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.
A secular message from nonbelievers is greeting GOP
convention-goers in Tampa — courtesy of the Freedom From Religion
Foundation, the nation's largest association of freethinkers (atheists
and agnostics). FFRF's patriotic red-white-and-blue message, depicting
a finger-wagging Uncle Sam cautioning that "God fixation won't fix this
nation," was placed Thursday on Kennedy Boulevard, 50 feet west of
Arrawana Street.
FFRF's election-year caveat was drawn by editorial cartoonist Steve
Benson, coincidentally the grandson of Ezra Taft Benson, the secretary
of the U.S. Department of Agriculture under President Dwight Eisenhower
who became president of the Mormon Church. Steve Benson left the Mormon
Church in a highly publicized break in the early 1990s.
In time for the Democratic National Convention, FFRF will place the
same message on 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.
“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.
By taking its educational message to political party-goers, FFRF, a
nonpartisan state-church watchdog, is continuing a tradition started in
2008, when it placed a board in Denver near the DNC and had a moving
billboard in Minneapolis close to the RNC.
“The preoccupation with religion by our nation and our public officials
is holding back the USA scientifically, intellectually and morally,”
added Annie Laurie Gaylor, who co-directs FFRF.
Gaylor called it "pandering" for the RNC to invite the head of the
U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops, who's on the warpath against
Obama's contraceptive mandate, to deliver the closing prayer to the
RNC.
Based in Madison, Wis., FFRF represents more than 19,000 members
nationwide including nearly 900 in Florida. 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.