Washington, DC—As part of its continued assault on LGBTQ people and women under the guise of “religious freedom,” the Trump administration has announced the creation of a new “Conscience and Religious Freedom Division” within the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights. The new division would be…...
FEMA Should Stay Out of the Church-Building Business
Washington, DC—Yesterday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that it would change its longstanding policies to allow taxpayer-funded grants to rebuild churches and other houses of worship damaged in natural disasters. This policy change would allow, for the first time, federal funds earmarked for disaster relief to be used…...
American Atheists Applauds Removal of Johnson Amendment Repeal From GOP Tax Bill
Washington, DC—In a statement late Thursday, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) announced that the final version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (HR 1) will not include a provision that would have permitted churches to engage in electoral politics, after it was blocked by the Senate parliamentarian. The version of…...
Amended GOP Tax Bill Still Destroys Johnson Amendment
Washington, DC—Today, in a party line vote, the House Ways and Means Committee approved changes to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that would demolish more than 60 years of nonprofit neutrality by allowing all 501(c)(3) organizations, including churches, to endorse and oppose political candidates and wade into partisan politics....
Atheists Condemn Trump Administration’s ‘License to Discriminate’
Cranford, NJ—In reaction to the Department of Justice’s newly released guidelines about “protecting” religious liberty, American Atheists president David Silverman released the following statement: Jeff Sessions has shown, time and again, that he has no respect for real religious freedom and instead views religion as an excuse to ignore the…...
Atheists Outraged by Trump Administration’s Expansion of Contraception Exemptions
Cranford, NJ—In reaction to the Department of Health and Human Services’ new rules undermining contraception coverage in the Affordable Care Act, American Atheists national program director Nick Fish released the following statement: These rules allow any business, including huge corporations or even insurance providers themselves, to claim a religious or…...