The Freethinker - Page 4 of 403 - The voice of atheism since 1881

Trump supports idiotic Christian who joked about public hangings

November 24, 2018 By Barry Duke

On Monday Donald Trump will be in Mississippi to rally support for Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith. Hyde-Smith, an ardent segregationist and ‘pro-lifer’, also has the support of Governor Phil Bryant, who said of her anti-abortion activism: This Christian woman, this mother, this wife has fought hard to protect those unborn. And she will do so in the United States Senate as she continues. Hyde-Smith is facing Democratic challenger Mike Espy in a runoff for the Senate seat – but her campaign… Read more

Scottish politician vows to give his son a Jesus-centred education

November 24, 2018 By Barry Duke

10 Comments

A century ago Scotland snuggled up to the Catholic Church, and agreed – under the Education (Scotland) Act 1918 – that Catholic schools would be brought into the state system. Taxpayers, of course, would foot the bill. In a grand celebration to mark the centenary Scotland’s Deputy First Minster John Swinney, above, banged on at length about how good Catholic education was for the country. So good that he plans to send his son to a Catholic school. Catholic schools I… Read more

Secular group questions Muslim hate preacher’s role in a UK charity

November 23, 2018 By Barry Duke

5 Comments

Dr Zakir Naik, above, is banned from entering Britain, but the Islamic preacher who has praised Osama Bin Laden and said all Muslims ‘should be terrorists’ is a trustee of a registered charity. Now the National Secular Society (NSS) is demanding answers as to why the fanatic continues to be a trustee of the Islamic Research Foundation International (IRFI), a charity registered in England which owns the Islamic TV channel Peace TV. This week it was reported that the UK’s… Read more

Macy’s ‘parade of depravity’ wrecks Thanksgiving for millions

November 23, 2018 By Barry Duke

22 Comments

The ‘gay agenda’ – described as an ‘airborne infection’ – struck at the very heart of Macy’s televised Thanksgiving parade in New York yesterday. It came in the form of a performance of a scene from the hit Broadway musical comedy, The Prom, when “possibly millions” of innocent little ‘uns were exposed to a lesbian kiss. Mission America’s President Linda Harvey, above, in issuing a call for a boycott of the famous department store, expressed her horror: On Thanksgiving morning… Read more

South Korean church leader Lee Jae-rock jailed for sexual offences

November 22, 2018 By Barry Duke

8 Comments

The head of the Manmin Central Church today began a 15-year jail sentence after being found guilty of multiple counts of sexual assault and harassment. Lee Jae-rock, 75 – known for preaching the virtues of chastity to his exstimated 133,000 followers – was indicted on 42 counts of sexual harassment and sexual assault against eight victims who had “absolute faith” in his religious authority. Court documents revealed that Lee – who was charged with 42 sexual offences against eight victims… Read more

Sabbath uproar: El Al hit with 180 demands for compensation

November 22, 2018 By Barry Duke

14 Comments

Insisting they should not be flying on the Sabbath, a group of ultra-Orthodox Jews bound from New York to Israel reportedly forced an El-Al flight to make an unscheduled stop in Athens last week – and are now demanding compensation of $13,000 each. A letter sent by lawyers to the airline alleges that flight attendants had caused a delay of the departure, which the passengers said resulted in them: Observing the Shabbat in an inconvenient place causing them emotional distress…. Read more

Missionary killed in a bid to bring Jesus to a protected Indian tribe

November 21, 2018 By Barry Duke

52 Comments

When American missionary John Allen Chau, above, broke a law preventing all contact with protected tribesmen living on a remote Indian island, he paid for his transgression with his life. As soon as he set foot on North Sentinel Island, one of the world’s most isolated regions in India’s Andaman islands which is off limits to visitors, Chau found himself facing a flurry of arrows. Chau, 27, paid local fishermen to help him get to North Sentinel Island on November 16,… Read more

Prejudice, not pride: London school targeted for its inclusive agenda

November 21, 2018 By Barry Duke

19 Comments

Heavers Farm school in South Norwood holds a series of events that encourage pupils to be proud of themselves and their families, but this year’s ‘Proud to be Me’ unleashed fury among some Christian parents who claimed that it was a gay pride by stealth celebration. One immediate reaction was a call for the resignation of head teacher, Susan Papas, by an angry parent called Ruth Anderson who felt that Papas had abused her role by planning the event and… Read more

Jews accused of ‘infiltrating’ Muslim communities with … chicken soup

November 20, 2018 By Barry Duke

1 Comment

Mitzvah Day in the UK is an annual interfaith community programme – one which gained publicity at the weekend when the Guardian carried a report of chicken soup being prepared and served in a mosque. The outreach was seen as a sinister ploy to infiltate Islamic communities by Roshan Salih, above, who edits “Five Pillars” and and heads an Islamic news site in the UK, Press TV. Salih claimed at the weekend that the day of Jewish-led social action was … Read more

Fundraiser for disowned gay teen fast approaches $100,000 mark

November 20, 2018 By Barry Duke

12 Comments

Don’t you just love it when bigotry backfires? In the second case of its kind this year, an online funding campaign has raised a huge sum of money for a Buffalo, New York, student who was disowned for refusing to submit to a ‘pray-away-the-gay’ programme. The fundraiser for Canisius College cross-country and track athlete Emily Schreck, above, has surpassed $98,000. Her experience mirrors that of Florida teen Seth Owen who was made homeless after refusing his parents’ demands to continue… Read more