Cecil Bothwell, Gay-Friendly Atheist for Congress

[rug]

Not all Democrats are created equal. Over the course of the debt crisis, we’ve learned that some Democrats are far too eager to compromise with even the most extreme, small-minded Republican tactics. And then there are those Democrats who may as well be Republicans. One of them is Congressman Heath Shuler, of North Carolina’s 11th District.

Heath Shuler is opposed to gay marriage, ENDA and anti-hate-crime legislation, and even has ties to “The Family,” a shadowy, ultra-conservative group associated with the Uganda “kill the gays” bill. He is staunchly anti-abortion, voting to defund Planned Parenthood and against life-saving stem cell research. He’s also specifically opposed to Nancy Pelosi’s party leadership and has tried to challenge her for leadership positions in the House. The only place where Shuler seems to have any agreement with his fellow Dems is concern for the poor, criticizing House Republican attempts to cut food and nutrition assistance for new mothers as “not responsible,” yet with his anti-equality views as extreme as they are, it’s hard to know what to make of such a slim silver lining.

Luckily, this Blue Dog has a challenger in the form of Cecil Bothwell, currently a member of the Asheville city council. Bothwell is a strong supporter of the gay community; in fact, he has spoken at rallies for LGBT causes. He is also a strong supporter of women’s rights, even volunteering as an escort at Femcare, an abortion clinic in Asheville. But what is perhaps most interesting about Bothwell is his religion. While Shuler is a self-identified “evangelical Christian,” Bothwell is that rarest of species in modern American politics: an out-and-proud atheist.

A June 2011 Pew Research survey asked Americans which traits would make them more or less likely to support a candidate for president. All the predictable ones were there: 24% said they’d be less likely to support a candidate who tried marijuana, 46% one who has had an extramarital affair, 51% one who has never held political office (sorry, Donald Trump!) and, unfortunately, 33% are less likely to support a candidate for being gay. But one quality stood head and shoulders above the rest: a whopping 61% of Americans would be less likely to support a candidate for not believing in God, with only 5% being more likely to support him/her and 33% claiming it would make no difference. Previous polls have shown that a majority of Americans (53% in 2007) won’t vote for an atheist at all. Which is strange to think about, when we all know an atheist or two. And they’re not uncommon; 13.2% of Americans claim to have “no religion,” and while the nonreligious are not all nontheistic, taken together they are the second largest religious group in the country after Christians. So why are nontheists so unelectable? And what does this mean for Bothwell? After all, he is only running for House, not for President

http://www.autostraddle.com/cecil-bothwell-gay-friendly-atheist-for-congress-104042/

[dmallind]

1. I wish I were wrong, but I will bet 1:50 he gets lt 10% nt