With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Orange County Atheists' Billboard Crusade
If you're driving down the Costa Mesa Freeway in Santa Ana, you might be able to catch a glimpse of the latest conquest by the Backyard Skeptics, a group of outspoken atheists in Orange Country.
The group is on a crusade, of sorts, to promote their godless beliefs through billboards and bus stop ads, according to the Orange County Register.
"We don't have a voice," said Bruce Gleason, head of the Backyard Skeptics told the paper. "This is our voice."
Their latest billboard just off the 55 quotes "lifelong atheist" Dr. Natalie Khazaal along with her quote: "Atheism is philanthropy without mythology, peace without superstition."
Sponsored message
In May, the group unveiled a billboard on Beach Boulevard in Westminster (a city founded as a Presbyterian temperance colony) on Beach Boulevard that said, "Don't believe in God? You are not alone." In Mission Viejo, the group has put up bus stop ads, according to the local Patch site. Gleason has plans to put up two more billboards in September.
The group expects controversy (the mayor of Westminster said the city's billboard made her stomach turn), but so far their billboards have outlasted similar billboards in Rancho Cucamonga that only lasted a few days.
Gleason said there might be more Orange County residents accepting of atheist views than you might expect, in a Daily Pilot op-ed:
There are more atheist groups in conservative Orange County than in Los Angeles. There are more than 15% of Americans who do not believe in a god. That's 54 million people, a larger minority than African Americans, gays and Jews put together.
At LAist, we focus on what matters to our community: clear, fair, and transparent reporting that helps you make decisions with confidence and keeps powerful institutions accountable.
Your support for independent local news is critical. With federal funding for public media gone, LAist faces a $1.7 million yearly shortfall. Speaking frankly, how much reader support we receive now will determine the strength of this reliable source of local information now and for years to come.
This work is only possible with community support. Every investigation, service guide, and story is made possible by people like you who believe that local news is a public good and that everyone deserves access to trustworthy local information.
That’s why we’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Thank you for understanding how essential it is to have an informed community and standing up for free press.
Your support for independent local news is critical. With federal funding for public media gone, LAist faces a $1.7 million yearly shortfall. Speaking frankly, how much reader support we receive now will determine the strength of this reliable source of local information now and for years to come.
This work is only possible with community support. Every investigation, service guide, and story is made possible by people like you who believe that local news is a public good and that everyone deserves access to trustworthy local information.
That’s why we’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Thank you for understanding how essential it is to have an informed community and standing up for free press.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
