Earlier this month American Atheists Inc., put up two billboards in Charlotte, NC aimed at the Democratic and Republican national conventions. The billboards questioned the religiosity of the two Presidential candidates. On Thursday, August
24th, those billboards were taken down. Directly following an article on the front page of the Fox News website, American Atheists received hundreds of hate e-mails and phone calls according to American Atheists' Managing Director, Amanda Knief.
The reason that the billboards were taken down was not however due to any threats against American Atheists, but were due to threats made toward Adams Outdoor Advertising, who sold the billboard space to the atheist group.
Knief commented in the official Press Release: It is with regret that we tell our members and all of those who treasure free speech and the separation of religion and government that American Atheists and Adams
Outdoor Advertising have mutually agreed to remove the billboards immediately. No subject, no idea should be above scrutiny---and this includes religion in all forms. We are saddened that by choosing to express our rights as
atheists through questioning the religious beliefs of the men who want to be our president that our fellow citizens have responded with vitriol, threats, and hate speech against our staff, volunteers, and Adams Outdoor Advertising.
Teresa MacBain, American Atheists' Public Relations Director also commented in the Press Release:
It saddens me to think that our country is not a safe place for all people to publicly question religious belief. How can we grow as a nation when such censorship exists from our own citizens?
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