Atheists and Protest Signs

Occasionally we see atheists protesting with signs that have an anti-religious message or even a sign mocking religion. The most recent sign I've seen said, “If Jesus returns, kill him again.” Maybe it is just me, but I’m not a fan of these signs. For many atheists these signs are just a joke, but they seem to give those who are religious reason to think atheists acknowledge the existence of God and are against him. This of course is not the case; atheist can’t be against or even kill someone they don’t believe exist.

This is not the message atheists should be trying to spread, it is no better than a Christian fundamentalist protesting with signs such as, “God Hates Fags” or “Pray for more dead soldiers”. They are both based on hate and intolerance (even though the atheists sign is just a joke).  Atheists are already falsely accused of being evil bloodthirsty Satanists, and signs such as this only fuel the fire for religious fear mongering.

If the goal of atheism is to get people to think critically and base their beliefs on evidence and reason then these signs do not help the cause. Those who read this sign that are religious already lack the ability to think critically on this issue and dislike atheists so they do not see it as a joke and it only causes more confusion about who atheists are and what they stand for.

It can be fun for atheists to create these kinds of signs for a joke, but atheists are so misunderstood that it only becomes an inside joke for atheists and their message is completely lost. If an atheist feels so strongly to protest then they must care about having their message be heard, but those signs only hurt their cause.

If atheists want to make a real impact they need to be careful not to use signs that can be misinterpreted and only use signs that will get people to think about their beliefs, signs that appear to be name calling or hateful are not effective. Atheists for the most part see religious belief as an extremely serious matter, and we need to put serious consideration into what we put on signs. If there is one thing atheists hate it is the absence of critical thinking, and these signs show just that. Surely we can do better then this, when there are so many issues in the world that are caused by religion we MUST do better than this. We need to ask ourselves, will it cause more confusion or aid in promoting critical thinking and reason. If it would cause more confusion, do the world and atheism a favor and just stay home.