Residents Want Free Thought Sign Removed
Notice how the word “controversial” is used in the news title. I find this story to be typical of any of the southern states. Resistance to civil rights equality has always been stronger in the southern half.
There are church signs everywhere, but yet I have never heard of an atheist, agnostic or any other type of freethinker protesting religious advertisement.
The billboard will be up for only 4 weeks. Quit crying, Christians! The world has had your superstitious doctrine jammed down our throats for 2000 years.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (WSVN) — Community residents are protesting a billboard which they said are controversial Wednesday afternoon.
Just east of Interstate 95 on Sunrise and 27th Avenue, next to a business owned by an African-American preacher, a recruitment billboard has been put up by the Florida Atheist and Secular Humanist Society.
The community said there are two main problems: The business right next to the billboard is owned by born-again Christians, and the billboard is right in the middle of an African-American community.
The billboard states: “Being a good person doesn’t require God. Don’t believe in God? You’re not alone.”
After seeing the controversial billboard, Big Mama brought her students out to protest it. “Nothing else matters, but that sign needs to come down. In the name of Jesus,” Big Mama chanted as she led her students in protest.
Neighboring businesses has called to try to get the sign removed. “Muslim, Jew, Hindu, Christian, whoever you are, we all believe in a spiritual higher being. When you have something like this here, people don’t want to come and patronize us anymore,” said Theodore Hamilton. “We don’t agree with this. We don’t like this here in our community, and this is a spiritual based community.”
The billboard sponsors said it is an innocent recruitment poster to let Atheists know they’re not alone.
This billboard is expected to be up for four weeks.
The original story is here.
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Notice how the subject-object agreement is not used in the lead sentence: “a billboard are controversial”?! I find this error to be typical of the southern state I live in. Resistance to education has always been stronger in the southern half.
subject-VERB agreement.
Shit, it’s catching.!
Well, I’ll get the ball rolling. What do you expect? It’s Florida. Interesting patois of rednecks and expensive-ass beachfront property. Not exactly a bastion of free speech. And a trying place for old money. But it does illustrate the fragility of some “spiritual(ity)-based” communities. What’s the use of a Jesus that can’t protect His followers from such blasphemous billboards as that? Why, they’re not even willing to admit that it’s tame compared to all those OTHER evil Atheist billboards showing two gay dudes getting married, and girls in thong bikinis!
On the plus side, they’ve just got the plot to ‘Big Momma’s House 3′. Principal photography begins December 2011, just after Martin Lawrence finishes all his other Disney pictures first.
I have to agree with you that this type of reaction just shows how weak their beliefs are. I would like seeing a lot more of these going up. I am only worried that someone will push some weak minded believer into doing something stupid that will either get someone hurt or something destroyed.
That’s the only way they’ll learn, if atheist billboards suddenly went up all across the country. They might get used to them. Either the religious folks will get used to them, or they’ll start handing out spraypaint to all the juvenile delinquents out there… of course, JDs are smarter than that. They do it because they want to, not because the religious folks who were cruel to them before suddenly become forgive and forget.
Athiesm is evil no matter how you slice it.
Why are you on a website called “Proud Atheists” if you think that way?
“Neighboring businesses *have* called”. If they can’t get the plural right, how could we ever expect Faux News to master actual journalism?
Why does it bother them so much that we dont share their beliefs? Surely, to them, that justs leaves that much more room in heaven for them.
I mean if we all get in then Jesus might not have time to meet everyone. Whereas if a bunch of us turn godless maybe the heavenly population will be so low Jesus will joining their bowling team!
All the Atheist signs/buses have bent over backwards to be non-threatening and non-controversial. How much more can they want?
Well, that didn’t take long. I can’t say I’m surprised. The crazy runs deep down here.
“whoever you are, we all believe in a spiritual higher being.”
Well, that’s false and they know it because they’re always talking shit about Atheists. And the guys who put that sign up are the first example.
I hate that sort of statements. It’s like “You can believe in anything you want, but you must believe in something. Anyone you want. Hey, I happen to have a Lutheran Christian God just right here, wanna?”
I believe it was the sky daddy’s illegitimate son who said, “Oh ye of little faith…”
I hope that bill board ends up staying up there for years to come.
Props to FTF , for getting this up. Driving back from Fla the other day I lost count of how many billboards I passed saying Jesus this Jesus that, and bible quotes. Plus one saying “Rush Limbaugh: Saving the Soul of America” (with his pic) .
Yeah. That’s what I don’t get. There are so many religious billboards, and atheists don’t get them removed. Most are tolerant of others’ beliefs. But some people just can’t handle anyone not agreeing with them.
I have seen religious billboards all across america. What a double standered this country has. *sigh*
Anyway I have started a blog of my own to get people to start thinking critically about religion, so stop by if you have time.
I like this sign. We can be “good” without religion.
I feel slightly guilty about being pleased that the billboard is affecting people’s business. On one side, it’s unfortunate that they’re loosing business over this. But on the other, I can’t forget that these are the same people who will put the Jesus fish on their business to increase sales. I avoid any business that has a Jfish and probably would have considered going to one of these in favor if I thought they were atheists.
fixed.
Authoritarianism and control are the foundation of Christianity and really the reason for its continued existence. It’s a form of S&M. When you assert that your path is the equal of theirs and to reject their claim, as signs like this one do, that they are in sole possession of the one way they freak. You don’t say no to The Master.
Very true. Shoving their beliefs through invasion of land and laws has been their mission. They call it, “being a missionary”.
Christian missionaries have brought relief and hope to millions of suffering people throughout the impoverished and war-torn regions of the world, by building schools and supplying food.
How many atheists are helping the destitute and poor, and don’t talk about the godless Democratic Party making people depended on welfare.
And who are you to call the Democratic Party “godless”??
Do you personally know everyone within that party?
Your only came here to sling generalized bullshit.
You are a right wing whackjob and you are not welcome here.
Posting here is a privilege, not a right.
Bye asshat!
Open letter to believers From Florida Atheists and Secular Humanists
To all who are teaching, promoting and propagandizing the dogma that one MUST believe in a god in order to be a good and moral person and that without a god one is immoral, your teachings and declarations are false!
Read Full Letter – http://www.freethoughtflorida.com/openletter.html