*One observes that same-sex marriage also least benefits the younger generation.
I basically agree that same-sex marriage is overemphasized. And more broadly, I think it's healthy that queer activism has lots of internal criticism over priorities.
Sometimes, I see what national atheist orgs are doing, and I wish atheist activists would be more like queer activists. Why isn't there more criticism of the priorities of national atheist orgs?
This is inspired by FFRF's recent objection to a proposed Holocaust memorial in Ohio which would be on public land, and prominently features the Star of David. In the link you can see Dave Silverman defending FFRF's move on Fox News. Note that Dave Silverman is not the head of FFRF, but the head of American Atheists, meaning that there are two orgs supporting this action.
This isn't just a questionable use of resources and political capital. Even if the cost was zero, it still doesn't seem right. Having a Star of David on a Holocaust memorial is appropriate, and is clearly not a government establishment of Judaism. At most you can argue that it is tacky to sideline the non-Jewish victims of the holocaust, but tackiness is not a church/state-separation issue. Dave Silverman said that the memorial would look like a temple or synagogue to people driving by; I'm placing an image of the memorial next to a synagogue to highlight the absurdity of this claim.
This is not the first time atheist orgs have done this. A few years ago, American Atheists filed a lawsuit over the inclusion of the so-called World Trade Center Cross (a cross formed by steel beams among the rubble after 9/11) in the 9/11 memorial. The local student group discussed this one time, and some guy from American Atheists came to defend the lawsuit. His main motivation was that they were just so offended by this monument to superstition, when 9/11 itself was caused by superstition. He also said that they pursued this lawsuit because they were sure that this was the one lawsuit they were most likely to win. So they need better legal advice too.
And then there are things like lawsuits against "In God we Trust" on our money. Actually it would be great to get that motto removed, and I would wholeheartedly support it if it cost nothing. But lawsuits are not free, so it's a question of priorities. Surely there are non-symbolic issues that are more important to fight? Non-symbolic issues are not only more worthwhile, but also draw more public support.
Other atheist issues can be found on SCA's key issues page. Here are just a few:
- Public Funding of Religious Schools
- Schools Discriminate Against Nontheistic Students
- Tax Exemptions for Religious Organizations
- Religiously Motivated Employment Discrimination
- Housing Discrimination by Religious Landlords
- Military Discrimination Against Nontheists
- Federal Aid to Countries That Limit Religious Freedom
- Religious Employers Denying Healthcare Coverage Based on Personal Beliefs
- Religiously Based Child Abuse and Neglect
