AMERICAN ATHEISTS ACTION ALERT

November 18, 2002

POSTAL SERVICE TO DISPLAY
RELIGIONIZED "IN GOD WE TRUST"
MOTTO IN 38,000 OFFICES!
LETTERS NEEDED NOW TO
PROTEST, STOP THIS NEW POLICY...

The US Postal Service has caved in to pressure from religious right groups, and agreed to display the religionized national motto "In God We Trust" in its offices throughout the nation.

This follows President Bush's signing of a bill passed unanimously in the Senate -- and with only five dissenting votes in the House of Representatives -- reinforcing the use of "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, and "In God We Trust" as the national motto. But these slogans were incorporated into our history only during the cold war. The original pledge did not include any salutation to a deity, and our national slogan was "E Pluribus Unum," "Out of Many, One."

The Postal Service plans to print posters (at taxpayer expense) depicting an enlarged stamp with the Statue of Liberty and the phrase "In God We Trust" near the top.

"This is an insult to every Atheist, Freethinker, Humanist and other people of no-religious-belief," says Ellen Johnson, President of American Atheists.

"They are using government offices which provide an important public services to promote religion. Anyone who criticizes religion, who doubts religion, who disagrees with religion is being made to feel unwelcome in what should be a neutral, religion-free public environment. That's wrong."

We encourage all Atheists, Freethinkers, Humanists and other state-church separationists to protest this move by the postal service. We urge you to contact John E. Potter, the Postmaster General, with your letters and phone calls. Be polite and concise. Tell Mr. Potter that government should not be promoting religion, especially with our tax dollars, and that religious slogans of any kind are not appropriate in a public building. Ask him to think of the 30 million "customers" who, according to the American Religion Identification Survey profess no religion.

* Keep your letters and phone calls brief, to the point, and polite.

* Share copies of your letters here.

* Contact:

John E. Potter, Postmaster General
United States Postal Service
475 L'Enfant Plaza, SW
Washington, DC 20260

Phone 202-268-2000

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