Atheism in prison

{{atheism}}
The level of popularity of '''atheism in prison''', and the significance of that level, is sometimes raised as an issue in whether we need God in order to be good. Some atheists point out the extremely low percentage of prisoners who identify as atheists as evidence that atheists tend to be good people and therefore stay out of prison<ref>[http://ffrf.org/news/news-releases/item/18197-survey-reveals-only-02-of-prisoners-identify-as-atheists Survey reveals only .02% of prisoners identify as atheists], Freedom from Religion Foundation, 22 July 2013</ref>—or at least, that atheism doesn't lead to criminal behavior.

There could be other explanations for this low rate. Some prisoners might prefer to sign up for religious groups so that they have a group of friends they can hang out with, and who will protect them similarly as any other prison gang would. It used to be that some prisoners would join [[Jewish]] groups as a way of getting [[kosher]] meals,<ref>[http://forward.com/articles/155363/not-just-jews-eat-kosher-food-in-prison/?p=all Not Just Jews Eat Kosher Food in Prison], Jewish Daily Forward, 4 May 2012</ref> until the quality of those meals was degraded as a deterrent. Typically, each religion gets to have an annual prison-funded religious feast as well. Some prisoners may also feel under pressure to join certain religions.<ref>[http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/20/prisoners-being-forced-to-convert-to-islam-by-influential-muslim-gangs-4153554/ Prisoners ‘being forced to convert’ to Islam by influential Muslim gangs], Metro, 20 October 2013</ref>

Some prisoners might prefer to be listed as having "no preference" since this allows them to keep their options open; it is more plausible to tell the chaplain that one is switching from "no preference" to a certain religion (which might imply one was a non-practicing member of that faith who is now being active) than to say that one converted from atheism. Other prisoners might be unaware that there is an option to list themselves as atheist, or they might consider themselves [[agnostic]] and dislike being put under the "atheist" label. "No preference" can be regarded as another way of saying "none of your business"; it neither confirms nor denies one's religious status, but simply says one is not interested in sharing that information with the prison. A person who holds himself out as "nonreligious" rather than atheist may avoid being singled out for professing atheism.

Being in prison also does not necessarily mean that one is an [[evil]] person, especially if there are bad laws that one might run afoul of. The [[United States]], for example, is commonly but erroneously considered a [[Christian nation]], and its laws are written mostly by churchgoing public officials. Some of the laws reflect Christian [[morality]], such as those [[War on Drugs|criminalizing drug use]] and certain consensual sex acts, such as [[prostitution]].

Certain subsets of the population are also more likely to end up in prison. In the US (the country which has by far the most prisoners),<ref>[http://prisonstudies.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/world_prison_population_list_11th_edition_0.pdf World Prison Population List] by Roy Walmsley (2016) 11<sup>th</sup> edition. ''World Prison Brief''. The US is number 1 for total number of prisoners and number 2 for per capita incarceration.</ref> those groups tend to be [[Native American]], [[Muslim]], [[Pagan]], [[Buddhist]], [[Churches of Christ]], and [[Jewish]], respectively. At the other end of the scale, the most underrepresented religiously defined groups in US prisons are [[Pentecostal]], atheist, [[Mormon]], Apostolic, [[Hindu]], and [[Eastern Orthodox]], respectively.<ref>[https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/are-prisoners-less-likely-to-be-atheists/ Are Prisoners Less Likely To Be Atheists?], FiveThirtyEight, 12 March 2015</ref>

==Sometimes, atheism does lead to prison==
In several Muslim countries, [[apostasy]] (the renunciation of one's religion) is a crime punishable by prison or death. When the apostate leaves Islam and becomes an atheist, this can lead directly to prison.

==See also==
*[[Atheism#Atheists have no morals]]
*[[Chuck Colson]] — the convicted [[Watergate]] felon who ran the ineffective "Prison Fellowship" InnerChange ministry

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Crime]]

Categories: Crime