The Freedom From Religion Foundation will be urging Republicans (next week) and Democrats (in two weeks) to stay out of the religion business, with billboards in Tampa, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C. FFRF is placing billboards in both cities hosting the national political conventions with its special election-year caveat to keep religion out of government.
The patriotically colored billboard artwork by editorial cartoonist Steve Benson depicts a finger-wagging Uncle Sam warning that “God fixation won’t fix this nation.” Benson is the grandson of Ezra Taft Benson, who was secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture under President Dwight Eisenhower and later served as president of the Mormon Church. Steve Benson left the Mormon Church in a highly publicized break in the early 1990s.
FFRF’s 10x30-foot “God fixation” billboard is scheduled to go up today, weather permitting, in Tampa on Kennedy Boulevard, 50 feet west of Arrawana Street, in time to greet GOP convention-goers.
The following week, FFRF will place two billboards in Charlotte, including a hard-to-miss 14x48-foot version near downtown Charlotte, at 1720 Freedom Drive, 900 feet west of Morehead Street. Those traveling from the airport to the Democratic National Convention will be treated to a highly visible view of FFRF’s “God fixation won’t fix this nation” message on a 10x30-foot billboard on Interstate 77 north of Fifth Street.
“This is an equal-opportunity message to both political parties and all public officials. Essentially, we secularists, who comprise nearly a fifth of the U.S. population, are telling government officials that it’s time to get off your knees and get to work!” said FFRF Co-President Dan Barker.
“God fixation won’t fix our nation, or any nation. A preoccupation with religion in government and a political fear of offending religious lobbies is holding back our nation scientifically, intellectually and morally,” added Annie Laurie Gaylor, who co-directs FFRF.
Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York, who has been invited to deliver the closing prayer at the Republican National Convention, has been strongly criticized by FFRF for his role in trying to sabotage the contraceptive insurance coverage mandate. FFRF exposed the role of Dolan and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in its signature newspaper ad, "It's Time to Quit the Catholic Church," which has run in The New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today and Los Angeles Times.
"It is this kind of unseemly partnership between religion and politics that disrespects the constitutional principle of secular government. Dogma should never be allowed to trump humanity or civil law," Gaylor added.
FFRF, based in Madison, Wis., acts as a state/church watchdog. FFRF is the nation’s largest association of freethinkers (atheists and agnostics) with more than 19,000 members, including nearly 900 in Florida and almost 500 in North Carolina, which is also home to the Triangle Freethought Society, an active chapter of FFRF.
In time for the Democratic National Convention, the Freedom From Religion Foundation has placed a patriotic message with a secular twist on two prominent billboards in Charlotte, N.C. The billboard, drawn by editorial cartoonist Steve Benson, depicts Uncle Sam wagging his finger and warning: “God fixation won’t fix this nation.”
Those traveling from the airport to the convention will be treated to a highly visible view of FFRF’s red-white-and-blue message on a 10x30-foot billboard on Interstate 77 north of Fifth Street. A hard to miss 14x48-foot billboard with the message is found near Charlotte’s downtown, on the 1700 block of Freedom Drive, 900 feet west of Morehead Street.
The billboards, which FFRF refers to as an “election-year caveat,” were scheduled to go up on Thursday.
“Our equal-opportunity message to both political parties and all public officials is: Get off your knees and get to work!” said FFRF Co-President Dan Barker. “God fixation, the preoccupation by our nation and its elected officials with religion, is holding back progress scientifically, intellectually and morally.”
FFRF put the same message up in Tampa on Aug. 23 for the benefit of this year’s Republican convention. FFRF, a nonpartisan state/church watchdog, is continuing a tradition started in 2008, when it placed a billboard message saying “Keep religion out of politics” in Denver and Minneapolis for the national party conventions.
FFRF spokeswoman Annie Laurie Gaylor cited as an example of the dangers of religion in politics and government the “pandering” decision by both parties to give in to a request by the head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to deliver convention prayers. Cardinal Timothy Dolan gave the closing prayer yesterday for the Republicans and will also pray at the Democratic convention.
“The Catholic bishops are trying to unduly influence and interfere with U.S. politics, particularly by trying to kill the health care contraceptive mandate —despite the fact that most American women are not Catholic and most Americans use and support contraception,” Gaylor noted. “It’s disturbing that both parties kowtow to Timothy Dolan.” FFRF ran hundreds of TV commercials this summer in regional markets featuring actress and playwright Julia Sweeney, a well-known former Catholic, objecting to the bishops’ anti-contraceptive attacks.
The Madison, Wis.-based group represents more than 19,000 freethinking (atheist and agnostic) members nationwide, including 485 members in North Carolina, and an active N.C. chapter, the Triangle Freethought Society. FFRF has brought about 60 lawsuits to keep religion out of government.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, based in Madison, Wis., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational charity, is the nation's largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics), and has been working since 1978 to keep religion and government separate.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, based in Madison, Wis., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational charity, is the nation's largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics), and has been working since 1978 to keep religion and government separate.