Dear Christians, This is Why I Write About Being Harmed By You

Until recently, I believed I could quietly live my life as an example of what a Secular Humanist is and have that combat negative stereotypes people have about atheists, and that eventually it would lead to tolerance and acceptance. Because in a lot of ways, I am not so different from a lot of people. I take care of my family, I work, I enjoy my hobbies. My life is meaningful. I have a drive to improve the world, so I went into counseling and worked for several years with people who are impoverished. Now my focus is shifting to reforming schools so they will be friendlier to children who have disabilities.

Two things changed recently that led me to conclude I can no longer be a silent example. One being the realization that just by being a moral atheist, I am a threat to Christians. I know one Christian attempted to dismiss the harassment I experienced by Christians in a previous post by saying they would have harassed me regardless of their religious beliefs. The thing is, Christianity teaches that only Christians are saved and people who don’t believe are condemned to hell.

When Safe Spaces Are Invaded

Loath thought they may be to admit it, fundamentalist Christians and Muslims share something in common*: a boundary problem. People who are doing them no harm and who are doing no harm to others come under their radar because they do not love, conform to gender stereotypes, or worship in ways that they approve. I have never lived in a place dominated by fundamentalist Muslims, but I have and currently live in one dominated by fundamentalist Christians. And it is oppressive. It feels hateful. And on Sunday, groups that have been raised to fear fundamentalism had a painful reminder that they were right to.

What Harms Our Nation

Deaths caused by gay marriage: 0

Deaths caused by people having sex with someone of the same gender: 0

Deaths caused by a transgendered individual using the bathroom that conforms to their identity: 0

Deaths caused by guns in the US in 2016 alone: Around 6,000

These numbers should speak for themselves, yet somehow they don’t.

The arguments against civil rights for people who are LGBT boil down to so-called moral ones, often based on religion. The United States is not a theocracy, though. The United States was founded on freedom of religion. Which means that we can’t use religious reasons to deprive people of their rights.

Despite what many Christians, who seem to think they have the monopoly on morality believe, there are systems of morality not based in religion. Mine is this: Do no harm.

People who are LGBT are doing no harm when they get married, have sex, or use the bathroom.

But letting anyone, including people being investigated by the FBI three times, have unfettered access to assault rifles?

6000 people in the US dead in 2016. And it’s only June.

If you are calling to ban gay marriage or are scapegoating people who are transgendered while loudly proclaiming an unfettered right to own assault rifles and other guns, you may want to reexamine your morals.