Study On Attitudes Toward Atheists In US

UMN News reports that three University of Minnesota sociology faculty have authored a study on public attitudes toward atheists, to be published in the April issue of the American Sociological Review. They find that Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, gays and lesbians and other minority groups in "sharing their vision of American society." Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry. Many of the study’s telephone respondents associated atheism with evils ranging from criminal behavior to rampant materialism and cultural elitism. Reacting to the study, Ellen Johnson, President of American Atheists, said that one reason for the findings is the unconstitutional promotion of religion by government and political leaders. [Thanks to Nick Gillard-Byers and Larry Mundinger for the leads.]