Atheist Ireland and parents are challenging discriminatory Second Level School Transport Scheme
Atheist Ireland and many parents are challenging the second level school transport scheme, which is unjust and discriminatory. And Ruth Coppinger TD has asked the Minister for Education the latest in a series of Dail questions, which you can read below, in relation to the scheme. The scheme gives privilege ...
Support the Equal Participation in Schools Bill 2016
The Equal Participation in Schools Bill 2016 will be debated in the Dail next Tuesday night between 8pm and 10pm. If passed this Bill would ensure that all children and their parents have access to an education system with equal respect and dignity and where their human rights are guaranteed. ...
Catholic Church has privileged position on political funding with SIPO
The Irish State has put in place laws that enable religious organisations (mainly the Catholic Church) to campaign on political issues such as the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution and religious control of schools. But ethical secular organisations, including Atheist Ireland, get no such benefit because we treat the law ...
Bishop’s statement confirms that religious opt-out system does not work in practice
Catholic Bishop Denis Nulty has said that only 1% of students opt out of religion in Irish primary schools. We don’t know the reliability of the survey he is basing this figure on. But, if it is accurate, it simply proves that the opt out system does not work in practice. Indeed, ...
Polish government backs down from restricting abortion rights
The Polish government this week backed down from a controversial Bill to make abortion more restrictive, because of a wave of protests in Poland and internationally. In September, Atheist Ireland spoke against this Bill at a rally in Warsaw, when we were in Poland for the annual OSCE human rights ...
Atheist Ireland rejects Holy See claims about Irish schools at OSCE
The Irish State has ceded control of most of our publicly funded schools to a Church that swaps at will between being a religion and being a foreign state. This foreign State claims internationally they are not responsible for the running of Catholic schools in Ireland, while at the same time ...
The tangled web of financial rules for political campaign groups
Atheist Ireland complies with the various pieces of legislation that regulate the funding and payment for political campaigning in Ireland. Unlike some other groups with secular or religious political aims, we are all volunteers, but we have managed to ensure that our funding and donations are accountable. Unfortunately, we are ...
Atheist Alliance International publishes Gender Balance Report
In a project instigated by Atheist Ireland, Atheist Alliance International has published a Gender Balance Report. It was coordinated by John Hamill, Atheist Ireland’s representative on the AAI Board, with input from Ashling O’Brien, Atheist Ireland’s Regional Officer, and Professor Sabina Brennan of the School of Psychology and Institute of ...
Atheist Ireland tells OSCE meeting in Warsaw of religious discrimination against atheists and minority faiths
Atheist Ireland made two formal contributions to today's OSCE human rights conference in Warsaw, highlighting religious discrimination against atheists and members of minority faiths in Ireland and throughout the OSCE. Jane Donnelly spoke on discrimination in the Irish education system, and Michael Nugent spoke on other forms of discrimination. We ...
Irish school teachers must be Catholic missionaries
Thinking of getting into the teaching profession in Ireland? If so be prepared to be a missionary for the Catholic Church. The vast majority of publicly funded schools in Ireland are controlled by the Catholic Church, and if you want to get a job as a teacher you have to ...