A South African was threatened with termination of their employment after revealing being an atheist. A post on Reddit, a social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website, revealed the realities suffered by atheists.
In the post, the employer threatened to terminate the individual's employment "for being openly atheist." "This came after I shared a Happy Atheist Day picture on my WhatsApp status," the post said.
"I was forced to remove the status. I now have a "consultation" with our (Christian and offended) HR lady on Friday," the post said. I "need to be prepared for this," the individual said.
Atheist Republic retrieved an archived version of the post but the username of the individual who posted it has been removed.
Africa has always been a profoundly spiritual continent, with various indigenous and native religious beliefs. According to Jacob Olupona, a professor of indigenous African religions at Harvard Divinity School, "African religion cannot be separated from the everyday or mundane."
In his book, The Cambridge History of Atheism, published last year, Leo Igwe described atheism in South Africa as "diffused" in the culture. Earlier this year, Cyril Ramaphosa, president of South Africa, enacted the Internet Censorship Act of 2019 with little to no warning.
The law gives extensive censorship power to South Africa's Film and Publications Board, causing concerns from atheists. According to Dean Kruger, founder of Atheist Republic’s Cape Town Consulate (ARSAC), the law contains a "vague definition of what amounts to hate speech."
In their official statement, the Atheist Republic Cape Town Consulate said they are “outraged at the blatant case of discrimination in our backyard.”
AR Cape Town Consulate also reminded everyone through their statement that South Africa’s constitution “guarantees all citizens the right to freedom of and from religion.” “The veiled threat of job loss for failing to conform to dogma is unacceptable,” they added.
Although the post has since been deleted, and the individual who posted it was using a "throw-away" account, the comments on the original post in r/atheism is still available for viewing. One Redditor quickly advised to "make sure to get it in writing so you can sue them." At the same time, others recommended referring to existing laws in South Africa for legal remedies.
Atheist Republic News Team was able to identify the account that made the post. AR News Team has sent a message to the account; no response was given at the writing of this article.
