FFRF pushes for Ga. school district to remove unconstitutional ‘prayer box’

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is demanding that a middle school in Walton County School District (Monroe, Ga.) remove a box asking for students’ prayers.

A concerned district community member informed the state/church watchdog that Youth Middle School is sponsoring an on-campus prayer box located in the school’s media center on behalf of the First Baptist Church. A sign taped to the front of the box reads: “Prayer Request. How can we pray for you? Fill out a prayer request form and place it in this box.” The prayer requisition form asks for name, prayer request and email for follow-up.

FFRF is calling for the district to immediately remove the prayer box.

“The district has a constitutional duty to remain neutral toward religion,” FFRF Staff Attorney Sammi Lawrence writes. 

FFRF points out that Youth Middle School may not encourage students, staff or anyone else to pray or request prayer by sponsoring a church prayer box on school property. By giving a church access to the school to promote prayer to students, Youth Middle School — and thus the school district — needlessly marginalizes those students and community members among the 38 percent of Americans who are non-Christian, including the 43 percent of Generation Z members who are nonreligious.

FFRF will be closely monitoring the situation in order to ensure that the First Amendment rights of students are not further violated.

“A public middle school is not a church and should not be recruiting students for churches,” FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor says. “A prayer box in a middle school not only violates the First Amendment, it tramples on parental control of their children’s religious practices, and is a gross invasion of student privacy.”

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with over 41,000 members across the country, including more than 600 members in Georgia. Its purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.

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New episode of ‘Secular Spotlight’ examines religious released time programs

The latest episode of the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s web series describes how to counter a religious group’s devouring of precious public school time.

FFRF’s Ryan Jayne, Sammy Lawrence and Mickey Dollens explore on “Secular Spotlight” a new toolkit that gives parents and community members the resources they need to push back against LifeWise Academy. This organization’s program takes public school students out of class for religious instruction, then sends them back to school to recruit others. Special guest FFRF Kentucky Chapter President John Sutton joins the discussion to explain how grassroots activists successfully stopped LifeWise from entering his community — and how others can follow their example.

“Lifewise’s motives are not about bringing kids into a program to give them, which of course it is, religious education,” Sutton explains. “Their higher motive is to recruit other kids out of the school.”

You can catch this episode of “Secular Spotlight” on FFRF’s YouTube channel, as well as by watching on your smart TV after downloading FFRF’s free app, Freethought TV, which also highlights FFRF’s other video programming. Our recent episodes include a deep dive into the rapidly expanding world of AI-generated religious content with special guest “The Antibot” Taylor Leigh and a news bite explaining a charter school victory in Colorado. Make sure you’re subscribed to FFRF’s YouTube channel for all the latest updates!

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With more than 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.

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Red Pen Logic Called This Atheist Argument Incoherent… He Was Wrong

Nonreligious people are the largest spiritual group in the US. Why don’t we hear more about them?

LGBTQ Nation
By Daniel Villarreal

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FFRF’s ‘Secular Spotlight’ explores the weird world of AI-generated religion

The latest episode of the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s “Secular Spotlight”  dives into the rapidly expanding world of AI-generated religious content.

FFRF Legal Counsel Chris Line and IT Director Scott Knickelbine welcome Taylor Leigh, known on YouTube as “The Antibot,” to discuss how — from AI Jesus chatbots to fake Christian influencers and political propaganda — artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to spread religious messaging and attract followers online. Leigh walks our hosts through the strange and rapidly growing intersection of religion and AI. The conversation examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping faith, online culture, misinformation and human connection. 

“Why something like ‘Text with Jesus’ has such a good ranking and so many people are downloading it, has to do with the fact that we live in a world that’s increasingly isolated, and when we’re talking about religious folks, religious attendance in the last two decades has declined pretty sharply,” Leigh says. “I think half of religious Americans actually attend church in person on a semi-regular basis, and so I think that there is this connection that a lot of people are longing for and they’re no longer getting it in church.”

You can catch this episode of “Secular Spotlight” on FFRF’s YouTube channel, as well as by watching on your smart TV after downloading FFRF’s free app, Freethought TV, which also highlights FFRF’s other video programming. Our recent episodes include a news bite explaining a charter school victory in Colorado and another one answering viewer questions on Ask An Atheist Day. Make sure you’re subscribed to FFRF’s YouTube channel for all the latest updates!

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With more than 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.

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June 28, 2026 – To Begin the World Over Again: The Life of Thomas Paine (Los Angeles)

Sunday, June 28, 2026

2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Los Angeles Central Library

Mark Taper Auditorium
630 W 5th St
Los Angeles, CA 90071

Thomas Paine’s ideas changed the world, and his words sparked a revolution. As we celebrate America’s 250th birthday, join us for a theatrical production sharing the story of one of history’s most misunderstood men. Written by and starring Ian Ruskin.

Admission is free. Tickets are not required but encouraged. Reserve your free ticket at Eventbrite.

For ADA accommodations, call (213) 228-7430 at least 72 hours prior to the event.
Para ajustes razonables según la ley de ADA, llama al (213) 228-7430 al menos 72 horas antes del evento.

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La. school system heeds FFRF call to ban the Gideons

The Freedom From Religion Foundation has successfully advised a Louisiana school district to bar a religious organization from handing out bibles to its students.

A concerned family member informed the state/church watchdog that on Sept. 26 of last year, Herndon Magnet School (located in Belcher, La.) permitted Gideons International to address students and distribute bibles to youngsters on school grounds during the school day. Gideons International is “an evangelical association that equips and mobilizes Christian business and professional men, along with their wives, to share God’s word, winning others for Jesus worldwide.” Herndon Magnet School’s official Facebook page stated (image above): “We were so thankful to be visited by the Gideon Ministry this morning! They spoke with our 5th graders and offered each student the opportunity to receive a Youth New Testament Bible.” (The post no longer appears on the Herndon Magnet School Facebook page.)
School-sponsored bible distributions are unconstitutional, FFRF reminded the school district.

“It is inappropriate and unconstitutional for Caddo Parish Public Schools to allow outside groups to distribute religious materials to students,” FFRF Legal Fellow Charlotte Gude wrote to Caddo Parish Public Schools Superintendent Keith S. Burton. “By allowing Gideons International to distribute bibles to students, Caddo Parish Public Schools displays blatant favoritism for religion over nonreligion and Christianity above all other faiths. Further, it appears that the school itself hosted and promoted the bible distribution. When school staff encourages young students to take bibles, they run the risk of unconstitutionally coercing students to take, read and reflect upon religious literature.”

Further, FFRF pointed out, this bible distribution and social media promotion needlessly marginalized all students and families who do not practice Christianity. As much as 38 percent of the American population is non-Christian, including the almost 30 percent who are nonreligious. More than half of Generation Z members (those born after 1996) are non-Christian, including the 43 percent who are nonreligious.

FFRF urged that to respect the constitutional rights of students and parents, Caddo Parish Public Schools must cease allowing the Gideons International and any other organizations to distribute bibles or other religious literature to students. Its call did not go unheeded.

“Please be advised that the staff at Herndon Magnet School has been advised to not allow the Gideons to distribute bibles during the school day at school,” the general counsel for the Caddo Parish School Board recently replied in an email.

FFRF is pleased that its appeal to follow the Constitution fell on receptive ears.

“Religious groups and individuals should not be given access to a captive audience of vulnerable young children,” comments FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor. “Religious instruction belongs with parents, not strangers exploiting our public schools. We’re glad officials realized the impropriety of this when we raised concerns.”

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with over 41,000 members across the country, including more than 100 members in Louisiana. Its purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism. 

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FFRF pushes back against wave of Texas Ten Commandments displays

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is objecting to a new Ten Commandments monument outside Amarillo City Hall — the second such display in Texas that it has recently confronted.

The state/church watchdog has sent a letter to the Amarillo mayor and City Council members contending that statements made during the monument’s dedication ceremony describing the biblical monument in explicitly religious terms demonstrate the display serving a religious purpose. Monument coordinator Trent Morgan stated that “all laws are based on a moral code and they come from the bible” and said the monument reflects “who we are as a people.” Morgan also said that the display was intended to encourage future generations to believe in God and understand that they were created “in His image.” During the ceremony, attendees prayed and proclaimed that Amarillo was being claimed for the Lord: “We’re claiming this city for the Lord. No devil’s going to come in here and take his heart, because we’re going to stand up, we’re going to fight for this city.”

Such statements undermine any claim that this monument was installed for a so-called historical purpose. Furthermore, FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor notes, “There is no historic purpose for a city or other U.S. entity to display the Ten Commandments. These biblical edicts are not part of U.S. history, our Declaration of Independence, much less our godless Constitution, whose only references to religion are exclusionary.”

FFRF Legal Counsel Chris Line has written to Amarillo Mayor Cole Stanley: “Displaying the Ten Commandments in front of City Hall is not only an unconstitutional display of favoritism toward religion, it needlessly marginalizes and excludes city residents who do not share the religious beliefs that the Ten Commandments embody and represent.”

The recent push to install Ten Commandments monuments on government property in Texas is a troubling trend.

“Public officials who seek to use government institutions to promote religious messages should be censured. They have no business telling citizens how many gods to worship, which gods to worship or whether to worship any gods at all!” says Gaylor. “The First Commandment is a clear and egregious violation of the First Amendment.”

FFRF notes that the Amarillo monument comes on the heels of its separate challenge to a Ten Commandments display in Rockwall County just a few days ago.

FFRF explains that government-sponsored Ten Commandments displays alienate residents who do not share the religious beliefs represented by the monument and conflict with the constitutional principle that government must remain neutral on matters of religion. It is asking Amarillo officials to remove the monument and respect the rights of conscience of all city residents.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with over 41,000 members and several chapters nationwide, including more than 1,700 members and a chapter in Texas. FFRF’s purposes are to defend the constitutional principle of separation between church and state, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.

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Red Pen Logic Called This Atheist Argument Incoherent… He Was Wrong

Ark Encounter’s decade-long disaster: How the Creationist theme park failed on its promises

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It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything about Ark Encounter, the Noah’s Ark “replica” in Williamstown, Kentucky, but it’s about to celebrate its 10-year anniversary this July, so it seems like a good time to remind everyone how big of a disaster this whole thing has been—and not just because of the fake “science” it presents to children and gullible adults.

Even if you haven’t paid much attention to it for a while, watchdogs have been tracking its failures for years now.

Just consider the massive government investments.

When Creationist Ken Ham and his team at Answers in Genesis were looking for a location for their $100+ million attraction, they pitched it as a way to create jobs. One projection (from the state) said Ark Encounter was “expected to annually generate… a minimum of 3,000 new full-time equivalent jobs.”

Unfortunately, those jobs turned out to be available only for people who agreed to Answers in Genesis’ fundamentalist Christian worldview. Even wannabe janitors had to agree the Earth was only 6,000 years old and gay marriage was an abomination.

Besides that, the city of Williamstown, which desperately wanted to be the home of the Ark, offered Ham’s team $62 million in junk bonds if they built the “Ark” in their backyard. Grant County, which Williamstown is in, gave Ham’s team 98 acres of land for $1. (That’s not a typo. Just a single dollar.)

They also said that, over a 30-year period, 75% of Ark Encounter’s real estate taxes would go toward repayment of the interest-free loan. So instead of that money going to the city and the citizens, it would be used to repay those bonds.

Also, 2% of all employees’ paychecks would go back to Ark Encounter to help them pay off the loans, so neither the government nor the employees were getting everything they deserved.

Why would a city and county do all this? Because they hoped that the attraction would be so popular, it would increase tourism, liven up what was in many ways a dying town, create well-paying jobs, and be good for all surrounding businesses.

The state of Kentucky even promised Ark Encounter a tax incentive worth up to $18.25 million over the next decade based on attendance and sales. (Lawsuits to stop that, due to the discriminatory hiring, were unsuccessful.)

All of these numbers were based on expectations that Ark Encounter would draw in a certain number of tourists each year. And the Creationists—who should never be taken seriously when it comes to large numbers—offered the best-case and worst-case scenarios in a 2013 “feasibility report.” They assured everyone that they would bring in between 1.2 million and 2 million visitors in the first full year of business.

Ken Ham openly bragged about this on the website for Ark Encounter at the time.

That same report assumed a 4% increase in attendance every year over the next decade—a number that could rise to 10% after they expanded. By their math—and Creationists are truly numerical wizards—the money line would always be going up and to the right.

If you do the math, and if Year 1 brought in the “estimated average” of 1,600,000 visitors, then by Year 9, they were expected to have 2,590,984 visitors.

The people who were best known for shrinking large numbers were now artificially inflating them.

But they got the investments they wanted, anyway. Ark Encounter opened in July of 2016. And because it’s a private attraction, the expectation was that the public would never really get to see what the attendance numbers were. Sure, the local government would have to keep track of whether their loans were paid off, but it wasn’t clear if we’d ever have access to real data about Ark Encounter’s finances.

And then something wonderful happened.

The city of Williamstown imposed a $0.50-per-ticket “safety fee” on all tickets sold at Ark Encounter. That money was meant to offset the city’s costs for all the additional police cars and fire trucks that would be needed. (Even if visitors to the Ark were rarely in peril, you needed those resources on hand in case of emergencies.) While Ken Ham fought this at first, he eventually gave up and began paying it a year after Ark Encounter opened.

And because those safety fees were a public record, it wouldn’t be difficult to figure out how many tickets were being sold each month. Ever since that data became available, local paleontologist Dan Phelps has been regularly filing public record requests to get access to those numbers, allowing us to calculate monthly ticket sales at Ark Encounter.

Have I been keeping track of those numbers in an easy-to-read spreadsheet for several years now?

Hell yeah I have.

Here’s what I can tell you about attendance:

The attendance has never even come close to hitting that estimated average of 1.6 million visitors. Even when you factor out the year COVID shut these parks down, things have just gone downhill. Righting America’s William Trollinger put together this helpful analysis (counting numbers between July of one year and June of the following year):

And here are the actual attendance numbers:

• Year 1(JY 2016-JE 2017): est. 800,000 (50% of projected attendance)

• Year 2 (JY 2017-JE 2018): 865,761 (52% of projected attendance)

• Year 3 (JY 2018-JE 2019): 875,882 (51% of projected attendance)

• Year 4 (JY 2019-JE 2021): 841,772 (44% of projected attendance)

  • Given the impact of COVID on Ark attendance, I left out March 2020-February 2021

• Year 5 (JY 2021-JE 2022): 775,731 (39% of projected attendance)

• Year 6 (JY 2022-JE 2023): 782,660 (36% of projected attendance)

• Year 7 (JY 2023-JE 2024): 764,258 (34% of projected attendance)

• Year 8 (JY 2024-JE 2025): 682,101 (27% of projected attendance)

• Year 9 (JY 2025-JE 2026): 664, 813 (26% of projected attendance)

  • For May-June 2026 I used the attendance numbers from May-June 2025. If history is any guide, this may serve to overestimate Year 9 attendance.

However you want to parse the numbers, the takeaways here are that attendance keeps falling and Ark Encounter has never even come close to the “worst-case scenario” of 1.2 million visitors. You can’t blame that on COVID either.

Because they’re not hitting the projected attendance numbers, it means the city isn’t attracting tourists in the volume they had hoped, which is bad news for local stores, hotels, and even schools that rely on property taxes.

Williamstown officials took a misguided gamble on this Creationist attraction and the city has paid the price for it. The sales tax rebate (worth $1.825 million/year for ten years) from the state should be on the verge of expiring, which is bad news for Answers in Genesis. Add to that a faltering economy, high gas prices, and the simple fact that this “museum” isn’t worth seeing more than once (even if you’re going there to mock it!) because it’s not like the underlying details ever change, and the future looks pretty damn bad for the Creationists behind it.

Thoughts and prayers.