Atlanta Freethought Society

PRESS & MEDIA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, November 9, 2007

Media Contacts Below

Peaceful Protest of Governor Led Prayer Service

The Governor of Georgia, Sonny Perdue, has called for a prayer service on the Capitol grounds, Washington Street side, at 11:45 am. on Tuesday, 13 November 2007 to pray for rain. This is embarrassingly foolish, a great mistake, a waste of taxpayer money, and unconstitutional on its face.

The Atlanta Freethought Society, along with the two biggest and best national organizations for freethinkers, the Council for Secular Humanism (headquarters in Amherst NY), and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (headquarters in Madison WI)--will engage in a polite and peaceful protest on next Tuesday, 13 November at the Georgia Capitol Building in downtown Atlanta (Washington Street near the intersection with Martin Luther King Drive SW--the north corner of the Capitol grounds), from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

A major reason for protesting is the egregious violation of church-state separation that the Governor of Georgia is leading at the Capitol at that hour flouting the First Amendment and the Georgia Constitution.

This protest will be directed at the Governor's actions on the basis both of violations of religious liberty and on the basis of absurd religious ideas.

Deeply religious Christians and other believers should take offense at this as bad religion and as a threat to religious liberty.

Deeply irreligious Georgians should take offense that someone representing us should engage in such illogical nonsense, with the potential to embarrass us all internationally.

Georgians of all religious or irreligious beliefs and of every political philosophy should take offense at this waste of our tax dollars and plain violation of separation of church and state and of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and straightforward violation of the Georgia Constitution, Article I, Section II, Paragraph VI:
"Paragraph VI. Separation of church and state. No money shall ever be taken from the public treasury, directly or indirectly, in aid of any church, sect, cult, or religious denomination or of any sectarian institution."

A rally permit has been approved by the Georgia Building Authority on Friday, 9 November. Endorsements by other organizations may be forthcoming.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Atlanta Freethought Society (AFS)
Ed Buckner, AFS Treasurer & the Southern Director for the Council for Secular Humanism
404-284-3478, ext. 114

Steve Yothment, AFS President
404-284-3478, ext. 111

Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF)
Annie Laurie Gaylor
608-256-8900

Council for Secular Humanism
Dr. David Koepsell, Executive Director
716-913-2422

⁵"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. ⁶But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. --Matthew 6:5-6 (New International Version)		⁵And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.⁶But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. --Matthew 6:5-6 (King James Version)
Nothing fails like prayer!	If prayers worked it would have already rained.	Showering together beats praying together.	No Tax Dollars for Prayer
Scientific fact -- it will rain eventually, and without prayers.	Be practical. Forget praying. Conserve water.	Sonny -- Pray on your own time and on your own dime!	Government- sponsored prayer is unconstitutional.
Hey Sonny. Do a rain dance. It would be just as useless but a lot more acceptable	Depend on water conservation, NOT on a 'Higher Power.'	Pray in YOUR church, NOT in MY state capitol.	Prayer, or no prayer -- it is going to rain sooner or later.
Sonny - What part of "Government shall not sponsor religion" don't you understand?	Dare to think for yourself. Prayers aren't the answer to our water problems.	Weather forecast: Rain due Wednesday. Rain prayers Tuesday. What a scam!	Guaranteed! It will eventually rain -- and without prayers.
	Our governor sponsors rain prayers while our educational system is a national disgrace. (Connect the dots.)	Separation of Government and Religion means government does not sponsor religious events.