American Atheists has a long and rich history advocating for the rights of atheists, protecting church-state separation, and ending the stigma atheists face in the United States.
Quick Facts
American Atheists was founded in 1963 following the landmark Supreme Court case that ruled mandatory school prayer unconstitutional.
Madalyn Murray O’Hair was the founder and President of American Atheists and dedicated more than 30 years of her life to protecting the rights of atheists and advocating for church-state separation.
For almost 60 years, American Atheists has been leading the fight to end the stigma faced by atheists in the United States, advocate for policies that protect religious equality, and raising the profile of atheism in public consciousness.
Origins
In 1959, Madalyn Murray O’Hair filed suit on behalf of her son who was forced to attend Bible readings in his school and was the victim of harassment at the hands of school employees after he declined to participate.
In her brief to the Supreme Court, Madalyn said:
Your petitioners are atheists and they define their beliefs as follows.
An atheist loves his fellow man instead of god. An atheist believes that heaven is something for which we should work now – here on earth for all men together to enjoy. An atheist believes that he can get no help through prayer but that he must find in himself the inner conviction and strength to meet life, to grapple with it, to subdue it, and enjoy it.
An atheist believes that only in a knowledge of himself and a knowledge of his fellow man can he find the understanding that will help to a life of fulfillment. He seeks to know himself and his fellow man rather than to know a god.
An atheist believes that a hospital should be built instead of a church. An atheist believes that a deed must be done instead of a prayer said. An atheist strives for involvement in life and not escape into death. He wants disease conquered, poverty vanquished, war eliminated.
He wants man to understand and love man. He wants an ethical way of life. He believes that we cannot rely on a god or channel action into prayer nor hope for an end of troubles in a hereafter. He believes that we are our brother’s keepers and are keepers of our own lives; that we are responsible persons and the job is here and the time is now.
Murray v. Curlett case was consolidated into Abington School District v. Schempp and was decided on June 17, 1963.
This landmark case held for the first time that state-mandated prayer and bible readings in public schools were a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution.
That year, the Society of Separationists (the precurser to American Atheists) was founded.
30 Years of Activism
For more than 30 years, Madalyn Murray O’Hair lead the fight to normalize atheism in the American cultural landscape. By protesting the use of the government to advance religion in general (and oftentimes Christianity in particular), Madalyn and American Atheists pulled atheism out from the shadows and fought to force the country to examine its “sacred” cultural artifacts.
A frequent guest on The Phil Donahue Show, popular media, and the press, Madalyn did much to shine a critical light on the privileges enjoyed by the religious. By using the courts to protect the wall of separation envisioned by our Founders, American Atheists helped to protect the rights of atheists and the religious alike.
Madalyn Murray O’Hair was a frequent guest on The Phil Donahue Show, including this appearance in 1973.
From 1963 until 1986, Madalyn Murray O’Hair was the President of American Atheists. In 1986, Jon Garth Murray, her son, became President. From 1986 until 1995, both Madalyn and Jon were tireless advocates for atheism and the absolute separation of religion from government, filing lawsuits and building a nationwide atheist community.
On August 27, 1995, Madalyn Murray O’Hair, Jon Garth Murray, and Robin Murray O’Hair (Madalyn’s granddaughter) disappeared from their home. After nearly 6 years, in January 2001, David Waters confessed to the kidnapping, extortion, and murder of the Murray-O’Hair family.
Moving Forward
Following the disappearance of the Murray-O’Hair family, Ellen Johnson was appointed President of American Atheists. During her tenure, American Atheists produced The Atheist Viewpoint, a television show which continued until 2015. In addition, Ms. Johnson created the Godless Americans Political Action Committee and helped to organize the Godless Americans March on Washington. Ms. Johnson was president of American Atheists until May 2008. From that time until September 2008, Frank R. Zindler served as interim President.
Ellen Johnson, president of American Atheists, speaks in front of the Supreme Court in Washington D.C., in opposition to displays of the Ten Commandments in government buildings and courthouses. She is flanked by opponents, Peggy Birchfield, left, executive director of the Religious Freedom Coalition, and at right by David W. New, attorney for Faith and Action. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite | Monday, June 27, 2005)
In September 2008, Dr. Ed Buckner, a native of Georgia, was chosen to lead American Atheists. Before joining American Atheists, Dr. Buckner served as the Executive Director of the Council for Secular Humanism from 2001 to 2003. An educational researcher by training, Dr. Buckner was an assistant professor of urban studies at Georgia State University where he taught research methods, statistics, and computer analysis. He then worked as a researcher for a public school system before joining the Council for Secular Humanism. Dr. Buckner is the co-author of In Freedom We Trust: An Atheist Guide to Religious Liberty (Prometheus Books, 2012). Dr. Buckner served as President until 2010 but continued to serve as a member of the Board of Directors.
Dr. Ed Buckner is a frequent speaker and debater in the United States and abroad about atheism, humanism, freethought, and secular government.
In 2010, David Silverman was appointed President. Before joining American Atheists full time, Mr. Silverman was an inventor with Bell Labs and volunteer with the organization. Mr. Silverman was a frequent presence in the media and appeared on Fox News, most notably with Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity. Mr. Silverman served as President until April 2018.
In September 2018, Nick Fish was named President of American Atheists. Mr. Fish has worked as a civil rights and civil liberties advocate for more than a decade, including with the Secular Coalition for America. Before joining the atheist community, Mr. Fish worked as a political organizer, registering voters and managing get-out-the-vote operations for the 2008 election in North Carolina.