








Education: The religious right’s impact on public education in America has been disastrous. Whereas most of the developed world strives for accurate science education and critical thinking, American school boards and administrations, so often under the influence of religious activists, will instead focus on obstructing evolution education, inserting creationism into science curricula, rewriting history to conform to fundamentalist views, and inserting prayer into schools.

Religious conservative leaders have unabashedly declared that their goal is to dismantle public education in America, because the pluralistic, tolerant values taught in public schools too often contradict their harsh biblical worldview. As such, we shouldn’t be surprised that the quality of public education has eroded after three decades of religious right ascendance.

Thus, with a more influential secular demographic, America can expect to see progress in the area of education. As secular voices are heard more often, education and critical thinking can become true American values.

The Environment: Many Americans correctly assume that the primary opposition to environmental regulation often comes from major industries, but what most don’t know is that grassroots opposition to rational environmental policy often originates in the religious right. Fundamentalist Christians, citing the Bible, often insist that God has given humans dominion over the earth, and that public policy aimed at limiting exploitation of resources, addressing global warming, or otherwise encouraging sustainability, is unnecessary, probably a liberal conspiracy. This is why, as I explain in my book Nonbeliever Nation, major corporate interests that oppose environmentalism have often found fundamentalist religious groups to be valuable political allies.

Thus, a successful secular movement should provide a more effective counterweight to religion-based opposition to environmentalism.

Social policy: Years ago it seemed that abortion was the hot-button social issue, but in recent years the agenda of the religious right has gotten much more ambitious. Now they want to talk about birth control. It’s hard to believe that safe and affordable birth control – surely one of the most revolutionary and potentially beneficial technologies of all time – would become controversial in this day and age, but that’s exactly what is happening in modern America. Rick Santorum, a conservative Catholic who stands a realistic chance of someday being his party’s presidential candidate, calls birth control an evil, parroting the official Vatican position. This is just one example of how the religious right tries to shape public policy not according to reason and science, but theological preferences. (Of course, LGBT rights is another, and abstinence-only sex education yet another).

Thus, the secular emergence will result in social policies emphasizing health, accurate science, and personal freedom – not theology.

This list could easily go on. Corporate power, economic policy, war and peace – all of these are issues that, at some level at least, have felt the negative influence of the religious right. As the secular movement gains momentum, even without internal unanimity, we can expect these policy areas to reflect its influence.


David Niose on Twitter

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