We represent all walks of life. We are everywhere. We are an integral part of society. We only ask that we be allowed to proclaim and practice our convictions openly, without fear or recrimination. The ultimate test of a democratic society is that it will respect and honor honest dissent.
Unbelievers exist throughout the world.
In Norway, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Germany, France, and other Western European countries, the percentages of nonbelief are significantly higher. Indeed, in many European countries the state provides funding for both religious and nonreligious organizations alike. Billions of people on the planet do not profess Christian, Jewish, or Muslim belief systems-yet they have created enduring civilizations and high moral principles, such as Confucianism in China, Buddhism in Asia, and humanism in the democratic world. This is surprising to many religious dogmatists who are convinced that unless you believe in a monotheistic religion you cannot be moral. Fortunately, the American Constitution includes the First Amendment, which defends the separation of church and state, prohibits the establishment of a religion, and guarantees freedom of conscience and the free exercise of religious beliefs or none.