Atheist Awareness Campaign Continues To Grow

American atheists are sick and tired of feeling like an oppressed and hated group, and in the last couple of months they have been raising awareness that it's okay not to be in God through bus ads and billboards. Obviously, these ads won't dramatically change the perception of nonbelievers overnight, but they may be an important first step:

The new ad campaigns and other public-relations efforts are designed to raise comfort levels about atheism by making the point that nonbelievers are "just as ethical and moral as anyone else," said Lori Lipman Brown, who lobbies Congress on behalf of the Secular Coalition for America.

As Doug Krueger, a philosophy professor in northwest Arkansas, put it: "Step one is for people to know we're not crazy, we're just regular people [who have] perfectly satisfactory lives without believing in God."

So the American Humanist Association is spending $42,000 to plaster buses in Washington, D.C., with ads asking: "Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake." FreeThoughtAction and its local affiliates have put up billboards all over the country asking: "Don't believe in God? You are not alone." Eight billboards are going up this month in Denver.

At the same time, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, based in Madison, Wis., has hit at least nine states in the past year with billboards that look like they're made of stained glass but say "Beware of Dogma," "Imagine No Religion," or -- coming soon -- "Reason's Greetings." The group also advertises on the liberal radio network Air America. One spot features Ron Reagan, son of the former president, who signs off: "Ron Reagan, lifelong atheist. Not afraid of burning in hell."

Here is one of the billboards from the Freedom From Religion Foundation. This one located in Madison, Wisconsin:

As long as people realize it's not a reference to the movie Dogma, I like it.

I have to say that these billboards seem pretty tame, but they are still drawing the ire of some Christian groups:

In seeking the spotlight, the movement risks a backlash. Some Christians find the billboards deeply offensive, especially at this time of year. In recent weeks, press releases from the religious right have accused atheists of "mocking" and "insulting" Christmas. In rural Chambersburg, Pa., one Christian group responded to an "Imagine No Religion" billboard with a giant sign of their own, asking: "Why Do Atheists Hate America?"

Without question, "Why Do Atheists Hate America?" is significantly more offensive than "Imagine No Religion," regardless of your religious beliefs.