I am writing in to disagree with Chelsea Fiddyment’s column “Activism for atheism is hypocritical”. While I understand her point, I believe that she is wrong in her conclusion that atheists are given the same rights and privileges that the religious, especially Christians, are. From small acts like including God on US currency and the pledge of allegiance to doling out billions of dollars to faith based social groups and recognizing “national day of prayer” to giving religious organizations tax-exempt status, the United States government has clearly shown that it favors monotheistic religion over atheism and agnosticism.

Furthermore, by including the singular God on currency and the pledge, the Government leaves out non-theistic religions like Buddhism and polytheistic religions like Hinduism and Neo-Paganism. Activism in atheism is not about forcing others to believe what you do but rather standing up for their right to freedom from religion, as well as freedom of religion. For atheists, activism is about claiming basic civil rights, not the special rights than many religions enjoy.