The Secular Coalition for America is the national lobby representing the interests of atheists, humanists, agnostics, freethinkers and other nontheistic Americans.

Atheists in Foxholes: Preventing Religious Discrimination in the Military under an Obama Administration

Secular Coalition for America and Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers Unveil Proposal on Religious Accommodation at Pre-Veterans Day Briefing

• Press release
• Proposal to President-elect Barack Obama (.pdf)

Nov. 10 - Atheists and others with no religious affiliation make up 21% of the U.S. Armed Forces, and yet they suffer harassment, discrimination and proselytizing in a military increasingly dominated by a powerful minority of evangelical Christians. In a pre-Veterans Day proposal unveiled today at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., the Coalition and its member organization the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers made a series of recommendations in a memo to President-elect Barack Obama as he considers staffing and policies regarding the military.

Atheists Reach Out -- Just Don't Call It Proselytizing

Nonbelievers Think the Time Is Right to Better Organize Their Nonreligion and Swell the Membership; 'Reason's Greetings'

Nov. 18 - The Wall Street Journal Online sees a growing momentum for the nontheist movement, citing billboards and city bus ads by Secular Coalition member organizations, the HumanLight holiday celebration, and the Coalition's lobbying work on Capitol Hill.

Congressman Comes Out as Nontheist, Wins Re-election!

Secular Coalition Congratulates Rep. Pete Stark of California

Nov. 5 - Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.) is the only member of Congress who is on record as not holding a god-belief, the first such Congress member in history. In an election year when national candidates' religious beliefs were given unprecedented importance, the Coalition sees Stark's re-election, with 76% of the votes in his district, as a sign that religious tests for candidates may become less common. Press release

Related media:

Daily Kos blogs the Coalition's statement and polls readers who say - overwhelmingly - nontheism shouldn't matter when you vote

Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call notes, "Last week's historic elections certainly meant a lot of things to the Washington lobby scene, but for [the advocacy group Secular Coalition for America], the most significant was the re-election of California Democratic Rep. Pete Stark." (Paid subscription required)

The Secular Coalition is Making News
For Secular Americans, Lip Service Beats No Service "Political candidates are happy to accept our contributions, our volunteer hours, and our votes - as long as we [atheists] put bags over our heads." - Herb Silverman, president, Secular Coalition for America Nov. 6 - As a Guest Voice for washingtonpost.com's On Faith, Coalition president Herb Silverman explains his dilemma as an atheist voter on Nov. 4 and condemns atheist-bashing in the Dole/Hagan race in North Carolina. He also offers up a radical idea: that secular Americans are entitled to the same respect and attention political candidates grant to other voters. Related Media: Charleston City Paper expands on Silverman's On Faith submission in Lip Service: Secular Americans would be happy to get some		Secular America and the 2008 Election Nov. 5 - In this pre-election radio interview, Coalition director Lori Lipman Brown talks to WHRW News at SUNY Binghamton about the state of secularism in the U.S. for the past eight years, and speculates on each presidential candidate's impact on religion in government if elected.
New York Times Oct. 17 - In For Atheists, Politics Proves to Be a Lonely Endeavor, The New York Times talks to the Secular Coalition's director about the state of the movement to mobilize a political constituency for secular issues, and profiles citizens in Colorado working to get out the secular vote and defeat an initiative to define human life as beginning at conception. (May require registration.)	Religion News Service Oct. 20 - In Secular voters feel abandoned, ignored by candidates, Religion News Service interviews secular leaders, including Coalition director Lori Lipman Brown, about the growing secular constituency's response to campaigns that court religious voters while ignoring nonbelievers. Also published by beliefnetnews and Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.	The Nation Oct. 27 edition - The Nation magazine features an important article by historian and journalist Ronald Aronson on the need for secular voters to organize into a powerful political force. Web version: Agnostic, Atheist Votes Matter in November Print version: "All Ye Unfaithful" Also by Ronald Aronson: Don't count us out (USA Today)

Amidst Financial Crisis, Senate Passes Boy Scout Subsidy

Sept. 27 - During a Saturday session designed to deal with our nation's financial crisis, the Senate took time to pass legislation to honor and raise funds for an organization that actively promotes and engages in discrimination against atheists and agnostics.

See: Secular Coalition for America Press Release

"It's time to ask the candidates if they intend to honor our secular constitutional tradition."

Sept. 26 - As a Guest Voice for washingtonpost.com's OnFaith, Secular Coalition for America Director Lori Lipman Brown addresses military proselytizing, religion in education, and the Faith-Based Initiative. Secular Values Voters and the Presidential Debates (offsite)

Bush Administration Must Safeguard Patient Rights by Withdrawing Proposed "Conscience Clause" Regulation

Sept. 23 - In a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt, Secular Coalition for America director Lori Lipman Brown wrote, "[W]e do not believe that one person's freedom of conscience should be allowed to interfere with the life, health or medical decisions of another... [F]ederal funding decisions should not be tied to a requirement that the recipients of federal funds agree to give preference to the religious beliefs of health care providers and volunteers over the needs of Americans with different beliefs."

See: Secular Coalition for America Letter to U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services (.pdf)