7 States Ban Atheists from Holding Public Office
- Duration: 2:37
- Updated: 23 Dec 2014
7 States Ban Atheists from Holding Public Office
Hemant Mehta (http://www.friendlyatheist.com, http://www.patreon.com/Hemant , https://www.facebook.com/friendlyatheist)
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/12/07/seven-states-constitutions-say-atheists-cant-hold-public-office-but-why-not-toss-out-those-unenforceable-laws/
...
There are seven states that have laws banning atheists from holding public office.
None of them are enforceable because the U.S. Constitution says there can be no religious test for public office, and the Supreme Court reaffirmed that in 1961 in the case of Torcaso v Watkins, but the laws are still in the books.
Those states include: Maryland, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.
The Maryland one is especially interesting... it says no religious test can be required if you want to hold public office in the state... as long as you believe in God. Somehow, no one noticed the contradiction.
By the way, North Carolina's Constitution was actually last ratified in 1971, ten years after the Supreme Court's ruling... but they still kept in the anti-atheist part.
Can you even imagine if these laws said African-Americans couldn't hold public office? Or Jews? Every politician in those states would be working overtime to get those lines repealed. But they're not rushing to change these provisions.
Like I said, those "laws" can't be enforced, but they do come up every now and then.
A few years ago, an atheist named Cecil Bothwell was elected to the Asheville City Council in North Carolina. Some of his political opponents actually tried to use the anti-atheist law to say he couldn't hold office!
It didn't work... but it's appalling that they could point to their Constitution as justification for their argument.
The only reason I can think of to keep those anti-atheist provisions in the books is that it's a very visible reminder of the kind of shit atheists have to deal with all the time.
Constitutions never change easily, and repealing these provisions would take a long time, but it’s a sign of how little atheists means to politicians that virtually none of them are even trying.
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Join the conversation. Leave your questions and comments below and we'll try to address them in future videos. Don't forget to subscribe for more!
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The Atheist Voice provides a platform for discussion for atheist leaders, authors, bloggers, activists, and everybody else who is passionate about atheism, and secularism. Join the discussion by commenting under the videos or submitting video responses. If you'd like to collaborate on this channel or if you'd like to appear in our videos please visit our website www.TheAtheistVoice.com
http://wn.com/7_States_Ban_Atheists_from_Holding_Public_Office
7 States Ban Atheists from Holding Public Office
Hemant Mehta (http://www.friendlyatheist.com, http://www.patreon.com/Hemant , https://www.facebook.com/friendlyatheist)
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/12/07/seven-states-constitutions-say-atheists-cant-hold-public-office-but-why-not-toss-out-those-unenforceable-laws/
...
There are seven states that have laws banning atheists from holding public office.
None of them are enforceable because the U.S. Constitution says there can be no religious test for public office, and the Supreme Court reaffirmed that in 1961 in the case of Torcaso v Watkins, but the laws are still in the books.
Those states include: Maryland, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.
The Maryland one is especially interesting... it says no religious test can be required if you want to hold public office in the state... as long as you believe in God. Somehow, no one noticed the contradiction.
By the way, North Carolina's Constitution was actually last ratified in 1971, ten years after the Supreme Court's ruling... but they still kept in the anti-atheist part.
Can you even imagine if these laws said African-Americans couldn't hold public office? Or Jews? Every politician in those states would be working overtime to get those lines repealed. But they're not rushing to change these provisions.
Like I said, those "laws" can't be enforced, but they do come up every now and then.
A few years ago, an atheist named Cecil Bothwell was elected to the Asheville City Council in North Carolina. Some of his political opponents actually tried to use the anti-atheist law to say he couldn't hold office!
It didn't work... but it's appalling that they could point to their Constitution as justification for their argument.
The only reason I can think of to keep those anti-atheist provisions in the books is that it's a very visible reminder of the kind of shit atheists have to deal with all the time.
Constitutions never change easily, and repealing these provisions would take a long time, but it’s a sign of how little atheists means to politicians that virtually none of them are even trying.
You Might Also Like ...
7 Things That Prove God is Real
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQ50omyWziE&list;=PLZGLqPtxUOKEZxzukuev1YpLUQp-CtKDq&index;=128
78 Questions for Christians
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SI-_FJuTPns&index;=138&list;=PLZGLqPtxUOKEZxzukuev1YpLUQp-CtKDq
4 Creative Ways to Deal with Preachers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3kHcV36dak&index;=133&list;=PLZGLqPtxUOKEZxzukuev1YpLUQp-CtKDq
Join the conversation. Leave your questions and comments below and we'll try to address them in future videos. Don't forget to subscribe for more!
Also, follow us at ...
https://twitter.com/atheistvoices
https://www.facebook.com/TheAtheistVoices
https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/106662137332631352312/106662137332631352312/posts/p/pub
http://theatheistvoice.tumblr.com/
http://www.theatheistvoice.com/
The Atheist Voice provides a platform for discussion for atheist leaders, authors, bloggers, activists, and everybody else who is passionate about atheism, and secularism. Join the discussion by commenting under the videos or submitting video responses. If you'd like to collaborate on this channel or if you'd like to appear in our videos please visit our website www.TheAtheistVoice.com
- published: 23 Dec 2014
- views: 301