Over the course of the past few decades, our country has developed a greater general tolerance. From the abolition of slavery, to an increase in women’s rights, people who used to face severe prejudices are now accepted within society. While almost every minority has received recognition in one way or another, one that remains severely discriminated against is atheists. Subscribing to the term “atheist” creates a negative reaction from most people. Atheist politicians are either closeted or completely unheard of because their religious preferences (or lack thereof) discourage people from voting for them. From discrimination in the work place, to social prejudices against atheists, it is obvious that this minority is highly frowned upon, but the reasoning behind this discrimination is illogical.
Atheists simply do not believe in a higher being. That fact alone is not a significant reason to dislike this group of people. Atheists search for evidence and reasoning behind their beliefs. Instead of blindly following the common belief in a God, they look to proven theories of science and data for their lifestyle choices. It would be easy to join in with the majority of society and subscribe to some sort of religion, but instead, atheists choose a more difficult path of non-belief. It takes a strong, intelligent person to go against the social norms of our modern-day society and search for evidence behind religion, and for that reason, atheists deserve much more credibility than they get.