fund even more FFRF by a vandal a few days before Christ- the vandal or vandals responsible. ral year of the Resurrection Pledge displays. Page 8 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 FFRF takes a stand against theocrats The highly religious leanings of ing of unscientific and untestable many members of the incoming pres- religious opinions in the science idential administration and Congress curriculum? have forced FFRF to get out in front of the issues and nominations to try Picking Carson’s brain to quell some of the potentially cata- FFRF told the Senate that it needed strophic appointments and decisions. to closely scrutinize Dr. Ben Carson, (See page 9 for more details about the Housing and Urban Development Donald Trump’s appointees.) FFRF secretary nominee, on how his zealotry has taken a proactive approach by might affect his leadership. sending letters to the specific commit- FFRF Co-Presidents Annie Laurie tees in charge of vetting the nominees. Gaylor and Dan Barker wrote a letter on Jan. 12 to the members of the Senate Quizzing Sessions Committee on Banking, Housing and In a Jan. 9 letter to the members of Urban Affairs about Carson’s religious the Senate Judiciary Committee, FFRF bias possibly interfering with his super- urged them to ask attorney general vision of HUD. nominee Jeff Sessions some point- In the letter, Gaylor and Barker said ed and specific questions. The U.S. that Carson should be asked: “Will you senator from Alabama has called the commit to HUD serving all Americans separation between religion and gov- positions of public trust? 2. Why shouldn’t private schools equally and without discrimination, re- ernment a “recent thing that is unhis- 4. As attorney general, will you continue to be privately funded? Why gardless of their religion or lack thereof?” torical and unconstitutional.” defend the constitutional rights of should all taxpayers shoulder the Carson also claims there is “no con- He has also reportedly stated, “If Americans, including public officials, burden of a dual education system? flict” between “God’s law” and the laws you have secularization in the world to choose to affirm, rather than swear- 3. Religion and freedom flourish- of the United States. FFRF advised the and don’t believe in a higher being, ing religious oaths? es under our constitutional separa- committee to therefore inquire: “If maybe you don’t believe there is any 5. As attorney general would you tion of state and church. Given this there is a conflict between the law and truth.” defend the law of the land even when history, how can you then propose your religion, for instance, if your office FFRF asked the Judiciary Commit- it conflicts with your personal reli- taxing citizens to support religious were required to extend housing to a tee to put before Sessions the follow- gious beliefs? Or do you believe that education? gay couple, would you be able to up- ing five questions: it is the role of the attorney general 4. You are a lobbyist for publicly hold the law?” 1. As attorney general, would you to reinterpret our country’s laws from paid vouchers. If you were confirmed uphold our nation’s proud secular his or her own personal religious as secretary of education, would it No Moore! tradition of separating religion from perspective? not be tantamount to the proverbial On Dec. 22, FFRF also sent out a government? fox guarding the chicken coop? statement telling Alabama Gov. Robert 2. Is it your belief that religious free Not vouching for DeVos 5. What measures would you take Bentley to not appoint Roy Moore to fill exercise is limited to the freedom to On Jan. 12, FFRF sent a letter to to ensure that schools that receive the state’s open U.S. Senate seat being believe and worship as one chooses? the members of the Health, Educa- public money are accountable to vacated by Sessions after he was nomi- Or do you propose that free exercise tion, Labor & Pensions Committee, taxpayers? nated by Trump to be attorney general. also includes the freedom to act as requesting them to ask Betsy DeVos 6. Do you believe that elementary Moore is the suspended chief justice of one’s religion demands, even if such the following seven questions during and secondary schools that receive the Alabama Supreme Court. actions might curtail the civil rights of her confirmation hearing to become public money should be allowed to “It is outrageous that Moore is even others, or run contrary to the law? secretary of education. discriminate on the basis of disability, in the running for representing the 3. Is it your contention that not 1. Would you uphold the right religion, or sexual orientation? state of Alabama in this country’s fore- believing in a god makes someone an of states to abide by their constitu- 7. Will you advocate for teaching most legislative body,” FFRF’s statement undesirable citizen or categorically tions and limit funding to religious genuine science in all public-sup- read. “An incorrigible evangelical Chris- unfit to serve in public office or other schools? ported schools and oppose the teach- tian theocrat, he has a terrible record.” Trump’s court appointees could linger for generations By Annie Laurie Gaylor Obama’s nomination to replace the he Washington Post had a late Supreme Court Justice Antonin chilling report on Christmas Day Scalia. Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, Trevealing that Donald Trump the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary states are represented by at least one suicide warnings before abortions.” will inherit more than 100 judicial Committee, has denounced the block- Democratic senator. The dismaying list of the remaining vacancies when he becomes president. ing of that solid and centrist nomina- Meanwhile, here are some of the 21 Heritage Foundation and Federalist Even if Trump’s presidency is short- tion — Merrick Garland, chief justice chilling possibilities deemed to be on Society-stamped nominees goes on and lived, the effects of decisions by Trump’s of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the the short list as Scalia’s replacement, on. But whomever Trump appoints to lifetime appoin- District of Columbia — as “the most according to NPR’s court-watcher Nina replace Scalia at least will not change tees could lin- outrageous act of obstruction and irre- Totenberg: the partisan balance on the Supreme ger on for gen- sponsibility” witnessed in his 42 years • William Pryor, former attorney Court, which was already a 5-4 swing to erations. These in the Senate. general of Alabama, who was the Republican side. judges will de- Despite the GOP stonewalling, appointed to the 11th Circuit by Let’s toast the health of our elderly cide on access Obama did manage 329 judicial ap- President George W. Bush while liberal justices on the highest bench! to abortion and pointments, naming more female, mi- Congress was in recess. As NPR’s And a toast to the opposition, such contraception, nority and gay or lesbian judges than Nina Totenberg notes, “Judge Pryor as South Carolina’s Democratic Party on immigration any other president. Democrats cur- is an outspoken critic of the Supreme head Jaime Harrison, who won’t forget and voter rights, rently make up 51 percent of circuit Court’s decisions on abortion, how the GOP treated Obama’s nomi- anti-discrimina- court judges. Unfortunately, according homosexuality and the so-called nation and has urged: “It’s time to roll tion policies, gun Annie Laurie Gaylor to the Brookings Institution, that is ex- Miranda warning.” up our sleeves and fight back.” control — not to pected to drop to 43 percent by 2020 • Diane Sykes of Wisconsin, an It’s long past time, actually. mention the ever-controversial principle under Trump, while Republican ap- arch-conservative appointed by Bush Annie Laurie Gaylor is co-president of of separation between state and church. pointees, currently about 34 percent of to the 7th Circuit. Totenberg notes, FFRF. Since 2015 when they seized con- district judgeships, are projected to rise “She authored an opinion expanding trol of the Senate, Republican senators to about 50 percent. The Brookings In- the rights of employers to limit their have obstructed Obama nominations. stitution notes one silver lining: Many workers access to contraceptives on What Is a Freethinker? No floor votes were scheduled on 25 of to-be-departing judges are Republican religious grounds . . . [and] mandat- Obama’s recent court nominees, even appointments, meaning Trump re- ing state subsidies for anti-gay reli- freethinker n. though they’d been approved out of placements may not significantly shift gious groups on college campuses, a 1 A person who forms opinions committee with bipartisan support. the balance of power. Also hopeful is position subsequently reversed by the about religion on the basis of Then came the shameful decision the fact that the Senate tradition is to Supreme Court.” reason, independently of tradition, by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell consider nominees only if supported • Judge Raymond Gruender of Mis- authority, or established belief. and Sen. Charles Grassley, chair of by both senators from the nominee’s souri, who, Totenberg relates, “wrote the Judiciary Committee, to ignore home state — and more than half the a decision upholding state-mandated January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 9 Trump’s picks a threat to church/state issues

Evangelicals who pushed Donald ton Post the anxiety many have about Pruitt has also gone out of his way to education and the need for an Ener- Trump over the top in the election DeVos as education secretary: “We target FFRF. gy Department has been nominated to are surely pleased with several of his strongly urge Congress to scrutinize “This is yet another cabinet nom- run that very department. appointments to the cabinet and the record of Betsy DeVos, who has ination that would involve the fox If he is confirmed, we can expect other high-ranking positions in his been a staunch proponent of school guarding the chicken coop,” says Perry to use his cabinet position to administration. vouchers, a misguided idea that diverts FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gay- wreak havoc on the environment — Trump promised to be “the greatest taxpayer dollars into private and pa- lor. “Pruitt’s not only a theocrat on and to unabashedly promote religion. representative of the Christians,” and rochial schools and perverts the bed- civil liberties issues, but his blinkered he seems to be heading in that direc- rock American value of separation of faith-based views make him an entirely Jeff Sessions tion. Before even being elected, he church and state.” inappropriate candidate to run the sci- Jeff Sessions, a U.S. senator from Al- chose Mike Pence as a running mate, According to Politico, the DeVoses ence-based EPA.” abama who has called church/state sep- a man who denies evolution and has adhere to the Calvinist view of Christi- After FFRF sent letters to 26 Oklaho- aration an “ex- voted to restrict LGBT rights based anity. Richard Israel, a professor of the ma school districts in 2015 about illegal tra-constitutional on “religious freedom.” Trump has Old Testament at Vanguard University bible distribution in public schools by doctrine,” is nom- also appointed several other religious in California, said Calvinists see it as the the Gideons, Pruitt jumped into the inated to be the fundamentalists who pose a threat to work of Christians to influence culture. fray, sending a letter to superintendents next U.S. attorney church/state separation. “Their view of the Christian mission statewide that smeared FFRF. Pruitt general. Here’s a look at a number of them. isn’t to be in the fortress and hold out wrote: “As the attorney general of Okla- “As a result of against the pagans, but to engage cul- homa, I will not stand idly by while out- his alarming views, Betsy DeVos ture from a Christian worldview and of-state organizations bully you or any Sessions played a transform it,” Israel told Politico. other official in this state into restricting key role in keep- the religious freedom the Founders of ing a 29-foot cross Ben Carson this country held dear.” on display on government property in It’s not the first time Pruitt maligned Southern California and sponsored a FFRF. In 2014, while discussing the resolution in the Senate encouraging Internal Revenue Service’s policy on the display of the Ten Commandments pulpit politicking, he claimed FFRF “is at government facilities, including court- unabashed in its desire to destroy” free houses,” writes American United for the speech and the First Amendment’s free Separation of Church and State. exercise clause. He has also refused During the confirmation hearings, open records requests from FFRF over Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode his involvement in promoting the dis- Island asked Sessions: “And a secular A staunchly Christian woman who tribution of bibles and so-called “reli- person has just as good a claim to un- wants to “advance God’s Kingdom” has gious freedom” in public schools. derstanding the truth as a person who become the head of the U.S. Depart- Pruitt’s hostility toward FFRF is part is religious, correct?” Sessions then ment of Education. Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson of a pattern. For instance, he long stunned the Senate chamber crowd Betsy DeVos has been critical of will be heading the Department of fought to retain a Ten Commandments into temporary silence with his re- public schools for decades and is a ma- Housing and Urban Development. monument that the state Supreme sponse: “Well, I’m not sure.” jor proponent of the voucher system, Rep. Elijah Cummings, the Demo- Court ordered removed in 2015 from which takes money from the public cratic ranking member of the House the Oklahoma Capitol. Nikki Haley schools and moves it to private — usu- Oversight Committee, called Carson ally religious — education institutions. “woefully unqualified.” Rick Perry She and her husband, Dick (whose While that may be true, it’s his stance father co-founded Amway) are billion- on state/church issues that should aire philanthropists, and have made it have all Americans even more worried. clear that their faith motivates their de- Carson has denounced the notion of cisions on education reform. separation of church and state. “This is a significant threat to the “We Americans must be proud of separation of state and church,” FFRF who we are. We cannot give away our Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott says. “We values and principles for the sake of know from state voucher programs political correctness,” he said while still that the overwhelming beneficiary of a candidate for the presidency. “There Nikki Haley, the South Carolina these programs are not students, but are those who go around proclaiming Rick Perry, to be named secretary of governor who will serve as the United are instead the churches and parochial separation of church and state. You the Department of Energy, is another States’ representative to the United schools that take in public money.” can’t put anything up that has anything fanatically religious nominee who has Nations, has been rightfully criticized According to Politico, the DeVoses to do with God. … I’ll have a seizure if I scuffled with FFRF. for organizing a massive prayer rally. assert school choice leads to “great- see a cross, and all of this kind of crap. On behalf of hundreds of members The ACLU of South Carolina filed er Kingdom gain.” They “lament that The fact of the matter is — do they re- in Texas, FFRF and five of our Houston an open records request seeking an public schools have ‘displaced’ the alize that our founding document, the members sued Perry as Texas governor accounting of whether or not taxpayer church as the center of communities, Declaration of Independence, says we in July 2011 over Perry’s initiation, or- funds were used to promote religion and they cite school choice as a way to have certain unalienable rights given ganization, promotion and participa- during that rally. reverse that troubling trend.” to us by our creator, aka God.” tion of a prayer event. Perry not only Betsy DeVos has used biblical terms Carson gave a telling response to Jus- issued a proclamation that Aug. 6, Michael T. Flynn to criticize public schools, “referring to tin Scott, an FFRF member from Iowa 2011, was a “Day of Prayer and Fasting her crusade to fund religious schools as who asked state/church questions of for our Nation’s Challenges,” but actu- a ‘Shephelah,’ a Hebrew term referring the presidential candidates during the ally initiated the very call for the event. to an area where battles were fought in lead-up to the Iowa caucuses. He videotaped an invitation posted at the Old Testament,” Politico writes. “Fortunately, our Constitution, the official gubernatorial website ask- “Our desire is to be in that Shep- the supreme law of the land, was de- ing citizens to turn to Jesus and ask for helah, and to confront the culture in signed by men of faith, and it has a Ju- God’s forgiveness. which we all live today in ways that will deo-Christian foundation. Therefore, But the judge dismissed our lawsuit, continue to help advance God’s King- there is no conflict there. So it is not a ruling that the plaintiffs lacked stand- dom, but not to stay in our own faith problem,” Carson told Scott. ing. Perry did not, however, repeat the territory,” Betsy DeVos said during Texas prayer event. Michael T. Flynn, tabbed as nation- a 2001 meeting of “The Gathering,” Scott Pruitt Perry intruded into our complaint al security adviser, is a fundamentalist an annual conference of some of the Oklahoma over cheerleaders at public high school Christian who is openly hostile toward country’s wealthiest Christians. Attorney Gener- games in the Texan city of Kountze. the rights of Muslims, even claiming “The decision to appoint DeVos to al Scott Pruitt, These cheerleaders had painted pa- that Sharia law is spreading in the Unit- this post signifies a serious attack on no friend to the per banners with New Testament bi- ed States. public education,” FFRF Co-President environment, is ble verses for football players to run On Feb 26, 2016, Flynn tweeted: Annie Laurie Gaylor says. “As the top now the head through at the start of games. Perry “Fear of Muslims is RATIONAL.” education official in the United States, of the Environ- grandstanded in vocally siding with the On Nov. 17, 2016, Matthew Rosenberg she can be expected to do everything mental Protec- cheerleaders. and Maggie Haberman of The New York in her power to take taxpayer money tion Agency. And he even issued a gubernatorial Times wrote this about Flynn’s thoughts from public schools and send it to pri- FFRF has prayer proclamation for rain! It was to on Islam: “Islamist militancy poses an vate religious schools.” tussled several times with Pruitt, an no avail; the state endured unprece- existential threat on a global scale, and Kary Moss, executive director of active promoter of oil, fossil fuels and dented wildfires after his decree. the Muslim faith itself is the source of the the American Civil Liberties Union of fracking who has openly opposed the It’s unfortunate that a climate problem, [Flynn] said, describing it as a Michigan, explained to the Washing- EPA and calls climate change a “hoax.” change denier who opposes science political ideology, not a religion.” Page 10 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 FFRF messes with Texas — and wins

By Molly Hanson and teaching the tenets of Christianity as factual information by presenting a The Freedom From Religion Foun- video about the miracles performed dation, through the hard work of Staff by Jesus in the bible. Attorney Sam Grover, earned five vic- Grover wrote to the school district tories against various Texas municipal- asking it to ensure that its employees ities and departments in the past sev- not promote religious beliefs in the eral weeks. classroom. On Nov. 29, FFRF received a re- Cross removed sponse from a firm representing In mid-December, FFRF was able to Gunter ISD stating that Clement persuade the city of Longview, Texas, would ensure that all religions are Submitted photo to remove a cross from a Texas fire This cross that sat on the lawn outside the fire station in Longview, Texas, has represented in a historically and cul- station’s lawn in front of the station’s been removed. turally accurate manner in the future. sign. After FFRF heard from an area resident, Grover wrote to Longview and was threatened with expulsion if contacted the university president Christian ad removed Fire Chief J.P. Steelman about the vi- he did not. Golden allegedly told the about the constitutional violation in A sign advertising a Christian after- olation. City officials then told the fire student that he should “practice his the university’s expression of favorit- school program, Kids Beach Club, has department to remove the cross. bloody religion somewhere else.” ism for Christianity above other reli- been removed from the wall of Wester “A cross that caused a stir when it was The school dress code had banned gions or no religion. Elementary School in Texas after FFRF erected a year ago as part of a Longview attire that could be interpreted as pro- FFRF received notice on Dec. 16 took action. fire station’s Christmas display went moting or insinuating demonism, such from General Counsel Damon Derrick The sign, which read “Making Jesus up again this year — until city officials as satanic symbols. Grover wrote to the that the flag had been removed from cool at school!” had been permanently asked firefighters to remove it,” the Madisonville CISD informing the district the window. posted on the cafeteria wall of the pub- Longview News-Journal reports. that it could not draw a distinction be- lic elementary school. “It’s our practice to follow what case tween student religious expression and Religious promotion ends Grover expressed the FFRF’s objec- law has shown throughout the United which religion they choose to express. The Gunter Independent School tion to the district’s appearance of a States,” city spokesperson Shawn Hara On Dec. 1, Madisonville High School District in Texas has been educated on government endorsement of a religious told the paper. “So that is to not display Principal Heath Brown called to inform its obligation to uphold the Establish- message to Lubbock Independent on our city-owned property displays FFRF that the district would remove dis- ment Clause of the US. Constitution School District Berhel Robertson. that are specifically sectarian — things criminatory language in its dress code. after violations made by staff members. “When a school permanently dis- like the cross.” FFRF took action after receiving plays a sign on its property advertising Christian flag taken down a report that a social studies teacher a Christian club, it has unconstitution- Dress code changed A Christian flag displayed in an of- at Gunter High School, Kerry Clem- ally entangled itself with a religious After FFRF’s involvement, Madison- fice window at Stephen F. Austin State ent, had shown his ninth-grade class message,” wrote Grover. ville High School in Texas has made University has been removed after the trailer for the 1991 movie “Not An attorney representing Lubbock changes to its spiritually discriminato- FFRF raised concerns. Without My Daughter” when teaching ISD informed FFRF on Dec. 22 that the ry and unconstitutional apparel policy. The flag displayed the image of about Islam. Clement supplement- advertisement had been removed from FFRF received a complaint from a the Latin cross, the global symbol for ed the trailer with statements that all the school and communicated that the student at the high school, who had Christianity, and was visibly hanging Muslims have multiple wives and that district had agreed that it never should been told by the school’s vice principal, in the office window of the universi- they are “hateful” and “wife beaters.” have been put up. Kathleen Golden, to remove an invert- ty’s processing coordinator for admis- In contrast, Clement spent two days Amit Pal and Madeline Ziegler contrib- ed cross necklace and pentagram ring sions, Dorinda Byly. FFRF’s Grover discussing Christianity with the class uted to this article. These schools haven’t got a prayer anymore By Molly Hanson head coach Roger Bearss. FFRF Managing Staff Attorney Rebec- The Freedom From Religion Foun- ca Markert informed Millington Com- dation was able to get several school munity Schools Superintendent Bruce districts around the country to elim- Martin that it is illegal for public school inate prayers as part of school-sanc- athletic coaches to lead their teams in tioned activities. prayer or to permit someone else to. Martin informed FFRF that the No more school prayer situation had been discussed with Shutterstock.com Action was taken by FFRF after it was Bearss, who had been made aware of FFRF has been able to get many schools and other public entities to stop prayers informed that Hartford (Kan.) High the church and state violation regard- during ceremonies or by public school coaches before and after games. School’s mandatory drunk-driving ing coach participating in prayer with awareness assembly had opened with student-athletes. email that, after reviewing the video any program,” the school district’s legal a prayer, led by the school’s Athletic evidence, he had met with the district’s counsel writes in a recent letter. Christian Team sponsor Mike Watkins. Pre-game prayer ceases athletic director and head football FFRF Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel Coaches in an Arkansas public coach and had been assured that coach- Prayer breakfast ended wrote to Superintendent Michael Arga- school district will no longer be pro- led prayer would cease. The city of Lakewood, Calif., will no bright to inform him of the violation. moting personal religious beliefs after longer be sponsoring a prayer breakfast A response dated Nov. 30 informed FFRF presented video evidence of a Graduation prayer nixed held annually by the city’s mayor. FFRF that the principal of the building Harmony Grove School District foot- FFRF’s persistent efforts persuaded A concerned city resident informed where the assembly had been held had ball coach and a team chaplain leading an Indiana school district to remove FFRF about an email that had been addressed the issue with Watkins and that his team in prayer before a game. prayer from the local high school’s sent out inviting residents to congre- the prayer would not happen again. FFRF Staff Attorney Sam Grover graduation ceremony. gate with Lakewood Mayor Jeff Piazza wrote to Superintendent Daniel Hen- Jennings County High School in and the Lakewood City Council, along Coach-led prayers ended ley, informing him of the dual constitu- North Vernon, Ind., had prayers as part with a gathering of religious leaders A football coach in Michigan’s Mill- tional violations of district staff praying of its graduation ceremonies in both and groups, in a “celebration of faith, ington Community School district will with students and athletic team chap- 2015 and 2016. FFRF Legal Fellow Ryan unity and community spirit.” no longer be participating in or lead- lains in a public school setting. Jayne wrote to Jennings County Schools FFRF Staff Attorney Elizabeth Cavell ing prayer with student-athletes after In reply, Henley claimed that the Superintendent Terry Sargent about wrote to the city saying the event was a FFRF blew the whistle on the unlawful prayer had been organized by a student- the violation. constitutional violation. violations. athlete and that the coaches did not Initially, Jennings County Schools On Nov. 22, FFRF learned from the It was brought to FFRF’s attention that organize or participate in the prayer. replied in a legalistic manner, but after city manager that the city would no lon- after a November football game hosted Grover then presented two pieces of FFRF sent a number of follow-up let- ger be sponsoring the prayer breakfast by Millington High School against De- video evidence clearly displaying a pas- ters, it did the right thing. and that the breakfast would no longer troit Central High School, both teams tor leading the players and coaches in “Please be advised that Jennings Coun- be carried out in the name of the city. joined each other on the field to pray to- a team prayer. ty School Corporation will no longer in- Amit Pal and Madeline Ziegler contribut- gether. This prayer involved Millington On Dec. 12, Henley stated in an corporate prayer as an official aspect of ed to this article. January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 11 FFRF VICTORIES By Molly Hanson Equal Access Act. No more promotion of lines up for lunch. FFRF Legal Fellow Ryan Jayne wrote FFRF Legal Fellow Ryan Jayne wrote to Camden County Schools Superinten- religious messages to Blount County Schools Superinten- High school team, dent William Hardin to remind him that dent Rodney Green ministry split up public schools may not advance, prefer The school district proved to be very or promote religion. responsive to FFRF’s concerns. A Missouri high school basketball Hardin wrote back on Dec. 6, inform- “We have every reason to believe that team will not continue to partner with ing FFRF that he had discussed the con- our teachers in the Blount County System a religious ministry in its summer camp stitutional violations with the principals understand what the law requires,” the program, thanks to FFRFs involvement. of both schools. school district’s legal counsel replied. FFRF was informed of a constitu- “However, Superintendent Green advises tional violation occurring in the Eldon Religious sign removed he and his staff will conduct professional School District after the high school bas- from recycling center development with Blount County ketball team announced that it would teachers in January 2017 on board policy be partnering with Sports Crusaders to A Centerville, Ga., resident contact- and the Establishment Clause.” host summer athletic camps for fourth- ed FFRF to report a city-owned recy- through eighth-grade students. cling center displaying a sign reading, During the 2015 holiday season, the No more religious radio FFRF Staff Attorney Sam Grover “Pray for our nation.” The sign was in Roopville Elementary School in Geor- to be aired at school wrote to Superintendent Matt Davis ask- full view for anyone using the center. gia posted a religious message on its ing that the district end its school’s part- FFRF Staff Attorney Sam Grover marquee, reading, “For God so loved A community member contacted nership with the religious ministry. wrote to Centerville City Clerk Krista the world, He sent his only Son. Merry FFRF to report that a radio in the front On Nov. 23, an email from Davis Bedingfield, and City Attorney Rebec- Christmas.” office of Osceola (Wis.) Intermediate was sent to FFRF informing the legal ca Tydings wrote back to inform him FFRF Legal Fellow Madeline Ziegler School regularly played a Christian sta- staff that he had visited with the bas- that the sign had been removed from wrote to Superintendent Phillip Hartley tion loudly enough for everyone pass- ketball coach to ensure this legal viola- the recycling center. to ask that he ensure that the school is ing by to hear. The station was St. Paul- tion would not happen again. aware of the constitutional prohibition based 98.5 KTIS, which describes itself Club won’t receive of displays of religious messages in pub- as a “ministry” that “communicat[es] FFRF takes action over preferential treatment lic schools. God’s message in the Twin Cities” in school religious event Hartley replied on Dec. 9, informing order “to lead people to Christ and After receiving a complaint that FFRF that he had discussed the require- nurture believers in their faith through the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in ments with the principal and assistant Christ-centered media.” Montana’s Rockwood School District superintendent. FFRF Legal Fellow Ryan Jayne wrote was receiving special treatment in its to Osceola School District Supertinten- advertising, FFRF Legal Fellow Made- School participation in dent Mark Luebker with FFRF’s con- line Ziegler contacted Superintendent nativity event halted cerns, and the district complied. Eric Knost. “Effective Jan. 1, 2017, the Osceola The club was given preferential FFRF complained last year about Intermediate School office will refrain treatment by being displayed on a per- schools in Wake County, N.C., partici- from playing 98.5 KTIS or other religious manent board at Eureka High School, pating in the Apex Nativity Celebration, programming while students or parents a privilege that other clubs were not an annual Christmas festivity that a local are present,” Luebker responded. allowed. Latter Day Saints church puts together. Adults in the Sarasota County School Knost replied on Dec. 1 informing FFRF Staff Attorney Patrick Elliot wrote Nativity scene not District in Florida organized and partic- FFRF that Rockford school adminis- to the legal counsel for the Wake County displayed at manor ipated in “See You at the Pole” events trators would be reminded that reli- Public School System with his concerns. put on by the Fellowship of Christian gious-related student groups are not to After learning that the schools were Athletes at county schools in Novem- be given preference over other noncur- still planning to participate, FFRF con- ber. FFRF Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel ricular student groups. tacted the district’s legal counsel again contacted Superintendent Lori White and requested further records. That did about the violation. Mississippi school ends the trick. The schools pulled out. White wrote back on Dec. 6 in- bible study sessions “After continued review of the invi- forming FFRF that she had instructed tation under applicable legal standards, district administrators to remind the It was brought to FFRF’s attention we regret to inform you that Wake school principals not to allow staff that the Gulfport (Miss.) School District County public school students will no promotion of religion in the schools staff was regularly propagating their per- longer be participating in this year’s cel- through student clubs. sonal religious belief to students in the ebration,” Cathy Moore, Wake County In December 2015, a nativity scene public school. Several counselors had Public Schools deputy superintendent, was on display at a publicly owned manor FFRF shuts down been handing out Christian-based in- wrote to event organizers in an email in Wadena, Minn. The manor is owned religious recruiting formative packets to students, and every shared with FFRF. and managed by the Wadena Housing week staff members held a bible study and Redevelopment Authority and fund- FFRF has put an end to church ad- with students. Nativity scene removed ed in part by the U.S. Department of vertising through an Oklahoma public FFRF Staff Attorney Sam Grover from public park Housing and Urban Development. FFRF school district after Staff Attorney An- wrote to Superintendent Glen East to Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott contacted drew Seidel contacted Superintendent complain about the multiple violations. On behalf of a local resident, FFRF the housing authority to inform it of the Brad Overton. FFRF’s complainant reported that the recently wrote to the North Carolina constitutional violation. A local district family informed district had complied with FFRF’s re- town of Butner objecting to a nativity FFRF’s local complainant report- FFRF that Cordell Public Schools had quest by removing posters advertising scene in a public park that had been ed this past December that the nativ- partnered with several local churches religion, ceasing to pass out Christian placed there for years around Christ- ity scene was not put back on display to provide school supplies to children. materials during school hours and end- mas. It was a large exhibit prominently during the holiday season. The churches were taking advantage of ing bible study sessions. displayed across from the Butner Town the school’s charitable goal by using the Hall that featured figurines and lights FFRF stops school’s partnership to recruit church members. Gun show no longer illuminating it at night. religious announcement Overton wrote back, informing FFRF favors churchgoers FFRF Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott that changes had been made to the sup- wrote to Butner Mayor Vicky Cates about FFRF contacted Wayne City Com- plies distribution system to eliminate FFRF was informed that the annu- the violation, and the town responded. munity Unit School District #100 in any religious endorsement. al Gun & Knife Show in Cumberland The town has sent FFRF an official October to object to a posting on County, Tenn., which is co-sponsored by acknowledgement of the removal of the Wayne City High School’s Facebook Religious club to end the county, included an advertisement nativity scene. account about a “Bring Your Bible to meetings in schools for free admission this past summer for School” day. The announcement gave anyone presenting a church bulletin. School district does a location (school library), time and A concerned community member This kind of discount violates the feder- constitutional training day to meet and “pray over the day.” in the Camden County School District al Civil Rights Act. FFRF Legal Fellow Ryan Jayne wrote in Georgia informed FFRF that district FFRF Staff Attorney Sam Grover An Alabama school district will have to Superintendent Jeff Mitchell and employees had involved themselves wrote to Mayor Kenneth Carey, Jr., its staff undergo training to reacquaint pointed out that such an announce- in a religious student club at the high who was also the chair of the County them with constitutional principles. ment violated the constitutional separa- school and middle school. The Fellow- Commission. FFRF contacted the Blount County tion of church and state. ship of Christian Athletes was meeting Carey responded in December, tell- School District in November 2016, af- The Wayne City school district has before school on Tuesdays with district ing FFRF that he spoke with the facil- ter a parent at Hayden Primary School promised to prevent any future misuse employees and outside adults leading, ity manager to ensure this discrimina- informed it that a second-grade teach- of its social media. regularly attending and participating tory promotion would not be used at er there asks the “class leader” of the Amit Pal and Madeline Ziegler contribut- in the meetings, in violation of the future events. day to lead a prayer when the class ed to this report. Page 12 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 IN THE NEWS FFRF requested Trump hold secular inauguration In its first public letter of the year, FFRF asked President-Elect Donald Trump to “faithfully exe- cute” the secular Constitution by keeping faith and prayer out of the inaugural ceremony. Religion should not be part of “a ceremony about pleading fealty to a secular Constitution,” FFRF wrote in the letter. The framers of the U.S. Constitu- tion thought the presidential oath so important they included the exact wording: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of the President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” Notably, there’s no reference to “So help me God” or placement of a presidential hand on a bible. FFRF notes that Trump seems to be turning the secular inauguration into “a religious circus” — given that Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Rabbi Marvin Hier, Bishop Wayne T. Jackson, Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, Rev. Franklin Graham and Pastor Paula White was each scheduled to pray and give readings. Evangelicals trust religion more than science Many people place greater trust in university and ‘Nones’ far underrepresented industry scientists than in religious organizations to tell the truth about the risks and benefits of tech- Congress still mostly with 23 percent of U.S. adults. That er, they tend to vote at lower rates nologies, reports the journal Public Understanding Christian, white, male unaffiliated group, also called the than older Americans, so they may of Science. But among evangelicals, the pattern is Nones, is the fastest-growing “reli- be underrepresented partly for reversed, with religious organizations trusted signifi- The percentage of “Nones” in gious” group in America, accord- that reason, as well. cantly more than scientific sources. the United States is nearly a quar- ing to a previous Pew study. And finally, not being religious- The study also found that evangelical and ter of the population, yet just one More than 90 percent of mem- ly affiliated also means there is not non-evangelical participants differed in which fac- of the 535 members of the new bers of Congress are Christian, a concerted voting bloc that is po- tors were associated with trust in university scien- Congress is religiously unaffiliated. compared with 71 percent of U.S. litically motivated. tists. For non-evangelicals, greater scientific knowl- A report from the Pew Research adults. “They may be unaffiliated; they edge was associated with higher levels of trust. But Center also shows that the 115th Part of the reason for this huge may be atheist; they may be agnos- for evangelicals, neither of these was associated with Congress remains much more gap is that Nones tend to be young- tic, but they’re not part of some greater trust. In fact, evangelicals with greater sci- male and white than the rest of the er, while a congressional members’ club,” Margie Omero, a Demo- entific knowledge reported lower levels of trust in U.S. population. average age was 57 in the 114th cratic strategist at Purple Strate- university scientists. Only Arizona Democratic Rep. Congress. Since the Nones are gies, told National Public Radio in Kyrsten Sinema admits to being among the youngest of all “reli- 2015. “You could certainly argue “unaffiliated,” which Pew defines gious” groups, the expectation is that evangelicals are not monolith- Court: ‘In God We Trust’ as people who are atheist, agnos- that as they age, more of them will ic in terms of their policy beliefs, tic or who describe their religion be elected to Congress and will but there’s no denying that there’s no burden to atheists as “nothing in particular.” That start to make up the dramatic dif- more of an organization around An Ohio federal district court in December re- means only 0.2 percent of Con- ference that currently exists. organized religion than there is jected several challenges to the United States’ use of gress is unaffiliated, compared Also, because Nones are young- around disorganized atheism.” the motto “In God We Trust” on currency. The court rejected FFRF Member Michael Newdow’s (and oth- er plaintiffs’) First Amendment free exercise claims, U.S. Christians as well as his compelled speech and equal protec- tion arguments. The court said in part: Plaintiffs cannot demon- less educated strate that the use of the motto on currency substan- tially burdens their religious exercise. Credit cards and checks allow plaintiffs to conduct the bulk of than ‘Nones’ their purchases with currency not inscribed with the motto. And for cash-only transactions, such as a ga- The nonreligious, known as the Nones, and mem- rage sale or a coin-operated laundromat, the use of bers of religious minorities in the United States are the motto on currency does not substantially burden much more likely to have attended college or a voca- plaintiffs’ free exercise. tional school than members of the Christian majority, according to a new study. The Pew Research Center review was based on data Judge halts transgender, from 2010, using census and survey data from 151 countries that found wide gaps in education among abortion protections followers of the world’s major religions. It also found A federal judge in Texas on Dec. 31 issued a na- an education gap between men and women within re- tionwide injunction halting enforcement of Obama ligious groups. administration protections for transgender and Only 36 percent of the 267 million Christians in abortion-related health care services just one day be- the United States had a post-secondary education, fore they were due to go into effect. which made them the least-educated religious group The lawsuit — brought by Texas, a handful of in the country. From a worldwide perspective, Christians in the other states, and some religiously affiliated nonprof- The study found a positive connection between United States were among the best-educated among it medical groups — challenges a regulation imple- higher education levels and the number of people all Christians. Twenty percent of Christians worldwide menting the sex nondiscrimination requirement who described themselves as having no religion. In had a post-secondary degree. found in the Affordable Care Act. the United States, the religious tended to be less edu- Globally, the gender gap was widest among Hindus, The Health and Human Services regulation “for- cated than the nonreligious. with women receiving 2.7 years less education on bids discriminating on the basis of ‘gender identity’ Jews in the United States were more than twice as average than men, and Muslims, whose women and ‘termination of pregnancy’” under Obamacare, likely as Christians to have a postsecondary degree, received 1.5 years less education. Buddhist women as U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor wrote and Hindus were almost three times as likely, the received 1.1 years less education than men, Christian in his opinion halting enforcement of those provi- report showed. Most Jews live in two wealthy coun- women received 0.4 years less, and unaffiliated women sions in the rule. tries with generally high education levels: the United received 0.8 years less. There was no educational The states allege that the regulation violates the States and Israel. gender gap among Jews, the researchers said. Administrative Procedure Act. January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 13 FFRF stands with Planned Parenthood ning services, which do not include enshrined in our laws. FFRF STATEMENT abortion (except in narrow instances). The causes of freethought, women’s Congress must cease its relentless as- But that hasn’t stopped the attacks rights and family planning are all inex- sault on Planned Parenthood. on Planned Parenthood from mem- tricably linked. For the umpteenth time, the bers of the Religious Right and their “No woman can call herself free GOP-controlled Congress has threat- elected representatives — attacks who does not own and control her own ened to cut off reimbursement funds for based on deception and misinforma- try always has been religion, as FFRF body,” freethinker and contraceptive the organization, this time as part of a tion. In reality, theocrats are seeking co-founder Annie Laurie Gaylor has rights crusader Margaret Sanger stat- larger plan to repeal Obamacare. House to not just deny low-income women ac- repeatedly emphasized. Virtually ev- ed. “No woman can call herself free un- Speaker Paul Ryan recently announced cess to abortion on religious grounds, ery vocal opponent of contraception til she can choose consciously whether Republicans will move to strip all federal but also access to contraception. and abortion argues against these she will or will not be a mother.” funding for Planned Parenthood. This “Planned Parenthood has been a rights on the basis of God and the bi- Planned Parenthood President Ceci- could cost the organization hundreds of political target for years,” NPR reports. ble. In fact, the Freedom From Reli- le Richards has vowed to offer full resis- millions of dollars in lost revenue, and “But recently, the partisan polarization gion Foundation came into existence tance to the anti-Planned Parenthood it’s a highly unscrupulous ploy. has gone beyond abortion rights and in good part because of the orga- onslaught. “Not without one hell of a This must be emphasized: Planned into any federal funds going to the nized religious opposition to abortion fight, they aren’t,” she recently tweeted Parenthood does not receive any direct organization.” rights. It is what opened the eyes of a response to the defunding efforts. funding from the federal government. The primary organized opposition FFRF principal founder Anne Nicol FFRF stands in full solidarity with It does get reimbursed for family plan- to reproductive rights in this coun- Gaylor to the dangers of dogma being Planned Parenthood. FFRF applauds Bill of Rights law protecting censorship nontheists case continues President Obama and the U.S. FFRF’s lawsuit against gubernatorial Congress have finally paid heed to censorship of its Bill of Rights display freethinkers. in the Texas Capitol will proceed, fol- In May, FFRF asked our members to lowing a ruling by a federal judge in write to their senators to extend pro- Austin on Dec. 20. tections of freedom of belief to non- FFRF placed the display to counter a believers. Well, Congress and Obama Christian nativity scene, which was not seem to have listened. On Dec. 16, the ordered removed. president signed the Frank Wolf Inter- FFRF’s free speech claim and our national Religious Freedom Act. Establishment Clause claim will move This law does what groups such as forward, and the state’s motion for Whitehouse.gov FFRF have been asking for years. It al- President Obama signs the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act summary judgment against FFRF was ters the 1998 International Religious into law on Dec. 16, 2016. denied. FFRF’s motion for summary Freedom Act to acknowledge that non- for judgment was also denied, with believers deserve the same protections due changes. Not only are nonbeliev- the judge saying issues of fact remain as religious citizens: “The freedom The freedom of thought, ers persecuted in many countries, but unresolved. of thought, conscience, and religion conscience, and religion is atheism is actually a capital crime in The issue before the judge is wheth- is understood to protect theistic and nations such as Saudi Arabia. er the governor engaged in viewpoint nontheistic beliefs and the right not to understood to protect theistic “Official recognition that freedom discrimination when he had the display profess or practice any religion.’’ and nontheistic beliefs and of belief applies also to nonbelievers removed. Although FFRF had a permit The new language also recognizes the right not to profess or was way past due,” says FFRF Co-Pres- and legislative sponsorship for a display that although minority religions are practice any religion. ident Annie Laurie Gaylor. “We’re to counter a Christian nativity, Texas targeted by majority religions in many delighted that freethinkers finally re- Gov. Greg Abbott ordered it removed. countries, nonbelievers are targeted ceived this gift in the closing days of It appears there will either be a almost universally: “Though not incorporate protections for those “not the Obama administration.” bench trial, or else an appeal of the confined to a particular region or regime, professing a particular religion, or any The amendments to the act are judge’s ruling. religious persecution and the specific religion.” Violations of freedom of particularly important for FFRF’s con- The judgment ruled against FFRF’s targeting of nontheists, humanists, and conscience now include a list of acts tinued campaign to protect atheist claims based on equal protection, un- atheists because of their beliefs is often committed because of “an individual’s bloggers in Bangladesh — a campaign bridled discretion and due process — particularly widespread, systematic, conscience, nontheistic views, or that has helped several bloggers es- not the central aspects of the case. and heinous under totalitarian religious belief or practice,” including cape. FFRF will be emboldened in its The case, FFRF v. Abbott, Case No. governments and in countries with “forcibly compelling nonbelievers or work on the behalf of these activists A-16-CA-00233-SS, is in the courtroom militant, politicized religious majorities.” nontheists to recant their beliefs or to with the knowledge that the U.S. gov- of U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks, for Other modifications include redefining convert.” ernment acknowledges the legitimacy the Western District of Texas, Austin “violations of religious freedom” to FFRF welcomes these long over- of their views. Division. Lawsuit Continued from front page parents of eight students in 1985, the Mercer County own personal water slide! Wouldn’t that be so wild!” Attorney Patrick Elliott as co-counsel. FFRF thanks schools took over the instruction in 1986, claiming Lesson 6 exhorts students to follow the Ten Com- FFRF extern Chris Line for his research and prepara- to follow nine guidelines from the Office of the mandments and to “have no other god than the Lord tion of the complaint. Attorney General. God!” Lesson 25 indoctrinates young students in the Financing is provided by the “Bluefield Bible Study core narrative of Christianity — the alleged crucifix- Fund, Inc.,” which operates a fund to pay bible teach- ion and resurrection of Jesus. ers to instruct about 4,000 students. Bible teachers FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor notes: must follow lesson plans almost without deviation. “The U.S. Supreme Court ruled such religious in- There are 70 to 90 visuals used in each lesson. Les- struction unconstitutional more than 65 years ago, sons have included images of Jesus being tortured, in the landmark McCollum v. Board of Education. It’s nailed to the cross, and ascending into heaven. unacceptable that such clearly unconstitutional in- The curriculum is the equivalent of sectarian Sun- doctrination is still being conducted in any public day school instruction. Goals include developing a schools.” FFRF won a court victory before the 6th “positive attitude” toward biblical literature, “un- U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ending similar bi- derstanding the importance of the Ten Command- ble instruction in Rhea County (Dayton), Tenn., ments,” and “harmonizing the four gospel accounts schools in 2004. of the last days of Jesus.” Mercer County, whose county seat is Princeton, FFRF’s legal complaint lists examples of the prose- has a population of about 63,000. lytizing curriculum. Lesson 2 promotes creationism by FFRF v. Mercer County Board of Education was filed in claiming humans and dinosaurs co-existed. Students mid-January in the U.S. District Court in the South- This visual aid is used, along with more than 60 other are asked to “picture Adam being able to crawl up on ern District of West Virginia, with Marc Schneider images, to help teach elementary school students in the back of a dinosaur! He and Eve could have their serving as primary litigating attorney and FFRF Staff Mercer County Schools the Ten Commandments. Page 14 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017

FFRF convention speech Evolution and atheism: Best friends forever

Here is an edited version of the speech The poll shows 83 percent of the given by Jerry Coyne at FFRF’s 39th annual people who reject evolution say the convention in Pittsburgh on Oct. 8. FFRF rejection has to do with their faith. It Co-President Dan Barker introduced him: has nothing to do at all with evidence. Jerry is a past recipient of FFRF’s There is a strong negative relationship, Emperor Has No Clothes Award and a highly statistically negative relation- has been an honorary board member ship, between religion and belief in and has also worked with our attorneys evolution. over the years. He is professor emeri- The countries that have the most be- tus in the department of ecology and lief in God have the lowest acceptance evolution at the University of Chicago of Darwinism. Countries that have the and a member of both the Commit- least acceptance of God, the least be- tee on Genetics and the Committee lief in God, are those that accept evolu- on Evolutionary Biology. He’s written tion more. Countries in, say, sub-Saha- 119 scientific papers, 150 popular arti- ran Africa or the Middle East, are not cles, book reviews, columns, and a very only highly religious, but they’re also popular book about the evidence for deeply opposed to evolution. evolution: Why Evolution is True. And I What’s the reason for this relation- think, when it comes to this book, no- ship? This is mainly a correlation, not body does it better. In fact, even Rich- a causation, but I think there is some ard Dawkins said that he didn’t need causality here. First of all, you can say, to write his next book because Jerry well, the higher your belief in God, the Coyne had already done it. His newest less likely you are to accept evolution. book is called Faith Versus Fact: Why Sci- There’s something about being reli- ence and Religion are Incompatible. Let’s gious that makes you less likely to ac- welcome Jerry Coyne. cept Darwin, and I think that is indeed the case. By Jerry Coyne Photo By Andrew Seidel But the other alternative explana- tion is that the more you grow to ac- Jerry Coyne speaks to the audience at FFRF’s annual convention in Pittsburgh ere’s my thesis for the evening: cept evolution, the less you are likely to on Oct. 8, 2016. Coyne is professor emeritus in the Department of Ecology and The fact of evolution is not only be religious. That’s also plausible, but Evolution at the University of Chicago. Hinherently atheistic, it is inher- I think it’s almost incontrovertibly true ently anti-theistic. It goes against the you might then become an anti-theist results have held pretty steady. When it that the first explanation is the more notion that there is a god. because you see that religion is pro- asks Americans, “How did humans get correct one, simply because you know Accepting evolution and science moting ways of thinking about the here?,” 40 percent say, “We’ve always how it works in this country: People tends to promote the acceptance of world that are not sound. been here like we are now and so have get their Jesus before they get their atheism. Now, it doesn’t always, of all the other species and the Earth is Darwin. By the time they get to biology course. There are many religious peo- Natural pathway about 10,000 years old.” For over 30 class, they’re already immune. They’re ple who accept evolution. I would say This is a natural pathway; it’s the years this has held steady. immunized to evolutionary biology. they’re guilty of cognitive dissonance, same pathway Richard Dawkins went Then we have the theistic evolution- or at least of some kind of watery deism. along — except that he pissed off reli- ists. Those are the people who accept Religion hampers U.S. The path from going to an evolu- gious people more than I did. evolution, but think that God was the Where’s the United States in tionary biologist to an atheist is pretty Look at the sub- motor that did terms of religion and evolution? It’s straightforward. You write a book on title of Dawkins’ it. And those re- really bad. We’re second from bot- evolution with the indubitable facts The Blind Watch- People get their Jesus spondents have tom. The only industrialized country showing that it has to be true, as true maker: A World pretty much hov- that has less acceptance of evolution as the existence of gravity or neutrons, Without Design. A before they get their Darwin. ered around 30 than we do is Turkey. So the reason and then you realize that half of Amer- design-less world By“ the time they get to biology percent. There’s why the U.S. is so resistant to evo- ica is not going to buy it no matter is one thing that class, they’re already a sort of hearten- lution — as opposed to say France, what you say. Their minds cannot be religious people immune (to evolution). ing downswing in Denmark and Sweden — is because changed; their eyes are blinkered. cannot bring them- that in the latest we’re one of the most religious “First And so you start studying what it is selves to accept. — Jerry Coyne years, which is mir- World” countries. about religion that makes people resis- I’m not going to go rored by a heart- We can do the same kind of tant to evolution. You discover that re- over the evidence ening upswing in correlation with states as we did with ligion is in some ways like science, but for evolution. You should either know it the number of naturalistic evolution- countries. At the top we have Vermont, it’s a pseudoscience. It makes scientif- by now or, if you don’t, buy my book. Let ists, now up to 20 percent. Those who Connecticut, Massachusetts. At the ic claims, or at least empirical claims, me just say it comes from many various claim, yeah, we got here by naturalis- bottom: evolution denialists Arkansas, about the real world, but then adjudi- areas of biology: embryology, the fossil tic processes. This happens to be the Tennessee and Utah. Sensing any cates those claims in a completely dif- record, morphology, genetics, bioge- truth, by the way. pattern there? ferent way from science. ography. All these different areas come It’s not like people don’t have ac- I don’t have the data on the religios- So you start realizing that religion together to show that evolution, in fact, cess to the evidence and information ity of every state in the U.S., but what is perverting what you’re trying to do is true. As true as anything is in science. of evolution. It’s that people are blin- I did find were the 10 most religious with science by making statements Case closed, right? Well, no. Not in kered to that truth by religion, and states and the 10 least religious states. about the world, but then supporting America, at least. The Gallup Poll has that’s something that I think almost all Those states that are the most religious them with various cockamamie meth- been surveying American attitudes of us know in our hearts. are the ones that are the most evolu- ods. And so you become an atheist and toward evolution for 32 years and the tion-denying states and vice versa, and Evolution deniers there’s no overlap between them. The Most people who say they accept more religious you are, the less likely evolution are nevertheless supernatu- are to accept evolution. ralists to some degree. Why? Because There’s another factor that explains of religion. You scratch a creationist, why different countries vary in their you’ll find a religionist. Intelligent de- degrees of religiosity and why different sign advocates have been described as states in the U.S. vary in their degrees creationists in a cheap tuxedo. They of religiosity. And that has to do with say intelligent design, but what they re- well-being. ally mean is Jesus. You see the same kind of relation- A poll taken by Gallup asked evo- ship we saw for evolution and religion, lution deniers why they deny it. The but in this case those countries with first three reasons are all religious and the highest belief in God tend to be don’t have anything to do with evi- the countries that are the least well-off. dence. “I believe in Jesus Christ,” “I be- Those countries that have the lowest lieve in the Almighty God,” and “Due belief in God tend to be the countries to my religion or faith.” It’s only when that have the most well-being. I don’t you get to the fourth most common an- think this is an accident. swer — you can give only one answer in Where is the U.S. here? You can say A Gallup poll in 2014 shows the breakdown of Americans’ views on the evolution this poll — they say, “Well, there’s not the reason why we reject evolution is of humans. (Chart by Jerry Coyne.) enough evidence for it.” because we’re so religious. But why are January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 15

That, of course, is the thing that reli- Religion makes claims about the uni- gious people really cannot stand that verse that does not have this apparatus. all. Their strongest argument for God, It has dogma, authority and scripture, which is the appearance of design in and that’s the way it tests its claims. So nature, has now been kicked out from right off the bat when they’re making under them by Charles Darwin and his claims about the universe, science and descendants. religion differ in how they adjudicate • There is no evidence for a soul. All them. Methodologically, it can’t be of this comes out of science and evo- expressed more strongly than this: In lution. Some of these are direct facts, science, faith is a vice; in religion, faith some of them are implications, but is a virtue. both of them are scary to religious peo- In science, we have ways of knowing ple. We’re animals — African apes. If that we’re wrong. If you have a scien- you want to really tick off evangelical tific frame of mind, then if you believe Christians, tell them they are just apes. something, you can think of ways that If you tell them they’re a fish, it doesn’t you’re capable of being shown wrong. give them the same reaction, although In religion, there’s no way that the that’s just as true. beliefs can be shown to be wrong. You • Morality is not God-given. This is may say to them, “Everybody is suffer- a big thing for Americans in particular. ing and dying. Look at that little girl Morality is not something that’s given over there who’s got leukemia. How to us by God, but is either evolved from could your god do that?” They’ll always our ancestors or is a cultural veneer find a way to explain it. It’s a system of that has developed sociologically over bias where you always find out exactly time. And there is no externally im- what you want to believe to begin with. Coyne showed this slide to the audience while discussing the relationship posed meaning or purpose and lives. Science and religious investigations between happiness and religiosity ­— the happier a country claims to be, the less So here we see that direct conflict tell us different things about the world. religious it is and vice versa. (Chart by Jerry Coyne.) between religion and science and Here, for example, is what Christi- between evolution and religion. I anity told us about the world before we so religious? Because we’re not real- often taken as an anti-religious quote, just want to tell you briefly three rea- science came in and blew them all out ly that well-off. We have high degrees of is that religiosity arises when people sons why science and religion are of the water: the creation story, the income inequality. We have no govern- have no other place to turn to in their incompatible. exodus, Adam and Eve, a great flood, ment health care (or not, at least, until lives. It is the opium of the people. And prayer works, young Earth. These are recently), high incarceration rates and to rectify the situation, where you have Competing entities all wrong. We know this now. And why high child mortality compared to oth- an illusory kind of solution to a very Science and religion are compet- are they wrong? Because science has er countries. real physical problem, is the next para- ing entities. They both compete to shown them to be wrong. So what’s going on here? Well, graph: “To call on people to give up make statements about the universe. again, you have a correlation and not their illusions about these conditions is You don’t hear people saying that re- Asymmetric relationship causation. You can say two things. First, to call on them to give up a condition ligion and business are compatible. Or We thus have an asymmetric rela- you can say that those countries that that requires illusions.” that religion and tionship between absolutely believe in God more tend In other words, if you want to get baseball are com- science and reli- to create societies that are bad. That is, rid of religion in this world, then you patible. You don’t Science has the capability gion. Science can it’s the religiosity that somehow makes have to get rid of the conditions that hear that. What of telling religious people show that religious the societies dysfunctional. That’s pos- breed it. you hear is science their“ beliefs are wrong. beliefs are wrong. sible, but it just doesn’t jibe with any and religion are Religion cannot notion of religion that I have. Perpetual antagonism compatible. Why Religion doesn’t have show that scien- So I hope I’ve painted a picture of science and why that effect on science. tific beliefs are Happiness matters the antagonism, the perpetual antago- religion? Because — Jerry Coyne wrong. Religious The other explanation is that the nism between religion and evolution. they both com- people know this more well-off you are as a country, the What I want to say now is why that an- pete to tell us the in their heart and less need your inhabitants have to em- tagonism occurs. Why is evolution so truth about the universe. that’s why they hate science so much — brace God. They don’t feel that they anathema to believers? Well, there are So, in many ways, they’re in the at least many of them. have to have a need to appeal to some lots of reasons. same business, although there’s a lot So science advances and people feel celestial being that can give them an It’s scary. It’s scary in a lot of ways more to religion than just empirically threatened by the implications of sci- additional life that will make things if you’re religious. In fact, I could not non-verifiable statements. They differ ence, and the more science advances, right for them after their own misera- finish the list of the ways that the fact in their methodologies. You know how the more threatened the believers get. ble life on Earth is ended. and implications of evolution scare science works: We appeal to nature, we Evolution, of course, threatens Every few years, the United Nations religious people. appeal to testability, we appeal to hy- them for ways I’ve mentioned before. compiles a happiness index. It asks the Here’s just a few of them. potheses, we appeal to falsifiability, we Cosmology, the idea that there’s a big inhabitants, “How are you doing? Are • We’re products of evolution, not depend on consensus. We have all the bang and that there could be an in- you happy?” They don’t have any ob- of any protective god. We can be ex- apparatus of professional science like finite series of big bangs that go back jective rating on how happy they are. plained largely by natural selection blind testing, like statistics and peer They just ask people if they are happy and you don’t need a god to do that. review. See Evolution on page 16 or not. There were 156 countries surveyed, but I could get data on only 52 of them. You can see there is, again, a strong negative relationship. The happier you are as a country, the less religious you are. The more miserable you are, the more religious you are. The happiest countries in the world are Norway, Denmark and Switzerland. The unhap- piest countries in the world are Togo, Benin and the Central African Repub- lic — countries which are deeply dys- functional and highly, highly religious. So this supports my explanation of why religious countries tend to be countries that are less well-off. That’s also the explanation of Karl Marx and his famous quote: “Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the peo- ple is the demand for real happiness. To call on them to give up their illu- sions about their condition it to call on them to give up a condition that Photo By Andrew Seidel requires illusions.” Coyne signs copies of his book Faith vs. Fact for FFRF members in attendance at the Pittsburgh convention. Standing in the What Marx meant by that, and this is foreground are Life Members Jane Malless and Steve Kern, both of Indiana. Page 16 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 forever and ever so you don’t need a religion and science have this friendly best way really to get people to accept first cause. That’s scary to religious dialogue that everybody is always say- evolution? My answer would involve people. ing we need to have? income and health care. Get rid of in- We don’t have the kind of libertarian No, that is not possible. You cannot come inequality and give everybody free will that is absolutely essential have a dialogue like that. You cannot health care. That’s going to take a to many religious people. You have have a constructive dialogue between long time, but when you do that, to be able to choose to accept Jesus. religion and science. You can have a you’re going to build a lot of societ- You have to be able to choose freely destructive monologue between reli- ies like the ones in Northern Europe, to accept God. If we don’t have that, gion and science. The monologue is which are largely atheistic. They’ve then the underpinnings of religion because the only discipline that can given up the need for God because are seriously eroded. And this is what meaningfully speak to the other one they don’t have a need for God. And neurobiology is starting to tell us. We is science talking to religion. Science every one of those societies is an evo- can now predict what choices you are has the capability of telling religious lution-accepting society. going to make in certain circumstances people their beliefs are wrong. Reli- We have evolution that perforce 10 seconds before you’re cognizant of gion doesn’t have that effect on sci- leads to accepting atheism because of having made that choice yourself. ence. It can’t. There is nothing, and the implications and the facts about And finally, archaeology, history there is no scripture, there is no reli- evolution. And then if you become and biblical scholarship are starting Photo by Ingrid Laas gious belief that has ever had any in- an atheist, because you think religion to tell us that the bible is largely a fluence in promoting the advance of is wrong, then you want to become Jerry Coyne human-made construction. It’s a work science whatsoever. a humanist because you realize that of fiction. Many of the things in it don’t what’s true. You cannot call yourself So it’s a monologue. Science humanism is not only the sole way turn out to be true, like the exodus or a Christian unless you believe in the talking to religion. Religion having to to create societies that are fair, just the census of Caesar Augustus. physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. swallow it. and have the most I don’t know how religious people Religion as some nebulous collec- So let me finish well-being, but also come to deal with that, particularly tion of moral dicta and songs that you with this question: To watch Jerry Coyne’s leads to more rejec- fundamentalist ones. So we have this hear in church is completely at odds What is our task in tion of God. entire speech, go to constant tension. with the way religions really are in light of all this an- And then you Now, don’t believe the people America, including Christianity, and tagonism between ffrf.org/coyne can go the oth- who tell you science and religion are even more so with Islam. science and reli- er way around. If friendly, because they’re not. Science Try telling a Muslim that there is no gion? The relation- you’re a human- advances and each time it does, reli- truth in the idea that the angel Gabri- ship between atheism, humanism and ist, then you just simply build good gious people have to figure out how el dictated the Koran to Mohammad, evolution. What do we do? How is the societies and you don’t worry much to incorporate that change into their and many of them will slit your throat. best way to promulgate evolution, or about atheism or evolution. But, it worldview. I mean, not all of them will. But they to promulgate nonbelief, or promul- turns out, that once you improve so- take these things very seriously as em- gate humanism? ciety, people don’t need to believe in Accommodationism pirical truths. Try telling a Mormon God anymore. They become atheis- So what does a religious person do that Joseph Smith was a con man and Evolution and atheism tic, and as soon as they become athe- when they’re faced with these ideas? made up those golden plates. If they There are several ways to do it. ists, their opposition to evolution just They don’t want to give up their re- really believed that, they couldn’t be One way is to just teach evolution drops. Drops like a stone. ligion, that’s for sure. They practice Mormons. and shut the hell up about being an So I’ll finish by saying we’re win- what we call accommodationism. They A “factless” religion, whatever its at- atheist. You hear this all the time by ning. This country, and most of the try to find ways in which science and traction to the liberal scientist, could people who say, “Richard Dawkins, West, is becoming more and more religion are friendly to one another. never be Christianity or, for that mat- you know, he really had me believing secular over time. The “Nones” (peo- Here’s one solution: These two ar- ter, Judaism or Islam. So think of re- in evolution, but then he wrote The ple who don’t belong to an organized eas are non-overlapping. One of them ligion as a form of science, because God Delusion.” And, I mean, I just can’t faith) are increasing in the United deals with what’s true in the universe, at bottom all religious beliefs must stand that anymore. This is what I call States, as well as in Europe. In Brit- the other one with what’s right and be based on certain claims about the the “Dawkins Canard.” ain, Christians are now outnumbered wrong in the universe, and they can universe and the world that, at least in If you look at the evidence that by people who said they have no reli- be friendly because they’re separate principle, are empirically testable. If Richard’s atheism has impeded his gion at all. from one another. So I guess distance you can test them, then you can show efficacy in promulgating evolution, The last thing I want to add is a breeds amity, or something like that. whether they’re wrong. They always there is none that I can find. If you quote (in honor of his biographer But this isn’t the way religion works are wrong. go to his website, you’ll find a place Susan Jacoby) from the great agnos- in most countries. Religious people called Convert’s Corner. There are tic Robert Ingersoll, who said the really do have an epistemological Testing religious claims hundreds and hundreds of letters most perspicacious thing I’ve ever underpinning to their beliefs. A Har- Some say religion and science are from people. People who have read heard about the relationship be- ris poll, taken a couple of years ago, separate because you cannot put God The God Delusion and by reading The tween science and religion: “There shows what supernatural ideas Ameri- into a test tube. You cannot do scien- God Delusion have not only become is no harmony between religion and cans believe in. It’s always between 55 tific tests on claims about religion, atheist, but have accepted evolution. science. When science was a child, percent and 85 percent: the existence and therefore they’re different magis- So what you find when you look religion sought to strangle it in its of God, the existence of heaven and teria. Well, of course you can do sci- at data is a synergy between atheism cradle. Now that science has at- hell, Jesus Christ’s resurrection, the entific tests on claims about religion. and religion. The Dawkins Canard is tained its youth, and superstition is virgin birth, the existence of angels. A Creationism is one such test and it’s not correct, in my opinion. I’ve nev- in its dotage, the trembling, palsied full 68 percent of Americans believe been shown to be wrong. er heard anybody tell me, interacting wreck says to the athlete, ‘Let us be in angels. That’s three times more Here’s another one. A study was with creationists over a long time, say- friends.’ It reminds me of the bar- than believe in evolution or accept meant to test whether intercessory ing, “You know, I really, really, really gain the cock wished to make with evolution. prayer was effective. They took pa- want to accept evolution. I really do the horse. Let us agree not to step These are real empirical statements tients who had undergone cardiac because I know that all the data are on each other’s feet.” about the nature of the universe. This surgery and they had people pray for buttressing it. But as long as Richard is a religion that is absolutely ground- them. And some people knew they Dawkins keeps propagating atheism, ed on certain propositions about were being prayed for, some people I’m not going to do it.” That’s the con- didn’t know they were being prayed tention that these people make. Faith vs. FAct: for, and people didn’t know who they Second of all, you can criticize a were praying for. So it was a pure dou- religion and teach evolution, but just Why Science and Religion ble-blind study. don’t do it at the same time. That’s are Incompatible And then they could monitor the one strategy. This is the one I usual- effects of this prayer. What do you ly use — not because it’s duplicitous, — By Jerry A. Coyne — think the outcome was? It’s zippo. Ac- but because you don’t want to confuse tually, not zippo — the people who people with what your message is. Or, were prayed for the most were mar- you can bring up religion and science ginally worse off than everybody else. and evolution at same time. You need But believe me, if it had gone the oth- a special audience to do that, like the er way, if prayer had worked, then you collection of molecules I have in front would hear this study trumpeted from of me. the highest mountaintops by every And finally, this is the lesson I Christian in this country. But when really want to give you — that the all- it doesn’t work they’ll say things like, important thing here in propagating “Ah. You can’t test God. It’s a mean- evolution and atheism is the rise of ingless study.” humanism itself. If you want to get You don’t need a god to construct people to accept evolution, you have an ethical system or to have a philo- to get rid of the blinkers that prevent A 2013 Harris poll shows the percentage sophically consistent system of virtues them from doing that — which is Buy it from FFRF online of Americans who believe in various and morality. religion. shop.ffrf.org myths. (Chart by Jerry Coyne.) I’ll finish up with a question: Can So if I was going to ask what’s the January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 17

FFRF convention speech Here’s how to increase our political clout

Susan Jacoby’s speech, edited for space, backlash and accomplishes nothing. was delivered on Oct. 8, 2016, at FFRF’s We had a classic example in New 39th annual convention in Pittsburgh. She York a few years ago, when the Amer- was introduced by FFRF Co-President Annie ican Atheists attempted to bar the Laurie Gaylor: placement at the 9/11 Memorial Mu- Susan is an honorary director of seum of a cross created by two steel FFRF and previously received our beams that crashed and crossed each Freethought Heroine award. She be- other in a resemblance to a crucifix. gan her writing career as a reporter This cross was to be displayed among for The Washington Post and today many different kinds of artifacts. It remains one of the few journalists who was part of the history of the immedi- writes about secular issues as an open ate aftermath of the terrorist attacks, champion of freethought. This is still a and its presence amid the rubble was rare commodity in the media, and we meaningful to many Christian rescue can count on her to speak up in her workers. And it wasn’t as if the cross media columns on state/church and were being given pride of place; it was freethought issues. simply going to be one of thousands of Susan is author of 11 books, includ- exhibits of objects from those times. ing Strange Gods: A Secular History of The lawsuit predictably got nowhere in Conversion, which came out in March. federal court, and it shouldn’t have. Strange Gods is a really unique book as You and I may think that finding “a secular history of conversion.” meaning in two beams that became Her other books include The Age of welded together at the site of a mas- American Unreason, a New York Times sacre is ridiculous, but the fact is this best-seller and Freethinkers: A History of accidental cross did have meaning for American Secularism. many people who were pulling human Welcome back, Susan Jacoby. remains out of that ground. What the whole episode of the lawsuit did was By Susan Jacoby reinforce the image of atheists as an intolerant minority. arlier this year, I wrote an op-ed There would have been a constitu- piece for The New York Times tional issue if this cross, created out of Ethat appeared under the head- the horror of that day, had been placed line, “Sick and Tired of ‘God Bless atop the museum. At the time, many America.’” [It was also republished in atheists who supported the plaintiffs the April issue of Freethought Today.] made statements saying that the non- It was their headline, not mine, but I religious were offended by the display liked it in a way I don’t usually like the of this “cross” in the museum. All I headlines editors put over my articles. Photo by Ingrid Laas can say is that these atheists must be In this piece, I was discussing the po- Susan Jacoby speaks to the attendees at FFRF’s 39th annual convention in pretty thin-skinned and prone to take litical implications of a poll by the Pew Pittsburgh on Oct. 8. offense. Research Center. I’m sure that most of Now, if there’d been a statue of Pro- you are familiar with the poll, which in- are brainwashed enough by the public Abraham would have gone ahead and metheus found at Ground Zero, and dicated that the number of Americans culture of religion that they are afraid murdered Isaac if God, that prank- it had deliberately been left out of the who do not belong to any religious to openly call themselves either athe- ster, hadn’t recanted at the last min- museum because someone considered group and, even more important, who ists or agnostics, and instead insist that ute and said, “I didn’t really mean it; it too secular, that would be a symbol- say religion is not important in their they’re “spiritual, but not religious.” I only wanted to see if you’d obey me ic case I’d support — just as I strongly lives, has risen from 21 million in 2008 We may be sick and tired of “God Bless and do it. I was just joking.’” The story support all of the many lawsuits FFRF to more than 36 million. America,” but we’re not going to have of Abraham is reason enough for my has brought against the use of crosses That is a lot of a president any time reservations about “good without God” and commandments monuments on people — and an soon who replaces it campaigns. My beliefs have never told public land, in front of public schools, extraordinary in- I think we ought to with something else. me that I have to kill my child to please and on seals of state. crease within a very choose our symbolic battles The question is some unnamed power who controls One reason I think it’s important to short period of what we ourselves the universe. pick symbolic battles carefully is that if “very carefully. time. But the shift can do to bridge we’re all over the map on this, it dilutes toward a more secu- — Susan Jacoby the gap between the Choose our battles the power of our voice when secular lar American popu- stigma still attached Second, I think we ought to choose values and secular people have every lation has not been to ungodliness and our symbolic battles very carefully. I reason not only to be ethically offend- reflected in our politics. No candidate the reality that the ungodly are now don’t mean to suggest that symbols ar- ed, but to turn to our Constitution for thinks that he or she has anything to a much larger minority group than en’t important, but that when we do go a legal defense. lose by offending us. I’m here not many religious denominations. after symbols, they should be symbols I wrote another New York Times to talk not about the politicians, but that clearly violate the Constitution. op-ed after the Newtown school shoot- about what we, as secularists, can do to Good without God Getting Ten Commandments mon- ings, when President Obama went to become more influential in the public First, I want to talk about two tac- uments out of courthouses is import- an interfaith memorial and talked square. Inveighing against the perfidy tics that don’t work, in my opinion. I ant because those monuments support about Jesus watching over the grieving. of the Religious Right won’t do it: We feel slightly nauseated every time I see and perpetuate the myth that our laws The fact is that a number of the victims have to become more aggressive and the slogan “good without God.” To are based on the prohibitions in the were Jews and Hindus, and we don’t more effective at bringing the message me, there’s something unseemly and bible. In fact, many of the command- know — but can assume if the New- to the American public that secular val- self-abasing about basically saying to ments are not crimes, but, in religious town population mirrors the diverse ues are American values, and not let- the world, “I am not what other people terms, sins. We don’t try people for views found in national polling data ting either the Religious Right get away say I am.” adultery any more. We don’t try anyone — that others were raised in secular with what they have gotten away with I was once asked by the conserva- for coveting his neighbor’s wife. Or homes. This would have been a perfect for the past 30 years — the claim that tive talk show host Michael Medved, ox or ass. We don’t try anyone for not place for the president of the United being religious is implict in the phrase who happens to be an Orthodox Jew, honoring her father and her mother, States to acknowledge that violence vi- “American values,” and that the only “What’s to stop you from committing unless she’s committing elder abuse, olates decent secular as well as decent dispute is over what kind of religion is murder if you don’t believe in God?” in which case we try her for assault. So religious values, and that grief, mourn- defining the values. I’ve been asked that question many the Ten Commandments monuments ing and consolation are not limited to At this stage of the development times since, but that was a first, and all I have no place in courthouses. One of people who believe in a supernatural of the secular movement, articulat- managed was to say, “Well, committing the reasons I truly respect the Free- being who guides the world. But the ing those values, and articulating murder has never actually occurred to dom from Religion Foundation is that president didn’t do that; he talked only them more forcefully, is our job. The me.” its lawsuits generally focus on public about religious consolation. When this question is how to do it in a way that I should have asked Medved, “What’s use of symbols that directly contradict happens, as it does so frequently, secu- commands the attention, particularly to stop you from committing murder if not only the letter but the spirit of the lar organizations need to call out pub- among the young, of that growing por- your God orders it? He’s done that in Constitution. lic officials on it. tion of Americans who say religion is the past; in fact, he did it at the found- But engaging in symbolic battles I think that there are several other not important in their lives. The prob- ing of your religion.” that have little or nothing to do with lem is that a lot of these young people And, of course, the answer is that the Constitution creates tremendous See Political Clout on page 18 Page 18 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 steps we can and must take — some of right to proselytize anywhere outside them are already under way — to gain of public institutions, but it does deny the political clout that we don’t yet him the right to teach a public school have. history class in which he tells his stu- dents that the bible is literally true. Focus on the young First, we really need to concentrate Fighting for schools on the young. I can tell you from my The second vastly important area talks on campuses through the coun- of secular action, which involves those try that the secular movement has the who are too young to represent them- same problem with people under 30 selves, is concerned with everything that traditional political parties have. about schools. The work FFRF is doing The young are, in fact, much less re- in battling the use of school assem- ligious than previous generations; blies to allow outside religious figures they’re largely responsible for the to promote their own afterschool re- growth in the number of Americans ligious activities — in the guise of an- who say religion isn’t important in ti-bullying or anti-drug messages — is their daily lives. exemplary. But I can’t even count the number of In some states, like Pence’s Indiana, college students who have told me they that means going to court. In others, Photo by Ingrid Laas don’t want to be “labeled” as atheists. like Wisconsin, just writing letters to Susan Jacoby said in her speech at the convention that secular Americans need “It stands for a kind of nerdiness,” one school administrators gets results. The to become a bigger part of the discussion when issues of religion come into the University of Minnesota student said. infiltration of these conservative Chris- public sphere. “The people who tian-themed pro- take part in campus grams into schools religious parents who strongly support er said something as mild as, “Some freethought activi- A great deal can be is particularly trou- the teaching of evolution. scholars don’t think Jesus was a histor- ties are seen as, well, accomplished just by having bling, because the That’s what happened in Dover, Pa., ical figure?” Well, secular parents have a little obsessed.” people being tar- when parents — both religious and to make a fuss when a teacher says that “discussions with likeminded I think just show- geted are teenag- nonreligious — successfully fought all of the founders were devoutly reli- ing up — as our parents and conversations ers already at risk against a policy that mandated the gious and that the United States was normal, everyday with school administrators. — because of drug teaching of intelligent design. This established as a Christian nation. selves — on college — Susan Jacoby problems, academ- battle ended in 2005 with a blistering Frankly, there are places where campuses is im- ic difficulties, issues federal district court ruling against the we’re so outnumbered that we will be mensely important. surrounding sexual- teaching of intelligent design in pub- ignored even if we to speak up. But No, we don’t have ity — sometimes all lic schools — one which the higher there are lots of other places — com- horns and tails. Yes, we do have jobs three. To open kids like this to people courts declined to review. I don’t think munities like Dover — throughout the and kids and spouses and lovers and all who are essentially telling them that it’s possible to overestimate the impor- country, where a great deal can be ac- of the concerns in our lives that the re- their problems can be solved by reli- tance of fighting these battles and of complished just by having discussions ligious majority has. I don’t participate gious conversion is not only unconsti- cultivating allies who aren’t necessarily with likeminded parents and conver- in debates about the existence of God, tutional, but medically dangerous. atheists, but who do believe in secular sations with school administrators. because I, of course, agree with the But, of course, the biggest education science and secular history. One thing to remember is that school 19th-century freethought hero Robert problem — concentrated in the South I mention history because while we administrators don’t like trouble from Ingersoll (and every scientist) about and various parts of the Midwest, but hear a lot about evolution, the right- anyone — so if we can’t get anything the impossibility of proving a negative. also surfacing in school districts in ev- wing attack on the teaching of the sec- avowedly secular into the curriculum, It’s enough to say, “Based on all of the ery state in the union — involves the ular side of both American and world we can often get avowedly anti-secular evidence before me, I see no reason to teaching of evolution. And this can be history is unremitting. Texas is the interpretations out. conclude that God exists.” But, like all a tough one, because it means that sec- most extreme example, with regular scientific theorems, this conclusion has ular parents have to make public trou- reviews of textbooks having resulted Agreement on issues to remain open to new evidence. ble, which often does create trouble in such gems as replacing Thomas Jef- Three, I’d like to see more empha- There are, however — and I’ve for their children. And it has to be ac- ferson with Thomas Aquinas on a list sis on certain major political issues on found this particularly true at histori- complished at the local level, because of historical figures in revolutionary which all secular organizations can cally religious colleges — all kinds of all national organizations can really thought. I do think that secular par- agree. productive discussions you can have do is provide some financial and legal ents have to make pests of themselves I’ll give you an example. One of with young people who are just really support. to get any change in such matters, and the most glaring omissions through- beginning to think about and question Fighting the troglodytes who, at the being a pest can be effective, even if out this election cycle, on the part of the beliefs on which they were raised. very least, want to sneak intelligent de- you’re not in the majority or anywhere candidates from both parties, has been By historically religious colleges, I’m sign into the curriculum as a “theory” near it. any reference to the persecution of sure you know I don’t mean brainwash- on an equal par with evolution, often Can you imagine what right-wing freethinkers in both Muslim theocra- ing factories like, say, Jerry Falwell’s requires banding together with liberal Christian parents would do if a teach- cies and countries torn by Muslim and Liberty University. I particularly remember one con- versation with a first-year student at Augustana. He had come to Augustana planning to become a Lutheran min- ister, but he had already decided he wanted to change his major and work toward becoming a high school his- tory teacher. He had been raised in a very conservative Lutheran home with fundamentalist beliefs, but Augusta- na had exposed him to a much more liberal religious mindset. He said, “In my mind, I know you’re right when you talk about the essential equality of beliefs, and nonbelief, in a democracy. But I know that I’m in possession of the truth, and how can I not want the same thing for others?” You know, I felt sorry for this young man, because I sensed that this ques- tion was really a result of his own ques- tioning of his faith — because Augus- tana, like all good religious colleges, teaches more about comparative reli- gion and the history of secularism than secular institutions do. That’s what I was doing there — being an adjunct to the history of secularism curriculum. I reminded this young man of the fa- mous line in the gospel in which Ponti- us Pilate asks, “What is truth?” at Jesus’ trial. And I talked about how nothing Photo by Andrew Seidel in secular democracy denies him the Susan Jacoby is greeted by FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor prior to giving her speech at the convention. January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 19

Hindu religious nationalist terrorism. life is all there is, not our expectations I’m glad I saved a copy of this Secretary of State John Kerry has men- of immortality and perfect understand- letter, because it brings back all of tioned persecution of Christians, but ing in eternity, that gives our lives their the conversations we had during not of secular freethinkers. moral meaning. those last months, while the light of The Center for Inquiry, of which Those of you who have heard me his mind was dimming but not yet I’m also an honorary board member, speak before know that I rarely talk extinguished. has been particularly good on human about my personal life. I keep that I know that the memory of what I was rights issues, as FFRF has. But I would for my books. However, I’m going to able to do to help him rests only with like to have seen a full-page ad during make an exception because it is so me — well, a small part of it now with this campaign in a forum that politi- pertinent to the question of how it’s you — but it doesn’t matter. It seems to cians pay attention to — that would important to get personal when we try me that the very essence of the atheist’s probably be the New York Times or to convey our values to others. Eight and humanist’s concept of morality — The Washington Post — signed by ev- years ago, my longtime partner died a concept limited to what we do here ery major secular and humanist orga- of cancer. He had Alzheimer’s disease, on Earth — is that love is never wasted nization and calling on all candidates but, fortunately, the cancer killed him even though it is not eternal. to denounce not only the persecution before he entered Our acts, good of Christians, but the persecution of the final stages in and evil, become freethinkers who dare to blog about which all cognition To watch Susan Jacoby’s a part of the world such issues as women’s rights — from and consciousness entire speech, go to that will continue Saudi Arabia to the deserts controlled Photo by Ingrid Laas are destroyed. ffrf.org/jacoby after us, as long as by terrorists to Bangladesh. More than one the world contin- Susan Jacoby The letter should have been ad- friend said to me, “I ues. There is gran- dressed to President Obama, Secre- stant set of reminders to our elected don’t know how you can get through deur in this view of life, as Darwin said tary Kerry, Hillary Clinton and Trump. representatives that there are more of this without believing in God.” Well, I at the end of his great work. But there Since these persecutions are carried us than they think. I don’t think, for don’t know how I would have gotten is also a proportional humility in this out not only against freethinkers and instance, that Kerry made a deliberate through it if I did believe in a God perspective. Christians, but against dissenting Mus- decision to leave secularists out his lita- who would slowly and methodically The knowledge that this is our one lims, too, an ad like this would be a ny of persecution. I think he just over- destroy a brilliant mind. During the and only life, a span between uncon- good way to connect freedom of re- looked us. last months of my partner’s life, I often sciousness that precedes and follows ligion with freedom from religion. I wrote him letters because he found it our short existence, lies at the heart of don’t know about you, but I’d happily Make it personal easier to absorb things when they were the atheist and humanist conscience. make a donation for a special fund to Finally, we have to come out as who written down rather than spoken. Here Conveying both the grandeur and hu- finance an ad like this. we are and we have to do it with pas- is an excerpt from a letter I wrote him mility of this view of life is the duty of sion as well as reason — and make it after we had gone to a movie — as it all of us who are not merely sick and Approach politicians personal. turned out, the last movie he would tired of “God Bless America” but who Four, we need, as secular organiza- One question I have been asked ever see. are convinced that rationality is the tions, to make constant approaches frequently is how it is possible to get “Only a few weeks ago, when we saw partner, not the enemy, of private love and reproaches to politicians who have through difficult times in life — and that movie ‘Starting Out in the Eve- and public patriotism. a secular outlook but are reluctant to especially the knowledge of death — ning,’ I was deeply moved by a line in say so, when we are excluded from without belief in a loving supernatural which he was describing his love for his public events. being. former wife. ‘She lived in my heart,’ he Strange Gods: A Secular This is tricky, because it runs the It was Susan B. Anthony, who played said, ‘and I never found that again.’ History of Conversion risk, if secular voices are included at down her nonbelief so that she wouldn’t Well, you are the only person who has public events, of fueling the accusation alienate religious suffragists, who said, ever really lived in my heart. And that — By Susan Jacoby — that secularism is just another religion. “If it be true that we die like a flower, will be true, long after you are gone, Annie Laurie Gaylor is not the pope. leaving behind only a fragrance . . . what until my last moment of consciousness Neither is Richard Dawkins. What I a delusion the race has ever been in — on this Earth. really want to see at public events like what a dream is the life of man.” “We don’t believe in life after Newtown is a politician who presents a She could not have been more death, you and I, and we know we’re secular perspective on a public trauma. wrong. What if we do die like a flower, not going to meet some day again, in And I don’t think this is impossible, leaving a faint and decidedly transient a place with puffy clouds and harps. but it will require constant lobbying. scent behind? It’s so much better than We have no children together, so the Look, no one would have thought leaving a stench behind. Whether our memory of the love we have won’t go — even 10 years ago — that acknowl- actions are remembered on a large on in that way, either. But I deeply edgement of LGBT rights would be- stage, for how long, and by whom, is believe that love is never wasted, and come so taken for granted that the not the foundation of or the rationale whatever good comes from it, we have phrase is in danger of losing its force. for living what might be called the good passed on in some way to others — in There is no reason, with the growing life. The moral rightness or wrongness everything from books to, perhaps, a secular population, that this can’t hap- of our actions can no more be evaluated greater tenderness than either of us pen for us — especially since so much by how they will be judged in the future might have shown without the other. of that population is young. But it does by human beings than by how they will Now we have only the moments of Buy it from FFRF online require a relentless political lobbying be judged by a god in a supernatural time we have, and we must use them shop. rf.org effort that we don’t yet have — a con- afterlife. It is our acceptance that this as best we can.” McCollum bumps into Darwin Jim McCollum, an illustrious fig- thrillingly won a historic 8-1 ruling, often introduces himself to his con- ure in Establishment Clause history, the first in Supreme Court history, stitutional law students by showing toured FFRF’s newly enlarged and declaring religious instruction in the excellent documentary about renovated office building, Free- public schools unconstitutional in his case by filmmaker Jay Rosen- thought Hall, in Madison, Wis., on 1948. The McCollum ruling is the stein,“The Lord Is Not on Trial Here Dec. 28. He’s pictured with the life- bedrock of Establishment Clause Today.” FFRF is pleased to give tours like silicon model of Charles Darwin law pertaining to public schools. of Freethought Hall to FFRF mem- by artist Csam Wheatley that graces Jim, an FFRF Lifetime Member, bers visiting the area. Just give us a FFRF’s Joel B. Landon and Wanda Y. went on to become an attorney. little notice when you know your Beers Freethought Library. While technically retired, he very plans and we will make some time! Jim was the little boy in the mid- fittingly currently teaches consti- Contact Director of First Impres- dle of the legal battle by his brave tutional law at Southern Arkansas sions Lisa Treu at 608/256-8900, mother Vashti McCollum to end University in Magnolia, Ark. Jim, 82, [email protected]. religious instruction in the public schools in Champaign, Ill. As the son of nonreligious RECRUIT A NEW MEMBER parents, Jim was ostracized for not attending sectarian religious Sample copies for just $2 instruction classes during the Send $2 with the name and address of each person you school day. Ultimately, he had to wish to receive a sample copy of Freethought Today to: leave the town to escape further vilification, as Vashti describes in FFRF • P.O. Box 750 • Madison, WI 53701 her amazing memoir, One Woman’s Freedom depends upon freethinkers Fight, available from ffrf.org/shop. — Please specify whether the individual is a freethinker. Photo by Annie Laurie Gaylor Vashti lost at two court levels, then Page 20 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 LETTERBOX

Memory of Anne Gaylor I have read two of Susan Jacoby’s very informative books, and I had helps to ease the pain heard her speak previously. I was star- All of this political turmoil has made tled to hear her say in her address at me think of Anne Nicol Gaylor [FFRF’s the convention (reprinted on pages principal founder]. She would be ap- 17-19) that the suit brought by Amer- palled by the threats to everything she ican Atheists (AA) regarding the fought so hard to accomplish, but she World Trade Center (WTC) cross in would also be leading the charge to de- the National Sept. 11 Museum was dis- fend our rights today. I will always be missed at it should have been, because in awe of her grace and stamina in the the cross “had meaning” to those who face of such big odds. Thinking of her found it among the ruins of the center now actually eases the pain just a little and its display in the museum did not bit, and makes me more hopeful. violate the separation of church and Elsa Kramer state. Indiana Jacoby noted that finding two steel beams fused together in the shape of a Christian cross in the wreckage Important to donate was in no way remarkable, because the buildings were constructed with to FFRF now such beams and there must have been I’m a long-time Life Member and send various secular or atheistic holiday FFRF publishes a many crossed beams in the wreckage. occasional donor. FFRF is now a ben- cards to Trump at the White House next The workers who found the “cross” eficiary on my IRA (although I’m not December. I plan to send him a “Merry true abomination! believed, however, that it signified the planning to die anytime soon). ChristMyth!” card. FFRF, have you no decency? presence of the Christian god, and it Trump and Pence convinced me Dennis Middlebrooks I was shocked and dismayed to see in became a shrine at which religious to donate to the cause of reason, so New York the November issue a recipe for “Wis- believers prayed and left messages I created a “donor-advised fund” with consin Spaghetti (no garlic).” What are reflecting their faith and at which re- some appreciated securities. Fidelity you thinking, people of Wisconsin? No ligious services were held. The cross, Charitable should be sending you a We all understand the garlic in spaghetti sauce? That’s like a blessed by a priest and modified to check from the “Bob Pickering Giving garden without flowers. Why, without make it more clearly Christian, was Fund” soon. Use it wisely. Thanks for horrors of religion garlic you might as well be covering eventually moved to a nearby Catho- all you do. Our Founding Fathers did not care your spaghetti with ketchup. lic church. During the construction Robert Pickering for religion. Thomas Jefferson wrote, What’s next, eliminate the basil? of the museum, the 17-feet-tall cross Nevada “The priests of the different religious Apparently you even think oregano is was lowered into its prominent place, sects dread the advance of science as unnecessary. where it was again blessed and the the witches do the approach of day- Now, I want you to understand that space on which it was placed conse- Freethinker kittens light, and scowl on the fatal harbinger I don’t have a problem with what con- crated by a priest. Its presence im- announcing the subdivision of the dup- senting adults do in private behind plies, at least, that Christians were great for conversation eries on which they live.” Ben Franklin closed doors in their kitchen, but to the main victims of the destruction said, “Lighthouses are far more useful display this culinary heresy in pub- of the WTC towers, but that their god than churches.” lic, in the pages of a periodical that remains present, and it clearly rep- Sadly, too many horrible wars and even children can have access to, is an resents elevation of Christianity above other horrors were caused by religion: abomination. nonbelief in religion. the Crusades, the Inquisition, burning For shame, Wisconsin, for shame! AA insisted that atheists receive women at the stake, etc. Laura Thaw equal treatment with religious be- Religion is like a giant butcher knife British Columbia, Canada lievers, so it demanded that the fact slicing throught the Earth! All religions that nonbelievers were also killed in are horrible and most of us know that. I the WTC attack be recognized in the will stick to the Constitution! Christians have seized museum, either by adding something We thought you’d enjoy seeing our Jaylene Howard symbolizing nonbelief or by removing new freethinker kittens named Darwin Colorado moral low ground the cross representing only Christians. and FFRUF! Hope you got our re- Now that Christians have over- It offered to pay for an atheist memo- cent donation. We are huge fans of all whelmingly backed Trump, they have rial, in a design approved by the mu- you do! Yes, and you can imagine the Nonbelievers hold key finally seized the moral low ground seum, or to have an existing exhibit names are great for conversation! My and revealed their hypocrisy. Sadly, dedicated to nonreligious victims. The friends all wonder, “What is FFRUF?” to humankind’s future not only they, but we , will suf- museum refused to take any of these and then I get to explain! It’s great! I am very grateful that your organi- fer the consequences of their choice. actions, so AA sued to force it to do so. Susie and Gary York zation exists and it gives me hope that Now, anyone who cares about morality In sustaining dismissal of AA’s suit, New Hampshire our species will eventually shed the bur- can see what “Christian values” really a federal appeals court ruled that den of religion and move forward into means: political maneuvering giving the WTC cross is merely religious a future based on reason and logic. The power over women, LGBT, Muslims art, which in a museum does not ‘Season’s Greetings’ world is facing several serious problems. and nonbelievers, nonwhites, etc., violate separation of church and Honesty must supplant hypocrisy and where the end justifies the means, state. That prevented AA from a reason for arrest? childish religious beliefs must be aban- where claims for moral superiority pursuing the matter further, because During the presidential campaign, doned if we are to survive as a species. are fronts and masks for bigotry and if such a ruling became more broadly Donald Trump pledged to evangelicals Everything is at stake and humanity no prejudice. applicable, other requests for removal that he would end the “War On Christ- longer has the luxury to behave as it has H.L. Mencken wrote, “Religion is of crosses erected in public spaces, mas” and ensure that everyone would in the past. We hold the key to the fu- fundamentally opposed to everything including those made by FFRF, might be saying “Merry Christmas.” If he is ture of humankind. I hold in veneration — courage, clear also be denied on the grounds that true to his word, then could this be the Jeff Griese thinking, honesty, fairness, and above the crosses are merely art. last time people can send out cards, or Wisconsin all, love of the truth.” Mencken de- AA’s decision is a rational one that stores post signs saying “Happy Holi- scribed not only what Christianity is may benefit FFRF’s important and days” or “Seasons Greetings”? Or will opposed to, but the character of the laudable undertakings to preserve citizens have the right to greet acquain- FFRF deserves this, man those Christians voted for. separation of church and state. On tances with those forbidden words, with- Carl Scheiman the other hand, Jacoby is justifying the out fear of some form of harassment or not Salvation Army Maine presence of the cross in the National arrest from the government? Of course, My extremely Christian mother died Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum on Trump’s pledge flies in the face of the recently. She requested donations to the basis of its “having meaning” to First Amendment, but as he demon- the Salvation Army for a memorial trib- Jacoby’s viewpoint was those who found it could well have an strated many times at his campaign ute. As an atheist and former next-door deleterious effect, because the crosses rallies, he has little regard for freedom neighbor to the organization, there is too limited on ‘cross’ that FFRF seeks to have removed of speech. With a regressive, theocratic no way I can contribute to such a hate- I attend conventions to acquire in- clearly have great “meaning” to those Congress and a right-wing-dominated ful group. formation from, and about, the pre- who have erected them. I conclude Supreme Court to support him, along Enclosed is $500 as a memorial to my senters. The amount of both kinds of that Jacoby’s position represents with the Religious Right and the Catho- mother, G. JoAn Fugate. Please use it to information that I acquired at FFRF’s a disappointingly limited view of lic Church, anything is possible. I think continue your battle. excellent, extremely well-organized separation of church and state. a proper response to Trump’s arrogance Marci Shaver convention in Pittsburgh made my at- Kenneth G. Crosby would be for millions of freethinkers to Wyoming tendance at it very worthwhile. Texas January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 21

FFRF should target Shoring up legal fund state, federal level 2016 in review | Letters to the editor as important as ever As a “Lifer,” I am obviously a sup- Published 170 letters from 37 states plus D.C., and Doctors Without Borders Enclosed is a donation for your le- porter of our mutual goals. However, gal fund, a donation quite a bit larger as I have written before, I suggest that than my usual one. Seeing the results California 31 you step on the head, rather than the of the November election, I am skep- Florida 14 tail, of superstition. Surely you have tical that such donations might not New York 14 the means to go to the state or federal be legal much longer. Texas 9 level rather than battle the innumera- I am of the belief that if two or Arizona 8 ble school officials and the like. three Scalias are added to the Su- Maryland 8 On a related issue, I must confess preme Court, FFRF attorneys (and North Carolina 7 to — EGAD! — reading the bible, of their descendants) will be busy for Ohio 7 all things. I have found it fascinating, if the next 40 years. Pennsylvania 7 ludicrous. It has obviously been trans- Name withheld by request Wisconsin 6 lated so many times it makes no sense. California Michigan 5 My favorite section so far is the Song of New Mexico 5 Solomon. That is hot stuff by any stan- Washington 5 dards. “Your breasts are like two fawns, Virginia 4 Freethought Equality twins of a gazelle, browsing amongst Illinois 3 the lilies.” Or this corker: “Behold, you Fund thanks FFRF Massachusetts 3 are handsome, my beloved. Yes, pleas- Just reading my December issue Nevada 3 ant. Also, our bed is green.” “Your hair and came across your coverage of New Jersey 3 is like a flock of goats.” “Your neck like the Freethought Equality Fund’s Oklahoma 3 the tower of David!” endorsed candidates for 2016. Colorado 2 I wish I had thought up some of Thanks for recognizing us and our Connecticut 2 those lines as a teenager. candidates. Oregon 2 R.G. Huber I’m very proud of our efforts this Rhode Island 2 New Jersey year. We quintupled the number of South Dakota 2 Editor’s note: FFRF has published two open nontheists in state and federal Alabama 1 books about the bible: The Born Again Skep- elected office going from three to 15. Arkansas 1 tics Guide to the Bible by Ruth Hurmence However, we need 1,500 to 1,600 to Idaho 1 Green and Woe to the Women: The Bible reach equality with our numbers in Iowa 1 Tells Me So by Annie Laurie Gaylor. Visit the general population. Kentucky 1 our store online at shop.ffrf.org. We have a lot of work to do. Thanks Louisiana 1 again. Maine 1 Ron Millar Montana 1 Freethought Equality Fund Here’s a good way to North Dakota 1 Virginia upgrade to After-Lifer South Carolina 1 Tennessee 1 I am a Life Member. However, with Utah 1 the new administration coming in and Washington, D.C. 1 Help donate so couple the threats it poses to church-state West Virginia 1 separation, I thought of a neat way to can be Life Members DWB 1 upgrade folks like me to becoming an I was just reading the letter in the After-Lifer. I will plan to donate $1,250 December 2016 issue from Alton and additional each year so that at the end Marjorie Eliason, who noted that at of the administration’s four-year term, and approach the issues as a consolidat- Next time, try saying ages 99 and 101 they wish they could I’ll have given another $5,000. ed bloc, with division of labor as appro- spare the funds to become Lifetime We need you now more than ever! priate to achieve the ends needed, from ‘Merry ChristMyth’ Members of FFRF. Since I am already Name Withheld Upon Request demonstrations to litigation. In the December 2016 issue, our a Lifetime Member but continue to Editor’s note: Thank you for such a gen- To that end, leadership engage- member R.J. Turner tells us that it’s give, I am making a donation toward erous offer! Several members have become ments will be necessary, and so will OK to say “Merry Christmas” even if a Lifetime Membership for this cou- Lifetime Members ($1,000) or Afterlife cash. I am thus happily providing this you are an atheist, or he says you can ple. I hope others will do the same, so Members ($5,000) on the “installment donation to you with the promise of think of it by saying “Merry Krissmiss.” they can enjoy this special status be- plan.” Please be sure to inform FFRF with more as needed. But if I am exchanging greetings with fore they, as they so charmingly put it, each donation that it is an installment to- Never back down, never surrender, some fundamentalist friends at Christ- fertilize their lawn and garden. ward a Lifetime or Afterlife Membership, so never give up an inch. mas time, I will smile and say, “Have a Happy New Year! that our bookkeeping properly records it. It Chris Kramer Merry ChristMyth!” Isn’t that the point Joan Reisman-Brill cannot be designated retroactively. LTC, USA, Retired we’d like to make? Give it a try! New York Missouri Ted Utchen Illinois Think long term to Despite FFRF successes, Challenges to increase it’s not obvious to all help change beliefs State/church wall may You need this $1,000 donation more following election Thank you for all that you do. than ever! The next few years may be I want to give thanks to you and need more enforcement It is awesome. We loved the 2016 grim, but hopefully long-term changes the fine work that you do. With the Decades ago, a friend of mine in- “Review.” in people’s beliefs toward religion and outcome of the recent election, your troduced me to FFRF. I have enjoyed We often forget how much prog- reality will work in our favor. Think challenges will be all the greater. I ac- every issue of Freethought Today and ress is being made. Here in the South long term when frustrations build. cept it as my challenge, too, and am enthusiastically read it from cover to and Bible Belt, it’s not obvious. We’re Keep fighting the good fight. enclosing $500 to support your legal cover. always pulling for you and I tell peo- John Mosley efforts. I wish all of you the very best. In 2009, I became a Life Member ple about FFRF, but they don’t often After-Life Member Thomas L. Johnson because I value its mission of maintain- respond well. That’s because of where Utah California ing the separation of church and state. we live. The results of the latest presidential Judy Holder and Barry Parsons election are of particular concern for Florida Consolidate forces to Hope for humanity to me, and not only because of the lack of character of the president-elect. Just as stop the insanity be free from religion importantly, if the vice-president-elect Hope NY Times ad gets Once the baton of the presidency is I’m with you. I’m a staunch atheist, — self-described as first and foremost FFRF more members passed, it is time to prepare for battle. freethinker and have rejected Christi- a Christian — were to be elevated to At this point, it is clear that the anity and the great hoax it has pulled the office of the presidency, that wall I am enclosing a check for $5,000 game has changed and that we must on the human race. I think Christiani- between state and church would re- for FFRF’s Legal Defense Fund. The be ready for a protracted campaign ty is the biggest scam ever perpetrated! quire even more reinforcement. full-page New York Times ad was to block the insanity that is sure to be I would love to see all of humanity set Therefore, I am enclosing $5,000 brilliant! I hope that it will gener- attempted by the Trump administra- free from the enslavement of religion. for an After-Life membership in or- ate many new FFRF members who tion. We will need to litigate, demon- In the future, humanity will ad- der to aid your (our) legal efforts. I’m share a commitment to separation of strate, then litigate some more. And vance to the stars and other planets, assured this donation will be well uti- church and state. have more litigation in the wings free from the bondage of the gods lized because FFRF maintains a 4-star Fairfid Caudle ready to go. that have enslaved us. rating with Charity Navigator. FFRF Life Member I recommend that FFRF, along with Stacy Young George Snow State Representative other like-minded organizations, assess Tennessee California New York Page 22 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 BLACK COLLAR CRIME Compiled by Bill Dunn 12-19-16 George’s found multiple allegations against Corradi and Corbacho and the others all worked Carlos Zuniga, 51, Weslaco, TX: Driving while White at other posts in New Hampshire, West Vir- at the Antonio Próvolo Institute, a school for hear- intoxicated. Zuniga, pastor of St. Pius X Catholic ginia and North Carolina. He retired in 2006 but ing-impaired youths, and are accused of molest- Arrested / Charged Church, allegedly failed a field sobriety test after was serving as a weekend substitute before be- ing at least 8 students. police responded to a 1-vehicle accident about 11 ing removed from the priesthood in October by It’s also alleged that Italian survivor groups Balvantgiri Bapu, 70, Sambalpur, India: Sus- p.m. and found him in the front seat of his 2015 the Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania. told the Vatican in 2008 and 2014 about Corradi picion of murder. Bapu, a Hindu priest at Khodiyar Land Rover. Source: The Monitor, 12-19-16 Source: AP, 12-13-16 and others accused of molesting children at a sim- Temple, is accused by the son of Jasu Ratnakar, David Harrison, 58, Jerusalem: Multiple : Sexual ilar school in Verona. “It is appalling and heart- 55, of killing her and burning her body near the Terry W. Dobbs, 53, Yorktown, IN counts of rape, sodomy, sexual assault, assault misconduct with a minor, vicarious sexual grati- breaking that Corradi was not stopped by Pope temple compound. A motive was not released. and intimidation. The complainant, now 21, al- Francis or by other church authorities. Corradi’s Source: Times of India, 12-31-16 fication, child exploitation and child solicitation. leges assaults by the rabbi, a substitute teacher Dobbs, pastor at Old Fashion United Baptist presence at the school in Mendoza was no secret,” Rupert Clarke, 60, Maidstone, Jamaica: S­us- at Beit Shulamit, an all-girl high school, start- said Anne Barrett Doyle, co-director of BishopAc- picion of rape and carnal abuse. Clarke, pastor of Church, is charged with having sex with a 15-year- ed when she was 14 and continued for several countability.org. Source: Fox News Latino, 12-2-16 Nazareth Moravian Church, was allegedly found old girl from the congregation. months. and by police in a “compromising position” about 9 It’s alleged they kissed and fondled during Michael S. Holcomb, 41, Rayanne Car- She accuses him of forcing her once to take a p.m. in his vehicle with a girl who had just turned counseling sessions last summer at the church son, 33, St. Leonard, MD: Embezzlement/misap- “morning after” pill after raping her. He was fired 15. Source: Jamaica Gleaner, 12-29-16 and later had sex there 3 times in addition to ex- propriation and theft and theft scheme between in 2010 and denies the allegations, saying he Nicholas Kelley, 34, Lawrenceville, GA: Child changing nude photos of each other. Source: Star $10,000 and $100,000. Holcomb, pastor of Cross- doesn’t even know her. molestation, statutory rape and aggravated sex- Press, 12-9-16 road Christian Church, and bookkeeper Carson Harrison has spent his career as an educator ual battery. Kelley, middle school pastor at New Terrence S. Smalls, 26, Cockeysville, MD: were both fired last summer after allegedly steal- and has also performed ceremonies for people Bridges Church, is accused of having a year-long Sexual abuse of a minor. Smalls, a volunteer at ing about $80,000 from church accounts. Source: without a personal connection to a rabbi. Source: sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl from the Church of the Nativity, is accused of molesting SoMd News, 11-30-16 Jerusalem Post, 12-18-16 the church. The girl’s parents discovered the re- a 4-year-old girl in the bathroom of the Catholic Mohammad A. Wahid, 54, Queens, NY, and James V. McNeal, 39, Ardmore, AL: 2 counts lationship Dec. 26 after she secretly left her house parish’s day care during Mass on Nov. 27. Mohammed I. Kabir, 42, Bronx, NY: Conspira- of sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old. to be with Kelley, had a panic attack and was hos- Police said he’d also been a Girl Scout volunteer cy to commit forced labor, conspiracy to harbor McNeal, children’s minister at Bethlehem Baptist pitalized, police said. and elementary classroom assistant and adver- undocumented persons for financial gain and vi- Church in Hazel Green, “has been terminated and Jeff Lyle, a New Bridges lead pastor, said Kel- tised baby-sitting services for children under age 6 olating the Fair Labor Standards Act. The men al- isn’t allowed on the property,” said Lon Ostrzycki, ley is married with 3 children and was fired after on Sitter.com. Source: Baltimore Sun, 12-9-16 legedly forced employees to work for them at sub- admitting to “various levels of physical interac- standard pay at a halal chicken slaughterhouse in tion” with the girl. Source: Journal-Constitution, Perth Amboy, NJ, owned by Wahid. 12-28-16 Officials allege employees worked up to 100 Oscar Rodriguez-Gutierrez, 51, Stockton, hours a week for $290 in cash and had $40 deduct- CA: Suspicion of lewd or lascivious acts with a ed for living in a bug-infested building with no child younger than 14. He’s suspected of assault- heat or hot water. Halal practices govern prepara- ing a 12-year-old girl. Police wouldn’t say if she tion of meat slaughtered by Muslims prior to sale. belongs to the unidentified church off Waterloo Source: mycentraljersey.com, 11-29-16 Road where he is pastor. Source: Stockton Record, An unidentified Catholic priest in Chiautla, 12-28-16 Mexico, has been charged with vote pressuring, a Nelson Simoes, 56, Gondola, Mozambique: misdemeanor punishable by a fine. Prosecutors Child rape. Simoes, pastor of an African Apostol- said it’s the first time a priest has been charged ic Church congregation, is charged with marrying with such an offense. The priest allegedly bless- a 12-year-old girl in 2015 and making her his 6th ed 2 mayoral candidates at a Mass held to kick off wife. He reportedly has 23 children. their campaigns. Source: AP, 11-29-16 Simoes alleges he married her with her par- Babu Lal, 70, Baran, India: Forgery. Lal, a ents’ consent and paid them $55 after they orig- priest at a Hindu temple, is accused of receiving inally asked for $240. “We condemn this practice supplies with a ration card which he claimed was and he will be held criminally responsible,” said issued to him in 2015. The card bore the “popu- police spokesperson Elsidia Filipe. Source: allafri- lar names” of temple deities, which raised sus- ca.com, 12-23-16 picions, said a supply officer. Source: Times of Yitzchok I. Sofer, Brooklyn, NY: Benefit India, 11-28-16 fraud. Sofer, a lobbyist for the Central United Tal- Barry McGrory, 82, Ottawa, Ontario: 2 mudical Academy, is accused of filing false claims counts each of gross indecency and indecent as- to receive food stamps between 2013-16 and sault for offenses allegedly committed against wrongly collecting over $30,000. a 15-year-old boy in the late 1960s when McGro- Sofer oversees government relations for a ry was a Catholic seminarian. The complainant group of yeshivas that cater to the Orthodox Sat- came forward in September after a news story mar community called Aaronis, after Grand Rabbi about McGrory’s misdeeds as pastor of Holy Cross lead pastor. Aron Teitelbaum. Source: The Forward, 12-22-16 Wayne Buchanan, 62, Southwest Harbor, Parish in the 1970s and ’80s. One alleged victim, age not released, is in- Adrian R. Van Klooster, 74, Maddington, ME: Class C possession of sexually explicit ma- He was convicted in 1991 of sexually assault- volved, investigators said. Source: WHNT, 12-16-16 Australia: Possessing child exploitation material. terial. Buchanan resigned as pastor of Tremont ing a 17-year-old boy and received a suspended Shalom Lamm, 57, Bloomingburg, NY, Ken- Van Klooster, a former Catholic priest, allegedly Congregational Church and St. Brendan’s Angli- sentence and probation. The Archdiocese of Otta- neth Nakdimen, 64, Monsey, NY, and Volvy “Zev” had child porn on a CD. can Mission on Jan. 7, 2016, the day after police wa later settled with 2 of his victims at Holy Cross. Smilowitz, 28, Monroe, NY: Conspiracy to commit He was sentenced to prison in 2003 after seized his computers. Class C crimes involve vic- Another is now suing for $1.5 million. an offense against the United States, in particular pleading guilty to indecent acts with 2 boys and tims under age 12. McGrory has claimed he was healed of his sex to corrupt the electoral process by submitting 3 girls aged from 6 to 12 and served 5 years. Testi- The charge follows an almost year-long inves- addiction to adolescent males and females after false voter registrations, buying voter registra- mony alleged he slid around naked with children tigation by Maine State Police that started when “surrendering” himself to God after his 1991 ar- tions and offering bribes for voter registrations on a floor coated with olive oil and shampoo and a detective identified a computer “making avail- rest. Source: Ottawa Citizen, 11-27-16 and votes. Harold Baird, 60, former Mamakating possessed child porn in a file titled “Parish Busi- able” files that previously had been identified as Thomas J. Chantry, 46, Waukesha, WI: 5 town supervisor, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to ness.” Source: abc.net.au, 12-22-16 child pornography. Source: Mt. Desert Islander, counts of molestation of a child and 3 counts of submit false voter registrations. Kara K. Amundson-LaVenture, 42, and Mi- 12-8-16 aggravated assault. Chantry is accused of assaults It’s alleged Lamm orchestrated voter fraud in chael J. LaVenture, 45, Roberts, WI: 5 counts Kenneth L. Baker, 44, Ashland, OR: 2nd-de- on several minors in the 1990s and 2000-01 while Bloomingburg in a 2014 village election to ad- of felony theft. Amundson-LaVenture, treasurer gree unlawful sexual penetration, 3 counts of he was pastor of Miller Valley Baptist Church in vance his 396-unit Hasidic townhouse develop- at New Centerville United Methodist Church, also 1st-degree sexual abuse and 2 counts of 3rd-de- Prescott, AZ. Chantry was listed until recently as ment named Chestnut Ridge. After losing a 2013 is charged with unautho- gree sexual abuse. Baker was youth pastor at First pastor of Christ Reformed Baptist Church in Hales town supervisor reelec- rized identity use. It’s al- Baptist Church when the incidents are alleged be- Corners, WI. tion bid, Baird registered leged the couple was re- tween 2006-11, with at least 4 of them occurring One alleged victim, now 32, told police Chan- to vote in the village and sponsible for $167,551 in when the girl was younger than 14. try would spank him, “grope him, rub him and I didn’t have the vocabu- ran for a trustee seat de- unauthorized checks and Pastor Don Baldrica said Baker “revealed what make him sit on his lap” during tutoring sessions lary at 14 to describe what was spite not living there, $21,898 in missing cash he had done” to church leaders on Oct. 25 and when he was 9 or 10. He allegedly told the boy not going on. court papers said. from the church from “ was fired. Source: Mail Tribune, 12-5-16 to tell anyone “about his special lessons because — victim of deceased priest It’s also alleged peo- 2006-15. Church officials Galini J. Grant, 26, Pleasantville, Trinidad: he would not be able to teach everyone.” Source: ple from outside the vil- learned of the allegations Joseph Maskell Sexual penetration of a child, sexual touching of Daily Courier, 11-26-16 lage were bribed with in May 2015 but kept it a child, taking a child against her will for the pur- David R. Diehl, 39, Kentwood, MI: Child sex- money, subsidies and oth- secret until its insurer, pose of sexual intercourse and sexual grooming of ually abusive activity and using a computer to er items of value to entice Church Mutual, said it wouldn’t cover a claim un- a child. Grant, pastor of an unidentified church in commit a crime. Diehl, who works at a funeral them to vote. The conspirators allegedly backdat- less a police report was filed. Amundson-LaVen- San Fernando, was arrested after police respond- home and co-pastors Church on Fire with his wife ed lease agreements for uninhabited properties ture allegedly opened a credit card account in the ed to a call from residents who saw a uniformed in Grand Rapids, was arrested in a sting in which they owned, picked up mail from uninhabited church’s name and used the card at hotels, gas schoolgirl in his car. It’s alleged police found him an officer posing as a concerned Craigslist user homes and planted items like toothbrushes and stations and clothing stores, including Victoria’s having sex with the girl, 14, under an almond tree. warned about a fictional “Daddy Dave” trying to toothpaste to make unoccupied apartments ap- Secret. Source: Leader-Telegram, 12-20-16 Source: Trinidad Express, 12-5-16 “trick out” his daughters. pear lived in. Dong Wook Kim, 51, and Joo Seong Kim, 19, Daniel Carrel, 27, Missouri City, TX: Mul- “Diehl admitted there was a strong possibil- Bloomingburg, pop. 400, was supposedly tar- Minneapolis: Malicious punishment of a child and tiple counts of sexual assault of a minor. Carrel, ity he would have met with Daddy Dave for the geted for a Satmar (a Hasidic sect) community 2 counts of assault. The elder Kim, pastor of Good assistant pastor of Sienna Ranch Baptist Church, purpose of having sex with the 11-year-old girl if News Church, and his son are accused of beating expected to house thousands because it was the is accused of having sex at least 8 times with a there was zero chance of Diehl being arrested by a 12-year-old boy with a 2-by-4, a wooden closet smallest village in the state and occupancy would 14-year-old congregation member in the church, police or having to go to jail,” Detective Matthew rod and an electrical cord as religious discipline. give Hasidic residents control of local government. at her home and his and in his car parked in the McLanin said in an affidavit, adding that Diehl ex- Pastor Kim allegedly told police he struck Lamm has repeatedly slammed his opposi- woods near the church. Source: KIAH, 12-2-16 pressed “interest and curiosity” in children ages the boy over 20 times on Dec. 14 because he was tion as anti-Semitic. Mamakating Town Supervi- Tyler Simkus Smither, 30, Wilmington, NC: 12 and 13. upset that the boy said he “wanted to test God.” sor Bill Herrmann, who defeated Baird in 2013, Indecent liberties with a child. Smither, youth The church website says Diehl served in the The boy told authorities his 4-year-old sister was pooh-poohed the claim. “Obviously we’re not pastor at Harbor United Methodist Church, is U.S. Army for 18 years and now “operates with a also abused, the complaint said, and she was anti-Semites. Somebody’s guilty of fraud.” Source: accused of sending nude cellphone photos of gift of prophecy and has a heart for young adults taken into protective custody. Source: Star Tri- Times Herald-Record, 12-15-16 himself in November to a Florida boy, age 11. His and men’s ministry.” Source: mlive.com, 11-23-16 bune, 12-20-16 Howard “Howdy” White, 75, Bedford, PA: mother had enabled a parental control option on Christopher Stivers, 31, Struthers, OH: Sex- An unidentified imam, 45, Coventry, En- 5 counts of assault and battery. White is accused the phone and allegedly was able to connect the ual battery. Stivers, assistant pastor of Gospel gland: Child abuse. The man, imam at Noorul of sexual assaults on a 16-year-old boy in 1973 on number to Smither. Source: Star News, 12-2-16 Baptist Church, is accused of assaulting a 14-year- Islam Jamia Mosque, was arrested after West Mid- overnight trips to Boston while he was an Episco- Nicola Corradi, 82, Horacio Corbacho, 55, old girl from the congregation on Nov. 21. The lands police received a video allegedly showing pal priest at St. George’s School in Middletown, RI. and 3 unidentified men, Mendoza Province, church also operates a K-12 school, where Stivers him striking a child. Source: Coventry Telegraph, An investigator’s report about abuse at St. Argentina: Child sexual abuse. Catholic priests is principal. Source: WKBN, 11-23-16 January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 23

Xaiquiri A. Matthews, 28, Bishopville, SC: Hertlein was fired in July as a youth pastor at First Indecent exposure. Matthews, a pastor at First Baptist Church but wasn’t charged until now. Baptist Church, is accused of several incidents It’s alleged that while on a trip to a Christian in October and November when he was alleged- festival in June with his wife and several minors, ly seen exposing his genitals through his open Hertlein and a 15-year-old girl “went missing” for car door near the Coker College campus. Source: an extended time at night and returned together. WLTX, 11-22-16 Source: WPXI, 12-12-16 Harold A. Stewart, Prince Edward Island: Sean P. Aday, 39, Lake Forest, CA: 2 years in Fraud and participating in a criminal organiza- prison after pleading guilty to 2 felony counts of tion. Stewart, pastor of Kensington-New London sexual battery by restraint and 2 misdemeanor Presbyterian Church, and 5 others are accused of counts of sexual battery between 2008-15. Aday, defrauding a vulnerable person out of $325,000. A youth pastor at Grace Community Church, had 4 member of the group also allegedly attempted to female victims he assaulted on church proper- defraud a charitable organization out of $525,000. ty or on church trips overseas, prosecutors said. The charges come after ones lodged in May Source: LA Times, 12-9-16 that alleged Stewart and others who had be- Luis U. Carrasco-Reid, 54, Corpus Christi, TX: friended an 89-year-old widow took out a mort- 70 months in prison after pleading guilty to con- gage against her property and ran up credit card spiracy to possess with the intent to distribute a bills of $160,000. Source: Toronto Sun, 11-18-16 controlled substance. Carrasco-Reid, an ordained Michael Adeniran, 48, Abeokuta, Nigeria: deacon since 2014 at Corpus Christi Catholic Com- Sexual abuse of a minor. Adeniran, pastor of munity, allegedly received over $300,000 and was El-Bethel Church, is accused of impregnating a among 21 persons charged with trafficking tons of 15-year-old girl after taking her virginity on her marijuana across the U.S. starting in 2006. birthday in June. The girl’s mother is a church U.S. District Court Judge Frank Montalvo ac- member. Source: ynaija.com, 11-21-16 knowledged leniency pleas on Carrasco-Reid’s David Mathis, 54, Cleveland: Rape. Mathis, behalf but said he couldn’t ignore sentencing pastor of Courts of Praise Church in Collinwood, is guidelines just because he was in the ministry. accused of twice raping a 12-year-old girl at a mo- Source: El Paso Times, 12-8-16 tel in November after she had skipped school and Edwin Figarez, 42, Puthenvelikkara, India: was helping Mathis at the cafe he operates. The 2 life sentences for several rapes of a 14-year-old girl’s mother had reported her missing. Source: girl. Figarez, pastor of Lourdes Matha Catholic cleveland.com, 11-16-16 Church, fled to the United Arab Emirates after the Ronald W. Mitchell, 56, Magnolia, TX: Sex- allegations. ual assault of a child. Mitchell, pastor of Body of “It is pertinent to note that he has gone to ex- Christ Ministry, is accused of assaulting an un- tent of attributing bad character to the victim — a derage female church member. Apostle Mitchell, small girl,” Judge K.T. Nisar Ahammed said at sen- as he is known, now operates the church out of tencing. Source: NDTV, 12-8-16 his home due to financial reversals. Police said a Paul Endrei, 56, Avon, OH: 3 years’ probation “large cache of weapons and ammunition” were after pleading guilty to child endangerment. Sex- found in the home. Source: KTRK, 11-15-16 ual battery and gross sexual imposition charges were dropped due to “evidentiary issues” as part Pleaded / Convicted of a plea bargain. Endrei, senior pastor of Church on the Rise, agreed never to work again as a clergy Wade Malloy, 62, Stanley, NC: Pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Malloy, founding pastor of South- member. Lake Presbyterian Church in Huntersville, ad- Prosecutors alleged he started molesting his juvenile victim in 2005 and went on to have sexual mitted to embezzling between $500,000 and $1 cord, 12-1-16 Thomas B. Fleming, 67, Worcester, MA: contact with her in 2009-10 and 2013. In her victim million from the church and SouthLake Christian Joseph Hemmerle, 74, Louisville, KY: Guilty Pleaded guilty to money laundering. Fleming, a impact statement, the girl said Endrei groomed Academy. He now works as a salesman at Victory by jury of immoral or indecent practices with a retired Catholic priest, was accused of helping her and “taught me sex was good” and that she Chevrolet in Charlotte. child. Hemmerle, a retired Catholic priest and orchestrate an online dating scam in which wom- was treated as an outcast by her family and the His co-conspirator, Wayne C. Parker Jr., 59, high school teacher, was charged with molesting en were asked to send money, which ended up in church after coming forward. Source: Chroni- Mooresville, was sentenced in November to 5 Michael Norris, now 53, in 1973 when he ordered banking accounts he controlled and was forward- cle-Telegram, 11-18-16 years for fraud estimated to total $9 million from Norris to strip naked at a camp in Texas so he ed to Nigeria. David St. John, 59, Bristol, TN: 30 years in 2000-14 while he was school headmaster and could treat him for poison ivy. Under a plea agreement, he would serve no prison with no parole after pleading guilty to 3 chief financial officer. Testimony, including his own, showed he time beyond the 3 weeks he was jailed after his ar- counts of rape of a child and 6 counts of aggravat- Prosecutors alleged Parker stole an average of touched the victim with his hands and mouth and rest and would pay $90,000 restitution. However, ed sexual battery. St. John, pastor of the now-dis- $650,000 a year, including money parents donat- applied calamine lotion to the boy’s genitals. he claims to be indigent. He retired in 2014 during solved Bible Truth Baptist Church, was charged ed in memory of their dead child. Source: Char- “I feel vindicated,” Norris said. “That jury had the time the transactions took place. Source: Tele- with assaults in April on two 8-year-olds whose lotte Observer, 12-20-16 the same evidence that the Catholic Church had gram & Gazette, 11-17-16 families attended the church. Source: Times News, Paul A. Monahan, 83, Council Bluffs, IA: in 2001.” 11-18-16 Guilty of 5 aggravated misdemeanor counts of No charges were brought until another Sentenced Donald E. Mansell, 37, Salem, OR: 30 days invasion of privacy. Monahan, a retired Catholic accuser from the camp came forward in 2014. in jail and sex offender registration after plead- priest and high school principal, didn’t testify That trial is set for April. Source: Courier-Journal, Barry Dangerfield, 83, Brisbane, Australia: 3 ing guilty to 2 counts each of misdemeanor ha- at his 3-day bench trial. Five males testified that 11-29-16 years in prison suspended after pleading guilty to rassment and 3rd-degree sexual abuse. Mansell, while at a track meet in April, Monahan entered Raymond S. Cheek, 84, Western Australia: 11 counts of indecent acts. Dangerfield was pas- director of financial operations, athletic director the restroom 9 times and stood at the urinal next Guilty of committing an act of gross indecency tor of Toogoolawah Uniting Church in the 1960s and boy’s basketball coach at Livingstone Ad- to them despite others being open and stared and 2 counts each of indecent assault and inde- when the offenses involving a 12-year-old boy oc- ventist Academy, was accused of inappropriately down at their genitals. cent dealings with a child. Cheek, an Anglican curred, including mutual masturbation and oral touching 2 students between 2010-13. His doctor testified that Monahan has bladder priest and parish Scout leader before being de- sex, sometimes during driving lessons. Source: Ron Sayer, an attorney representing the fe- issues and needs to urinate often. His attorney frocked in 2014, was accused of multiple assaults Queensland Times, 12-22-16 male victims, called the sentence a tragic mis- stated Monahan looks down a lot because of a on boys between 1955-85. Mohammed al-Khaled Samha, 58, Volls- carriage of justice. “I don’t think it’s a good thing “crick” in his neck. One man testified that on his first day as an al- mose, Denmark: 14 days in jail suspended for vi- for our society when a teacher can do that kind of In his decision, Associate Judge Gary Ander- tar boy in 1976, Cheek stripped him naked except olating the racism law in his 2004 mosque sermon thing and get a light sentence.” son said Monahan “intentionally violated these for his shoes and socks and touched his genitals calling Jews “children of apes and pigs.” Samha, One victim filed a civil suit in May seeking boys’ reasonable expectations of privacy for the with his hands and the tassels of his cincture. a Syrian-born imam, in an earlier sermon in Ger- $5.25 million from the Seventh Day Adventist purpose of satisfying his sexual desires while the The man alleged it happened every Sunday for many called for the death of Zionist Jews. “Count Church. Source: Statesman Journal, 11-16-16 boys were in a state of partial nudity.” Source: Dai- several years but Cheek referred to the bible and them and kill them to the very last one. Don’t Leslie Sheahan, 85, Ballarat, Australia: 4 ly Nonpareil, 12-16-16 said it was tradition for a priest to dress an altar spare a single one of them.” Source: AP, 12-20-16 months in jail for an indecent assault conviction Corey MeGill Brown, 47, Brunswick, GA: boy that way. “He seemed Tiffanie Irwin, 30, involving a girl while he was assistant pastor of Pleaded guilty to mail fraud for embezzling to be very convincing as New Hartford, NY: 12 St. Columba’s Catholic Church in the 1960s. The more than $200,000 from Second African Bap- to reasons why he did it.” Shame on the General years in prison on con- victim testified she awoke to find Sheahan in her tist Church, where he was senior pastor. The Source: ABC Online, 11- victions for manslaughter Assembly. The children are bedroom and was forced to masturbate him when government dropped 63 other counts as part of 27-16 and assault. Irwin, pastor she was 9 or 10. a plea bargain, which recommends a maximum Lonny Remmers, “watching. And I for one do not of Word of Life Christian He was sentenced in July to 6 months after 28-month sentence and restitution. Brown also 58, Corona, CA: Pleaded like what they are seeing. Church, was accused of pleading guilty to 2 similar assaults on girls but coordinated the Savannah-Chatham Police De- guilty to conspiracy to calling a 2015 church the sentence was suspended. In 2015 he served partment’s chaplain program from 2010-14. commit wire fraud by so- — Justice William O’Neill, who counseling session that 3 months for assaulting a girl with a carrot in the Source: jacksonville.com, 12-2-16 liciting $2 million from an dissented in a ruling where abuse led to the death of Lucas 1970s. Source: The Courier, 11-16-16 Timothy D. Miller, 40, Managua, Nicaragua: Ohio investor and using victims were not properly Leonard, 19, and severe Jonas J. Moses Jr., 63, Brimley, MI: 45 to 70 Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit interna- $660,000 of it for personal injury of Christopher compensated years in prison after being found guilty by jury of 7 tional parental kidnapping. Miller, a Mennonite expenses. Two co-defen- Leonard, 17. counts of criminal sexual conduct involving teens missionary, admitted buying plane tickets to dants also made pleas. Joseph Irwin, her as young as 13 from Anishinabe Baptist Church in Nicaragua for Lisa Miller (no relation) and her Remmers, founder of Heart of Worship Com- brother, was sentenced to 8 years for gang assault Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, where Moses was pastor. 7-year-old daughter in 2009 so she could avoid munity Church, also agreed to pay unspecified and assault. Co-defendant Bruce Leonard, father His first trial in June ended in a hung jury. Source: sharing custody with her former same-sex partner restitution. He and his wife declared bankruptcy of the victims, admitted to whipping his sons with Evening News, 11-16-16 in Vermont. in 2010. He was convicted in 2014 of inflicting cor- an electrical cord and was sentenced to 15 years. Joined by a civil union in Vermont, Janet Jen- poral injury on a child and assault with a dead- Source: Rome Sentinel, 12-19-16 Civil Lawsuits Filed kins and Lisa Miller separated in 2003, with custo- ly non-firearm weapon for using pliers during a Jeffrey D. Brown, 37, Morris, AL: 20 years in dy given to Miller and visitation rights to Jenkins. bible study to pinch the nipple of a 13-year-old prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in The Catholic Diocese of Kamloops, BC, and When Miller moved to Virginia, she joined a boy who had reportedly assaulted his own sister. the 2015 death of Michael Reese, who was found retired priest Lindo Molon are defendants in a conservative Christian church and tried to stop Source: Press-Enterprise, 11-22-16 shot in the back of the head in his home. His wife, suit filed by Rosemary Anderson, who alleges she visits by Jenkins. A court intervened and, before Eliezer Berland, 79, a Hasidic rabbi who fled Cindy Kaye Henderson Reese, 41, was convicted was sexually exploited for 8 months in 1976-77 Miller fled with her daughter, was considering Israel in 2013 and was extradited from S. Africa, of his murder and awaits sentencing. while teaching at Our Lady of Perpetual Help by transferring custody to Jenkins. Source: Buffalo pleaded guilty to assault and 2 counts of indecent Prosecutors alleged Brown, former senior pas- Molon, her supervisor at the elementary school. News, 12-1-16 acts. Under a tentative plea deal, he would receive tor at Sardis Baptist Church, and music minister Anderson alleges Molon was transferred after Christopher J. Remaly, 30, Washington an 18-month sentence, including time served in Cindy Reese, were having an affair and that Brown she complained and that then-Bishop Adam Ex- Township, PA: Pleaded guilty to sexual assault. jail since July, for molesting an adult woman and orchestrated the murder. They were living togeth- ner “demanded that she leave the diocese under Remaly was youth pastor at an Easton-area an underage girl. er when arrested and he testified against her as threat of slander and harassment by the educa- church which authorities will not identify when he Berland, founder of Shuvu Bonim yeshiva in part of a plea bargain. Source: WVTM, 12-12-16 tion committee that governed the plaintiff’s em- was arrested in 2014 for sexual encounters with a Jerusalem, is also accused of instructing disciples Zachary Hertlein, 25, Fairchance, PA: Cor- ployer.” Source: Kamloops This Week, 12-29-16 girl from his youth group who was 15. He was a to harm anyone who tried to expose his crimes. ruption of minors, indecent assault without con- The Anglican Diocese of Brandon, Manitoba, married father of 2 at the time. Source: Daily Re- Source: Arutz Sheva, 11-19-16 sent and indecent assault of a person less than 16. is being sued by a Winnipeg man, 53, who alleges Page 24 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017

he was molested in the late 1960s or early 1970s Child Sexual Abuse that covers the last 6 decades. by a now-deceased priest in the town of The Pas. None of the alleged perpetrators were reported to The claim states the priest performed or attempt- police. ed explicit sex acts with the plaintiff when he was The church’s responses to abuse allegations under age 10 in the rectory and church basement. often mirror those of the Catholic Church and Source: CBC, 12-26-16 some Orthodox Jewish communities, although The Catholic Archdiocese of Santa Fe is be- Jehovah’s Witnesses have no paid clergy. The ing sued by 7 men who allege they were molested Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York as children in the early 1960s by Hubert C. Lom- has instructed elders to hide allegations from law me, pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Las enforcement and church members, the report Vegas, NM. Lomme died in 1986 at age 79. Source: said. Source: Washington Post, 11-28-16 The New Mexican, 12-20-16 Lethebo Rabalago, Polokwane, South Afri- Manfred Malagon, Elgin, IL, the United Pen- ca, pastor of Mt. Zion General Assembly, allegedly tecostal Church International and the Interna- sprayed pesticide on parishioners to heal them of tional Christian Fellowship are being sued for various afflictions, including cancer, ulcers and HIV/ $450,000 by a woman who alleges she was sexual- AIDS. Photos of the service were posted on “Proph- ly assaulted by Malagon, her pastor. Sarai Malag- et” Rabalago’s Facebook page. on, his wife, is a co-defendant. Tiger Brands, which manufactures Doom, The pastor is accused of sending the woman called the practice “alarming” in a statement. text messages with photos of animal genitalia “[We] want to make very clear that it is unsafe to and of making repeated and unwanted sexual spray Doom or any aerosol onto people’s faces.” advances and calling her a prostitute and a witch Source: BBC, 11-21-16 during sermons before excommunicating her. Christopher Carwile, Memphis, TN, was Sarai Malagon allegedly told church members placed on paid leave as a city library employee the plaintiff was “seducing all the men in the after it was made public that he was fired 18 years church,” including her husband. Source: Sun- ago as youth pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church Times, 12-16-16 for alleged sexual assaults on 3 teen boys. The The Jewish Theological Seminary and its church never reported the allegations to police sometimes with little food and few breaks. The girl’s lawyers argued that the limit is un- National Ramah Commission, New York City, and Carwile went on to work at another church. “Behind a veil of secrecy in Southern Utah’s constitutional when applied to child sex-abuse are being sued by “John Doe,” who alleges he was Michael Hansen alleges he was 16 and Carwile desert country, the defendants profited from the victims because it deprives them of adequate molested at a Wingdale, NY, camp as a 13-year-old was 20 when Carwile invited him to stay overnight labor of a religious community’s children,” U.S. compensation for a lifetime of mental trauma. in 1972. The commission is the coordinating body at his parents’ home after bible study. “He said sleep District Judge Tena Campbell wrote. Defense at- Williams had been accused of sexual misconduct of the camping arm of Conservative Judaism and in my bed because the oils from your skin will get on torneys claimed children were glad to get a break twice before with teen girls. oversees a network of Ramah camps in North the couch and on the carpet.” from school to gather nuts for the needy. Justices Paul Pfeifer and William O’Neill dis- America and Israel. Hansen said he and his brother and the oth- Attorney Karen Bobela said Paragon has deep sented and said damage amounts should come The plaintiff, a Westchester businessman, dis- er teen told Immanuel pastor Scott Payne. “The connections to sect leader , serving from juries, not legislators. Pfeifer wrote that covered earlier this year that his alleged abuser, Warren Jeffs church’s attitude was we fired him and that’s a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting caps were “designed to protect doctors and cor- camp counselor Harvey Erlich, was later accused good enough.” girls he considered brides. Source: AP, 12-8-16 porate interests.” of molesting 4 other boys and pleaded guilty in The accusers and a victim support group are The has O’Neill added, “This child was raped in a 2015 to 3 counts of gross indecency in Canada, Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore calling for the Mid-South Baptist Association to settled out of court with about a dozen plaintiffs church office by a minister and a duly empaneled where there’s no statute of limitations. “denounce, discipline and publicly remove Rev. alleging sexual abuse as far back as the 1950s jury established an appropriate level of compen- “This is what enrages me more than anything Scott Payne” from any posts. Source: Commercial by , a now-deceased priest sation for loss of her childhood innocence. We else,” said Doe, a father of 3. “The fact is this went A. Joseph Maskell Appeal, 11-18-16 and teacher at Archbishop Keough High School. have the right to interfere with that process. on for years and nobody stopped it.” He accuses Spokesman Sean Caine confirmed that “settle- Shame on the General Assembly. The children Erlich, 18 at the time, of forcing him to perform Removed / Resigned ments with victims of Joseph Maskell have been are watching. And I for one do not like what they oral sex. Source: The Forward, 12-14-16 ongoing since at least 2011.” Most amounts were are seeing.” Paul F. Angelicchio, Rome, NY, pastor of St. Terrance Herzberg, 67, Hackettstown, NJ, for- not available, Caine said. Minority House Democrats’ bill to exempt sex- John the Baptist and Transfiguration Parish, has mer pastor of Gethsemane Lutheran Church, is be- Most but not all of the victims are women. ual abuse victims from the cap last session was been placed on administrative leave “due to an al- ing sued for sexual harassment and allegedly taking Donna Von Den Bosch, 60, Reading, PA, who re- defeated. Source: Columbus Dispatch, 12-14-16 legation of abuse of a minor. The alleged incident upskirt photos of his administrative assistant. The ceived $35,000 in September, alleged she was , found- would have taken place 27 years ago,” said a state- church, which accelerated his planned retirement Fred Neulander, 75, Cherry Hill, NJ raped multiple times over er of M’kor Shalom syna- ment from the Catholic Diocese of Syracuse. in the wake of allegations, is also a defendant. The the course of 3 years by gogue, was denied an ap- Onondaga County D.A. William Fitzpatrick Warren County Prosecutor’s Office didn’t immedi- Maskell in the 1970s. She peal hearing by the state said no physical contact by the priest is alleged ately comment. said she told a nun at her This is what enrages me Supreme Judicial Court and he won’t be charged. While standing in her office June 27, the wom- school she didn’t want to more than anything else. The on his 2002 conviction Danielle Cummings, diocesan communica- an alleged she “felt Herzberg’s presence close be- see Maskell because he fact is this went on for years for the contract murder tions director, said the church “must conduct a hind her,” so she turned and saw him straighten- “ canonical process beyond any criminal investiga- was “evil,” but the nun of his wife in 1994. He’s ing up and holding a camera. and nobody stopped it. brushed her off. “I didn’t serving a sentence of 30 tion to ensure that no church law has been vio- After she gave a statement, police had her call — victim who was molested at a have the vocabulary at years to life. The 2 killers lated. While in this process, we are not providing Herzberg to ask several questions they provided. 14 to describe what was religious camp when he was 13 served 23-year terms and more detail of the allegation.” Source: Observer In the recorded conversation, he allegedly admit- going on.” are free. Dispatch, 12-12-16 ted taking photos of her and other women wear- Maskell wasn’t re- The prosecution al- Australian Catholic priest Thomas Knowles ing skirts. Source: Daily Record, 11-25-16 moved from the ministry until 1994. Source: Bal- leged Neulander’s motive was to continue an ex- has been defrocked and the church has agreed to Guam’s Catholic Archdiocese and several timore Sun, 11-15-16 tramarital affair with another woman. He based a confidential settlement with Jennifer Herrick for priests have now been sued by 15 plaintiffs for his appeal on the contention that witnesses lied Knowles’ 14-year sexual relationship with her de- sexual abuse. Anthony Vegafria, now 56, alleges Finances about his connection to the crime, an argument cades ago. She sued him and 3 other members of Fr. Louis Brouillard molested him from 1971-74, lower courts all rejected. Source: nj.com, 12-7-16 the Order of the Congregation of the Blessed Sac- including during Boy Scouts weekend activities, The Catholic Swiss Bishops Conference has , had his rament after the church investigated in 2011 and and that he was forced to watch Brouillard assault created a reparations fund of $495,000 for vic- Richard Shahan, 55, Homewood, AL murder trial, first set for April 2016, rescheduled cleared Knowles. his friend, now deceased. tims of clergy sex abuse who no longer can seek to start May 15. Shahan was children and families Herrick was a shy, 19-year-old with hip dys- Bruce Diaz, 47, alleges Brouillard molest- legal redress due to the statute of limitations. pastor and facilities director at First Baptist Church plasia when she met Knowles, who repeatedly ed him from 1976-80 as an altar boy and Scout: Since 2010, 223 persons (49 who were under when he was accused of the 2013 stabbing death of exploited her vulnerability as a disabled and sex- “The sexual abuse included oral copulation. This age 12 when molested) have informed church his wife Karen in their home. ually naive parishioner, the suit alleged. “I don’t happened about four times a week on parish authorities of alleged abuse. Most took place be- He was arrested Jan. 1, 2014, while boarding believe for a minute that the hierarchy of religious grounds.” His suit names about 50 defendants tween 1950-90. a plane to Germany. It’s alleged he was involved orders or the diocese had any grasp of what abuse who allegedly abetted, concealed or covered up “The sin has several levels: the abusive act, in several relationships with men in Europe and of positional power really does to parishioners. the abuse. the complicit silence and the lack of assistance to Nashville, TN. Source: al.com, 11-15-16 Their conduct has been to delay, procrastinate, the victims,” said Msgr. Charles Morerod. Individ- Brouillard, 95, now living in Minnesota, re- make things as difficult as possible.” Source: abc. leased a signed statement Oct. 3 admitting to ual dioceses will also contribute separately to the Allegations net.au, 12-7-16 abusing at least 20 boys. Source: Pacific Daily fund. Source: AFP, 12-5-16 Shimshon Yurkowicz, rabbi of Chabad Mal- News, 11-22-16 Legal Developments Hosea Stubblefield, 32, Houston, the recent- vern in Melbourne, resigned from the Orthodox Civil Lawsuits Settled ly divorced pastor of Salem Missionary Baptist Rabbinic bodies in Australia. He was earlier forced Gregorio Martinez, 49, Jersey City, NJ, Church, is refusing requests to resign after video out as a trustee at the Yeshivah Centre, coming The Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle settled had his sentencing for a 2015 sexual assault of a surfaced of him having sex with several women under fire for failing to stop child sexual abuse. a suit with “A.W.” for $950,000 on her negligence 13-year-old boy delayed until March 24. A prose- while he was married. “B. Coll” posted several Source: J-Wire, 12-6-16 claim related to her alleged rape as a 10-year-old cutor told the judge that Martinez, a Pentecostal clips online in which she was a participant. James M. Day, Brussels, was banned for life in 1983 at St. John the Evangelist School by custo- preacher who speaks in tongues, apparently tried “We’ve actually seen the video and verified it from the ministry by the Church of England for dian Charles Siddons, who died in 1997. He was to obliterate his fingerprints because when he is Stubblefield with members of the congregation, “conduct unbecoming and inappropriate”. He convicted of a lesser sexual assault charge after was arrested in August in Honduras, his fingers but the video is too explicit to show,” said a state- was ordained in 2004. A tribunal for the Diocese pleading guilty and admitting to digitally pene- and thumbs were bloodied and bandaged. He ment from Fox 26. In an interview with the station, of Europe considered evidence against Day, who trating the plaintiff. met his victim through the church. Stubblefield admitted he made as many as 10 sex is also a psychology professor at the Université “A.W. filed this lawsuit against the Archdiocese Martinez fled after being convicted. Superi- tapes over a 10-year period. Catholique de Louvain, that included 4 memo- because it knew that Chuck, nicknamed ‘Chester or Court Judge John Young Jr. ordered him held Craig Davis, head deacon and church trustee, ry sticks with pornographic images and explicit the Molester’ by students, was fondling students’ without bail. “It’s obvious Mr. Martinez, but for the said his daughter dated Stubblefield. “Disgusting, emails about his gay liaisons. breasts, slapping their butts, looking up their extraordinary effort of law enforcement to secure I trusted and believed. I had been working with Birte Day, his estranged wife, alleged in testimo- skirts, and dry-humping them in his office,” the his return, had no intention of coming back. If giv- him for over a year before he became our pastor.” ny that he choked her with a scarf and spit in her complaint said. “Yet despite the overwhelming en the opportunity, he would again leave.” Source: Christian Post, 12-29-16 face and that she discovered about 50 videos of men notice evidence, the Archdiocese never took any He also faces charges for alleged assaults on Shimon Garelick, Nahariya, Israel, had his and women in orgy scenes and at least 100 sketches meaningful steps to protect A.W. and the other 3 other teens who came forward after his convic- rabbinic license revoked by a disciplinary com- of naked women being tortured and burned. Source: children from him.” tion. Source: ABC, 12-23-16 mittee in response to allegations of sexual abuse The Telegraph, 10-27-16 Allegations about Siddons’ behavior date Brian L. Williams, 54, Delaware, OH, has against girls, boys, men and women while serving An unidentified northern Israel rabbi had from the early 1970s. A.W.’s mother, parish secre- finished an 8-year prison term for sexual battery as a neighborhood rabbi, kashrut (kosher) super- his certification revoked by the ethics committee tary at the time, testified she complained at least while he was pastor at Grace Brethren Church visor and hospital chaplain. of the Israeli Chief Rabbinate after sexual harass- 20 times to no avail. The archdiocese filed several in 2008 but his 15-year-old victim won’t collect Accusations date back many years, while ment complaints were filed against him. No crim- motions for dismissal, all of which were denied. the $3.6 million the jury awarded her. The Ohio some are more recent. Garelick, a father of 11, was inal charges have been filed and a police investi- Source: National Catholic Report, 12-16-16 Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that detained in 2007 but was released without being gation is closed. Paragon Contractors, which has ties to the a 2005 statutory cap on noneconomic damag- charged. Police have closed all cases against him. The committee report said the acts involved Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Lat- es limits “pain and suffering” compensation to Source: Times of Israel, 12-17-16 “behavior unsuited to a rabbi” and contravened ter-day Saints, was ordered to pay $200,000 in $250,000. Jehovah’s Witnesses in Australia abused Jewish law even though they didn’t constitute a back wages to children as young as 6 who were Overall, the girl received $311,400 and her fa- more than 1,000 children, said a report by the criminal act. Source: Arutz Sheva, 10-26-16 forced to pick pecans in 2012 in cold weather, ther was awarded $75,000. Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Email: [email protected] January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 25 Adventures with my atheist cap By Carl Scheiman about these encounters before, and then he finally saw for himself. This t all began a couple years ago, with morning we stood in line at the cafe, the purchase of an “Out of the Closet and an ear-to-ear smiling woman with IAtheist” cap from FFRF. I wore it occa- her husband told me, “I like that.” sionally, but only when my wife (who is a The majority of times, though, the Christian) was not with me. I got into the comments come not from intellectu- habit of wearing it to Sunday morning als, but, to my surprise, blue collar and meetups with another atheist friend. My service workers, Lincoln’s “common friend didn’t feel comfortable with my man,” and women, of all ages. This may “advertising.” Neither did I. Then one seem odd, because atheists normally summer day, wearing my cap, I went to appeal to reason rather than to emo- a yard sale. The man behind the table tions, to the intellect rather than the looked up and said, “Good for you!” We nitty-gritty of practical, everyday life, had a few words together, and I went on and to cold and not warm science, to my way, still wearing the cap. make their points. But, thinking back Eventually, I became comfort- on the rational and questioning influ- able with being openly atheist, so I ences in my own life, which led me to popped it on my head whenever I was atheism, I notice that most of them out alone. No harm done, and all the originated with my fellow blue collar, while nonconfrontational and upbeat. practical thinking co-workers. (At a church sale, a woman once asked I’ve come to think “the cap” speaks me, “Do you wear that to every church for them. So, even though it becomes sale?” I responded, “I wear it every- a pain sometimes, I think about their where.”) My policy became, “Don’t feelings. I think also of those others: speak unless you’re spoken to.” This Carl Scheiman shows off his “U.S. Atheist” cap, which replaced his “Out of the the many who suffer and die defending has proven very workable. Closet Atheist” cap. what I so (flagrantly) aver. They are pay- One Sunday, instead of driving my ing with their loss of safety, paying with wife to church and picking her up af- evil. I didn’t say a word, but wondered “thank you.” Some months before this, their imprisonment and even their lives terwards, the situation was reversed. what this boy thought of avoiding an or- same place, the girl student behind the — and why? For merely pointing out She came to the cafe looking for me, dinary, bland and smiling guy like me. counter, ditto. A middle-aged man at the emperor has no clothes. They are, and caught me wearing “the cap.” OK, I hope his father’s “lesson” backfired. the supermarket made a beeline over to tragically, ignored by our worldwide me- deep breath. She already knew I was an After some years, the cap was a well- say he also is an atheist, right in front of dia. In a way, I speak for them, too. atheist; that she accepted years ago. No worn veteran, and FFRF didn’t sell his young son, and shook my hand. Encountering so many people who words were said about it, but if I remem- it anymore. (They do now.) A local Another time, the man behind the understand have been special experi- ber correctly, I thought, “Ah, well, it’s shop offered t-shirt/jacket embroidery deli counter, same market, said, “By ences. My ultimate hope is to someday too late now,” and we walked off togeth- services, including caps. It took some the way, I like your cap.” And then live in a world where a cap like mine is er, me with the cap on. We continued thought to decide on “U.S. Atheist.” there were the two senior ladies, vol- not commented on at all, but univer- going out like that. Since then, I’ve kept If anyone asked, I could always say it’s unteering behind the counter at the sally accepted. I want a world desired it in the car, so wherever we go I put it because I’m a veteran. I detest the at- library. When I walked in, one called by every freedom-loving human being, on automatically when exiting. titude that only Christian soldiers are out, “Come and look at this!” It’s nice where someone is neither praised nor Throughout the years, there was patriots. How many making that claim to help make someone’s day. At the damned for wearing a cap that says only one negative reaction. We were actually served their country? cafe, people come up to tell me they’re “atheist,” a world where freedom of visiting relatives in another state a few Recently, when we were leaving the glad to see those words; judging by speech is the first freedom honored in years ago. While I was standing in a local McDonald’s, a woman walked over their demeanor, they’re intellectuals every country. Until then, the cap stays. pharmacy check-out line, a young man to say, “I like your hat.” That reaction has who are passing through, who I don’t Carl Scheiman is an FFRF Lifetime pointed at me and told his son I was been going on for years now. I always say expect to see again. I’d told my friend Member from Maine. Will my marriage be constitutional? This article originally ran in the Raleigh full Obergefell opinion. Long before outgoing North Car- News & Observer. High court cases don’t hinge on de- olina Gov. Pat McCrory joined hands cisive moments: a rhyming couplet, a with preachers in support of House By Jimmy Holcomb glove, shrunken from dry-rot, forced Bill 2, our state’s legislative leaders triumphantly onto a hand. It’s more stood with preachers condemning my recently married a man. For us, the like Debate Club. Justice Anthony Ken- marriage. Now, on grounds of religion, strange words haven’t settled in nedy argues that my marriage is valid my Orange County officials can legally fully: “husband,” “spousal benefits,” because this vital social institution “re- refuse to perform same-sex marriages. I“married filing jointly.” sponds to the universal fear that a lone- Our Hillsborough magistrate didn’t The Supreme Court’s 2015 Oberge- ly person might call out only to find refuse, but the marriage certificate we fell v. Hodges decision giving me the no one there.” The dissenting justices were given tells us our “Holy Matrimo- “equal protection” of marriage solved condemned the majority’s reasoning ny” is “According to the Ordinance of the problem largely by side-stepping as loopy, insisting that the definition of God.” Troubled by the contradiction, the largest, most vocal part of it: the marriage is universal and unchanging: I’ve worked with our Register of Deeds religious objectors. For these passion- a man and a woman uniting solely for to have the language for all future cer- ately displeased residents, the court the purpose of child-rearing. tificates changed to something less re- has destroyed forever the idea of mar- So, we never have proof of consti- ligious, more constitutional. My own riage and the free exercise of religion. tutionality, only opinions of it, and First Amendment Defense Act. This momentous court action cured Jimmy Holcomb opinions change. The person who Marriage, bathrooms, abortion, the current malady, but as we’ve seen vour the anti-establishment clause and keeps me from calling out in loneli- vaccinations: Cries of religious freedom with Roe v. Wade, if we don’t finish the everything else in its path. Jim Crow ness agrees, we needed more than are increasing. The Bill of Rights, course of the antibiotic, a super-viru- could really have had legs if segrega- the right to life-partnership and com- created to protect the minority from lent bacterium returns — mutant. tionists had discovered this super-reli- mitment ceremonies. We’d watched the majority, contains two religion And here it is: House Bill 2802, the gious liberty earlier. Mary, at Downton Abbey, debunk re- clauses, both essential. Whatever federal First Amendment Defense Act, Will my marriage last? Probably. Will peatedly the idea of one universal and happens in November, it’s imperative insisting that your right to discriminate my right to marriage outlast religious unchanging definition of marriage. that the high court take an opportunity outweighs my right not to be discrimi- liberty? A red election, a retiring jus- We wanted the right to lock eyes across soon to remind legislators, judges nated against, as long as you mention tice — courts will decide — and things a crowded room, have three Martinis and citizens of Thomas Jefferson’s religion. Civil rights with an asterisk. could get ugly. I never wanted an un- and drive to Vegas to get hitched. We extraordinary, critical insight: America Void where prohibited. This act ap- constitutional marriage, lumped in wanted the right to marry for health guarantees the right to preach, protest plies specifically to views on marriage, with Bowers and Dred Scott — notori- insurance, or to expand our goat and debate our deeply held beliefs, but, if passed, we can assume it will ous court decisions, later overturned, herd, or, indeed, for love, just like because we’re only required to act, not be applied eventually to all “culture that get frowny faces on social media. millions of couples before: Teenag- think, in accordance with the law. war” issues. Inject the First Amend- Desperate for proof that James Madi- ers. Eighty-year-old sweethearts. King FFRF Member Jimmy Holcomb of Efland, ment’s free-exercise clause with per- son himself would be shouting “Love Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Well, N.C., is a member of the Triangle Free- formance-enhancers and watch it de- Wins!” I had an espresso and read the maybe not them. thought Society, an FFRF chapter. Page 26 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017 IN MEMORIAM Noted botanist Hugh Iltis helped get DDT banned

Life Member Hugh Iltis, 91, died Dec. 16, 2016, in Madison, Wis. Hugh was a renowned University of Wisconsin–Madison plant geogra- pher, educator, conservationist and mentor to botany students. He was a co-founder of the Wis- consin branch of the Nature Con- servancy in 1960 and inspired other projects in Wisconsin, Hawaii and Mexico. Hugh was born in Brno, Czecho- slovakia, in 1925. His father, Hugo, a Polly with her grandchildren, Juliana and Owen Jesse Rothstein. botanist and educator, wrote the de- finitive biography of Gregor Mendel, Polly Rothstein was abortion, the founder of genetics. Hugh graduated from the Univer- Hugh Iltis sity of Tennessee and then earned a health-care rights activist Ph.D. in botany from the Missouri annual guest lecture in my biodiver- Life Member Polly Rothstein, an regularly called and surveyed about Botanical Garden. In 1955, he joined sity class was always packed with gibes abortion rights activist, died in her their opinions on abortion. the Botany Department at UW–Madi- at religious leaders for opposing home Nov. 13 at age 80. “What Polly saw, and the women son as director of the herbarium. population control, politicians for Rothstein, who co-founded the with whom she founded this organiza- He then got involved in ecological shortsighted, environmentally dam- White Plains-based Westchester Co- tion saw, is that Westchester is the bell- consciousness and, in 1968, helped aging worldviews, industry for being alition for Legal Abortion in 1972 wether for this state,” said Catherine make Wisconsin the first state in the greedy, and anyone else for being ig- — shortly after the state Legislature Lederer-Plaskett, president and chair- nation to ban the pesticide DDT. norant. He finished each lecture by voted to overturn a law that made woman of WCLA-Choice Matters. “Her Stanley Temple, UW–Madison admonishing students ‘to be a good abortion legal in 1970, and a year be- unbelievable legacy is that she recog- Beers-Bascom Professor Emeritus ancestor’ and leave a better world for fore the U.S. Supreme Court made nized the power of the vote in this issue in Conservation, told David Tenen- future generations. Hugh’s life was abortion legal nationwide — was and she created a fundamental grass- baum, science writer for UW: “His certainly guided by that maxim.” known for her persistence, passion roots strategy.” and pursuit of women’s health care Around 2000, Rothstein suffered a rights. spinal cord injury that left her with- Joseph Padula made ‘world better’ Rothstein was born to Sylvia and out feeling from her sternum down. FFRF donor Joe Padula died May music (especially Mozart), art, Harold Wittenberg on Oct. 13, 1936, She often used a self-designed walker 16th at his home in San Francisco. He philanthropic endeavors and his cats. in Bridgeport, Conn., and grew up in to get around. was born on Oct. 5, 1938, in Albany, For many years, Joe was a volunteer Fairfield. She earned an undergrad- “She went through this with such N.Y., and at an early age he moved to usher at the San Francisco War uate degree at Skidmore College in aplomb,” her son, Chester Rothstein, New York City. San Francisco became Memorial Opera House and assisted Saratoga Springs and a master’s de- recalled. “She kept a good frame of his home in 1967 during the “Summer for five years in the feral cat colony gree from Columbia University in mind, she’s happy, she gets very frus- of Love.” He greatly enjoyed the beau- program at Sutro Forest. Joe kept New York City. trated and unhappy with her situa- ty and lifestyle of San Francisco and informed on important world issues, Before helping to form the tion, but she was never mean, never the rest of California, with time spent desired peace and harmony for all coalition, Rothstein volunteered for upset with other people, and there’s in visits to Muir Woods, Yosemite, Big Planned Parenthood and became a no way the rest of us would have han- Sur, and Lake Tahoe. He spent a year creatures, and hoped for an end to lobbyist in the early 1970s. In Albany, dled her adversities.” away from San Francisco traveling in injustice, poverty, war and destruction she realized it was difficult to change In 2001, Rothstein stepped down Africa, the Middle East and Europe. of our environment. people’s minds on a religious topic, from her position leading the coa- Joe’s career interests were in Joe remembered FFRF in a bequest like abortion, and instead decided lition she helped build because of financial investments and real estate. “giving to groups that make the world to focus her efforts on getting pro- health issues, but continued to beat His personal interests were reading, better.” abortion rights lawmakers elected, the drum for abortion rights — an including U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey, issue she maintained would never go former Westchester County Executive away — and devoted time to her two Andy Spano, and recent presidential grandchildren and hobbies. candidate Hillary Clinton, who In addition to her son, she is sur- Include FFRF In Your Estate Planning became a U.S. senator in 2000. vived by two sisters, Martha Baldwin Arrange a bequest in your will or trust, or make the Freedom From The WCLA has for more than 40 and Judy Bravard; a daughter, Amy Religion Found ation the bene ciary of an insurance policy, bank account years developed an extensive database Rothstein; and two grandchildren, or IRA. It’s easy to do. For related information (or to request a bequest of New York registered voters who are Juliana and Owen Jesse Rothstein. brochure), please phone Annie Laurie Gaylor at (608) 256-8900. FFRF • P.O. Box 750 • Madison, WI 53701 Freedom Depends on Freethinkers NOTHING FAILS LIKE PRAYER

Yip Harburg, from his book We’d like to see secular citizens flood government meetings Rhymes for the Irreverent with secular invocations that illustrate why government prayers are unnecessary, ineff ective, embarrassing, Lead Kindly Light exclusionary, divisive or just plain silly. Where Bishop Patrick crossed the street The “best” secular invocation will be invited to open FFRF’s An “X” now marks the spot. C n The light of God was with him, annual convention, receiving an all-expenses-paid trip (this But the traffi c light was not. year in Madison, Wis., on the weekend of Sept. 15-17), a plaque and an honorarium of $500. LEARN MORE AT: ff rf.org/outreach/nothing-fails-like-prayer Buy it from FFRF online shop.ffrf.org January / February 2017 | Madison, Wisconsin | FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY Page 27

CRANKMAIL FREETHOUGHT BOOKS The following are books written by FFRF This issue we present a special post-holiday version of Crankmail. Yup, in De- few times, and it’s all thanks to you people. Every single commercial I’ve seen cember our “fans” were overloading our inbox with their love for us. (Warning: about this time of year has said the word “Holiday” instead of Christmas. So members on the topics of religion or free- This edition is laced with profanity.) Here is just a fraction of the mail we received, Congratulations FFRF Sons of Bitches, you’re officially ruining the Christmas thinking. FFRF does not do book reviews. submitted to you unedited. Season for me. I also blame Atheists all together. You people wanna know why Atheists are the least trusted group of people in America? Because you’re all Beginner’s Guide Out of business: you people ARE going out of business in 2017. I belong to so negative! All you people do is say truly horrible things about religion and a group of over 8000 with a lot of financial muscle...enough to put you people religious people. Atheists are angry all the time. Have any of you watched the to Blasphemy on unemployment...stopping you dead in your tracks...taking out billboards TV show called The Legend of Korra? In the 1st season, a man named Ammon By Richard E. Wackrow across the country and ads forcing you people to back down.... Your business who’s a non-bender forms a large anti-bending group called the Equalists, who will CEASE and DESIST...or...it will CEASE to exist. Your move, Morons. — Jordan want to rid the world of bending. Sounds familiar to what’s happening here, $12.95 (paperback); $7.55 (Kindle) Macuso huh? I strongly suggest all members of September 2016, Lulu Publishing your unbelief: don’t you DARE the FFRF watch the 1st season of the claim to defend The Constitution, be- Legend of Korra. — Jeremy Moore In America, one is expected to smile def- cause it was written by christians for Agenda: How about leaving Chris- erentially while listening to the nonsense christians. My reason for writing this? tians alone and let them worship GOD parroted by the religious: that the Ten Your billboard which suggests its as it was in the beginning of time ! Commandments are the basis of morality, reasonable to believe that somehow Christianity came before atheism. — there is no God, when its your beliefs Kevin Jepsen that all religious peo- that violate Newtonian physics, So You being assholes: I just sick ple mean well, and stop it with all of this anti Christian and tired anyone against somebody that you can’t be good nonsense. — Nick Holmes elses praying in public you stick your without God. One is Religion: i was curious to know if fucking nose where it dont fucking not supposed to ques- its easy for all of you guys to be such belong. I fought for the right to pray worthless pieces of shit or do you and just the same as you cocksuck- tion the content, logic have to rpactice at it?not to worry ers to not want to pray you dont like and instructions of though your day is coming soon.have dont watch.i would love to meet any- the holy books. And a great day and dont forget to go and one involved with you and show how so as not to offend fuck yourself. — Harry Kennelly the fuck i really feel. I dont like your the publicly pious, the Wakulla: You’re a bunch of jerks breathing the same air as i am.i want and should be exorcised from soci- you to stop breathing.so are you go- nonreligious are expected to join in prayer ety. The constitution does not say ing to stop breathing. Fucking ass- to someone else’s imaginary friend. Well, freedom from religion; it specifically holes. Why dont you go out and fight no one has the right not to be offended — Not all of our Crank Mail is emailed to FFRF. Some of it states freedom of religion, regardless for what you believe in.you would shit especially when his or her alleged moral comes the old-fashioned way ­— through the U.S. Postal what the Supreme Court says, they your pants the minute you heard your code is itself offensive. This book debunks should be free to practice prayer in Service. first shot.and im sure if you were hit public school. You’re total jerks! — An- bleeding im sure you would be praying religious malarkey one fantasy at a time. nis Hernden to god. If i was therw i would take a shit on you asshole cocksucking dickheads Removal of nativity scene: Have you ever consulted with Clergy on your — Joseph Timimski Wintermas: Toward Attacks.. I am A Christian, I believe in the the word.. But no where in the good constatutionalaty: the constatution of the united states garenties fredom a Secular Celebration book did i read that the Nativity Scene was offensive.. it is the HOLIDAY season of religions thats what allows you athiests two assembel your attacting crosses for \crying out loud.. You (your group) are right up there with the “Westboro and thouse different than you shows your not educated inconstatutionalaty of the Season Baptist Church” You are actually taking away from kids (and some Adults) and laws of usa most godless comunests attact others fredoms so shut the hell about the Holiday and the Christmas Miracle.. A lot kids will ask Parents, up and go back too the turd world you came from — William I. Johnson By Michael Harold Sunday School Teachers,, and in some schools (and Heaven Forbid.). School Nativity scene: I will, either independently, or with a familiar constitu- $0.99 (Kindle) teachers... when they see this Scene.. IS that SO WRONG... I don’t think so — tional rights legal aid group, begin the process of compelling your group to November 2016 Sean Updike compensate the affected youth choirs. Simple advice — if you don’t like the Letter to town of Blackston: This area is a rural area made up of small program, don’t tune in! — Jim Darges This short e-book briefly sets out the case towns and villages - the greater number of us, even though we are divided by FFRF: You literally suck the joy from the holiday season because of your for a principled, named winter holiday both politics and religion, try hard to get along with each other - Now your ‘or- selfishness and lack of tolerance. You’re the weird kid at the party, standing celebration for non-Christians, including ganization’ wants to pressure these people into hiding their beliefs and sym- in the corner crying because you don’t believe in anything, and that’s what bols - isn’t that what hitler did to the jews — Stuart Cardwell your intellectual parents taught you. So you try to spoil it for everyone else nonbelievers, atheists, agnostics, skeptics, Learn something: Your efforts to eradicate religion/Jesus from Christmas (ESPECIALLY THE CHILDREN) because everyone else is having fun and enjoying freethinkers and those from other cul- is laughable...Christmas should be, and is, EXCLUSIVE! Christ-mas—get it? If Christmas except for you, and there’s nothing really fun, expressive, or joyful tures. It’s essentially you want your own holiday, that’s fine--petition for a Freedom From Religion about believing in nothing. Jeez, I feel bad for you. Leave the rest of us alone, a secular Christmas Day and gather around all those who would honor that occasion. Of course, please. — Ben Davis but with important you can’t give presents, for that would demonstrate love , which is a Christian Menominee nativity: Your organization is exactly what Jesus was, a rable basic. Can’t sing songs of joy and thanksgiving for you have no one to thank rouser seeking attention. How ironic is that? Find a better hobby and quit wast- differences, such as a other than flawed humans like yourself who also don’t know who to thank. ing taxpayers time. — Jeff Paul focus on the rebirth Can’t be charitable to others for that would smack of Christian caring and help. Freedom for religion: I don`t believe in Santa clause either but I`m not of the sun at the Win- — Suzanne Renaud wasting my money to put billboards everywhere. You poor deluded souls. Is it ter Solstice, rather Shut the fuck up: Leave us alone and stick to killing babies you America any wonder that Madalyn Murray O`hair was kidnapped, robbed and tortured than on the birth of hating liberal fucks. — Steve Jung for days before her murder. Take a Que. She cried out to God in her last hours. Douchebags: The reason why I’m sending this e-mail is because I HATE What a pity, no peace in your little insignificant lives. Intelligence has to create the son of God. After Atheists because they’ve done nothing but make religious people like me intelligence, we didn`t just “pop up” out of nothing. Have fun in hell, licking briefly summarizing miserable. So far this Christmas season, I’ve heard the word Christmas very flames out of Hitler`s asshole.FREAKS — Giovanni Carello the history of Winter Solstice celebrations and Christmas, it sets out guidelines for how non-Christians can derive meaning THEY SAID WHAT? from and enjoy the winter holiday season as Wintermas, a secular celebration. If you’re a person of prayer, we could No school official in Texas can Over two millen- use your prayers. silence a biblical reference to Christ- nia ago, a new Unholy Writ: An Infidel’s Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller, as mas. This is an attack on religious hope was born crews battled a wildfire from the Great liberty. into the world, a Critique of the Bible Smoky Mountains National Park that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Savior who would By T. Joyner Drolsum went into neighboring communities saying that Killeen, Texas, school of- offer the prom- $36.95 (Paperback) KFOR Channel 4, 11-29-16 ficials were wrong to remove a nurse’s ise of salvation to $7.99 (Kindle) aide’s “Charlie Brown Christmas” all mankind. Just November 2011 You can say again, decorations from the nursing office as the three wise “Merry Christmas,” door following FFRF complaint men did on that Reince Priebus AuthorHouse Publishing because Donald Austin Ameri- night, this Christ- The bible has often been put forth as a Trump is now the can-Statesman, mas heralds a time to celebrate the supposedly infallible guidebook charting president. You can 12-16-16 good news of a new King. the correct path to an authentic existence. say it again, it’s OK Republican National Committee According to its proponents, Scripture is to say, it’s not a pe- Ben Carson chairman (and incoming White an absolutely dependable life manual be- jorative word any- is a decent House Chief of Staff) Reince Prie- cause it is the word of more. man with bus in a Christmas message, prompt- God. However, close Corey Lewandows- Cory deep religious ing controversy that Republicans inspection of the bi- ki, former Trump Lewandowski roots. As the compared Donald Trump to Jesus. ble calls into question campaign manag- new Secretary Bill Donohoe Buzzfeed, 12/26/16 its divine authorship; er, speaking to Sean Hannity of Housing and, thus, its reliabil- Fox News, 12-6-16 and Urban Development, he will be The world desperately needs more ity as an accurate positioned to advance the cause of exorcists. roadmap for the soul. One must in no way overlook the neg- religious liberty. He can be expected Headline in New York Post article, In fact, under close ative consequences that can derive to ensure that faith-based programs which quotes Valter Cascioli, a examination it proves from the ordination of persons with that are tied to the department’s psychologist and scientific consultant to be nothing more than a mundane and deep-seated homosexual tendencies. block grants are not burdened for the exorcists’ association, who cobbled together collection of archaic su- From a document by the Vatican’s Con- with contrived church-and-state said, “The lack of exorcists is a real perstitions. The many errors that it con- gregation for the clergy reiterating that regulations. emergency.” tains, including those about the natural gay men cannot become priests Catholic League President Bill Donohoe New York Post, 12/28/16 world, undermine the pivotal claim that Religion News Service, 12-8-16 CatholicLeague.org, 12-7-16 the bible is divinely inspired. Page 28 FFRF | FREETHOUGHT TODAY | Madison, Wisconsin | January / February 2017

Winter Solstice celebration 2017!

Longtime FFRF Members Phyllis Rose and Roger Chapman FFRF members listen to Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor during her opening share a laugh in Freethought Hall in Madison, Wis., on Dec. remarks. 21 during a celebration of the Winter Solstice.

FFRF’s Director of First Impressions Lisa Treu and Director Guitarist and singer Ken Lonnquist plays a song for the crowd as FFRF of Operations Lisa Strand share smiles with the camera. Co-President Dan Barker accompanies him on the piano. Dan sang his original “Solstice Tribute” and “Merry Fricken Christmas.”

Members and staff mingle and chat following the music presentation. Holiday treats and goodies line the table along the side wall of the Charlie Brooks Auditorium on the fourth floor of Freethought Hall.

Photos by Chris Line and Ingrid Laas

Save The Date! Coming Next Month 40th Anniversary of FFRF’s Convention in Freethought Today

FFRF convention Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center speech by Madison, Wisconsin Sept. 15-17, 2017 Lawrence Krauss