State constitutions that still discriminate against atheists

[LynzM]

THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION
Article VI.
Clause 3
"... but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."

Amendment I
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;"



State Constitutions that Discriminate Against Atheists

Arkansas State Constitution, Article 19 Section 1 ("Miscellaneous Provisions")
No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any court.

Maryland's Declaration of Rights, Article 36
"That as it is the duty of every man to worship God in such manner as he thinks most acceptable to Him, all persons are equally entitled to protection in their religious liberty; wherefore, no person ought by any law to be molested in his person or estate, on account of his religious persuasion, or profession, or for his religious practice, unless, under the color of religion, he shall disturb the good order, peace or safety of the State, or shall infringe the laws of morality, or injure others in their natural, civil or religious rights; nor ought any person to be compelled to frequent, or maintain, or contribute, unless on contract, to maintain, any place of worship, or any ministry; nor shall any person, otherwise competent, be deemed incompetent as a witness, or juror, on account of his religious belief; provided, he believes in the existence of God, and that under His dispensation such person will be held morally accountable for his acts, and be rewarded or punished therefore either in this world or in the world to come."

Massachusetts' State Constitution, Article 3
"Any every denomination of Christians, demeaning themselves peaceably, and as good subjects of the commonwealth, shall be equally under the protection of the law: and no subordination of any one sect or denomination to another shall ever be established by law."
Comment: Apparently Non-Christians are not "equally under the protection of the law".

Mississippi State Constitution. Article 14 ("General Provisions"), Section 265
No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office in this state.

North Carolina's State Constitution, Article 6 Section 8
"Disqualifications of office. The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God."

Pennsylvania's State Constitution, Article 1 Section 4
"No person who acknowledges the being of a God and a future state of rewards and punishments shall, on account of his religious sentiments, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust or profit under this Commonwealth."

South Carolina's State Constitution, Article 4 Section 2
"No person shall be eligible to the office of Governor who denies the existence of the Supreme Being; ..."
Note: If you continue reading you will find that (in Section 8) the Lieutenant Governor must also meet the same qualifications as the Governor.

Tennessee's State Constitution, Article 9 Section 2
"No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this state."

Texas' State Constitution, Article 1 Section 4
"No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being."



:banghead:

In conjunction with this:

A recent Gallup poll reveals that Americans are much more likely to elect a black man or a woman president than a Mormon or an old man. More interestingly, they’d rather be governed by a homosexual than an atheist:





Some days, I really feel... I dunno, frustrated, I guess? That people think it matters so much, that you cannot be a good and moral person without belief in some kind of punishment if you're not? That the beauty of nature and science is not enough? /sigh

[trotsky]

1. The final slap in the face, of course,

is when you present a "tolerant" believer with this hard evidence, and their response is, "Well you should sue then because it will get overturned in court."

Of course that's where the 45-53 "vote" comes in. We're already reviled, like ANY of us want to draw more attention (and almost always, death threats) to ourselves.

[NMMNG]

2. Even if the "No religious test" law is there

It's not enforced in any real way. Hence the presidential candidates doing their best to out-Christian one another and Obama in particular trying to prove his Christian-cred in light of the ongoing Muslim smears. If the NRT was enforced and--in particular--if religion/religious questions were kept out of campaigns this nonsense wouldn't be an issue.

[MindPilot]

3. Thank you for posting that!! Just last night as I was reading my latest Freethought Today

The thought hit me that midst the Big Question of the Day, "is America READY for a Black President or a Woman President?" we Atheists are still--to use a civil rights metaphor--sitting at the back of the bus. And in the minds of some (George HW "Atheists are not citizens or patriots" Bush) we aren't even supposed to be ON the bus.

What I have found somewhat amusing is whenever there is a thread in RT or GD about discrimination against non-believers, I always post something to the effect of: "did you know there are seven states that specifically exclude Atheists from public service and at least one won't allow an Atheist to be on a jury?"

Never, not once, has anyone challenged me on it which as you all know is very un-DU-like.

Can you imagine the outrage if some state's constitution still contained language that prevented African Americans from serving on a jury (Yeah, we all know the LAPD would like the CA Constitution so amended.) or kept Jews from holding public office? But when it comes to us, the acquiescent silence is deafening, especially here at DU.