In a ironic twist, a billboard promoting atheism has prompted a Colorado Springs radio host to attack the religion of Islam.
Demonstrating the same brazen bigotry of KNUS host Peter Boyles, not to mention Trump, KVOR 740-AM host Richard Randall said Thursday that if atheists have a "problem with religion," they should after Islam.
Without acknowledging how un-Christian he was sounding, Randall said he'd respect atheists a "whole heck of a lot more" if they put up a billboard saying, "skip Ramadan this time of year," and telling Muslims "they should abandon their religion."
Christians, he said, are "a great bunch of people to pick on. Why? Because they are Christians."
"Why would our religion [Christianity] irritate somebody?" asked Randall on air, suggesting that the atheists should have spotlighted Islam instead of a Christian holiday. "We're not the religion throwing people off of buildings if they are gay. We're not beheading people."
"If they have a problem with religion, why don't they start there [with Islam]?" Randall asked, failing to note any distinction between Islamic militants and the vast majority of people who practice the religion of Islam.
A caller said atheists spotlight Christmas because they aren't "familiar with the Muslim religion [sic]"
The billboard, sponsored by the American Atheists and located along I25 in CO Springs, reads, "Atheist Christmas, The More the Merrier." It also features a series of texts, made to appear like they were sent by teenagers, stating:
"U going to church this Xmas?"
"LoL. No way. I don't believe that stuff anymore."
"What'll your parents say??"
"They'll get over it. :-P"
A caller suggested the billboard, which is protected by free speech, should be removed by the government because it's distracting drivers. It's a safety issue, she said.
The bigotry of talk radio hosts would be bad enough if we didn't have a bigot president-elect who's proposed creating a Muslim registry. But since we do, we need to be ready to respond if Randall, Boyles, Trump, or anyone else in these hateful times goes after our Muslim neighbors.
In case we need to respond, ProgressNow Colorado has set up a "rapid response" network so we can help if needed. Sign up here.