Department of Education misusing public funds by ignoring constitutional rights
Since last December, Atheist Ireland has been lobbying to vindicate the constitutional right to not attend religious instruction in schools, and to uphold parental authority in the education of their children, which the Supreme Court has described as a foundational pillar of the Constitution. You can read details here of our correspondence ...
Religious school ethos should not influence social, personal, and health education
Atheist Ireland has made the following submission to the NCCA's consultation on the updated junior cycle SPHE curriculum. The aim of the updated short course is 'to nurture students' self-awareness and positive self-worth and to develop the knowledge, understanding, skills, dispositions and values that will help them to create and ...
Atheist Ireland submission to UN on combating intolerance based on religion or belief
Atheist Ireland has made the following submission to the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights who is preparing report on combating intolerance against persons based on religion or belief. Contents 1. Background to Atheist Ireland 2. Our recommendations 3. The UN and States should use the phrase ‘religion or belief’ consistently ...
Atheist Ireland, Evangelical Alliance, and Ahmadi Muslims update the UN on rights of children
Atheist Ireland, the Evangelical Alliance of Ireland, and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Ireland, made a joint submission to the UN Children's Rights Committee as it prepares to question Ireland next January. You can read that submission here. We also met with the UN Committee last week in Geneva, along ...
Atheist Ireland lobbying at the United Nations for the rights of children in Irish schools
Atheist Ireland was at the United Nations in Geneva this week lobbying for the rights of children in Irish schools that discriminate on the ground of religion. We also represented the Evangelical Alliance of Ireland and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Ireland, with whom we made a joint submission to the ...
Is the Catholic Church really moving sacramental preparation out of schools?
Reports that the Catholic Church in Dublin is to start moving the preparation of children for sacraments out of the classroom are welcome, but they are exaggerated when compared to the full policy document published by the Archdiocese. The full policy document says that schools will continue to “educate children ...
Back to school and back to fighting for your rights
Children are heading back to school, and parents are again left in the position that they must negotiate their Constitutional rights with the school. This is what minorities have to put up with in our Republic. Schools give no practical application to our Constitutional rights, and the Department of Education, ...
Protecting the rights of children from religious discrimination in Irish schools
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child will be questioning Ireland next year. Atheist Ireland, the Evangelical Alliance of Ireland, and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Ireland, have made this joint submission to the UN on freedom of religion and belief in Irish schools. Our Recommendations The ...
The state pays €10m a year for Catholic school chaplains to help Catholic parents
The State pays Catholic and Church of Ireland Chaplains to help parents with the religious education and religious formation of their children. This funding costs the state approximately €10 million per year. This is the purpose of the funding of Chaplains in ETB Community and Comprehensive Schools and designated Community ...
UN again tells Ireland to provide secular schools and remove religious oaths
Atheist Ireland welcomes today’s concluding observations of the UN Human Rights Committee, which again tell Ireland to provide secular education by establishing non-denominational schools, and to further amend the Employment Equality Act to bar all forms of discrimination against teachers and medical workers. The UN Committee has also told Ireland ...