Unaffiliated Population Isn’t Represented in Congressby Trent Gilliss, senior editor
The current U.S. Congress is dominated by Protestants (57%) with Catholics a distant second (29%), according to the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. No surprise there, but, as Pew researchers point out, one constituency lacks adequate representation:
“In 2011, one large segment of the population, the roughly 16% of Americans who are unaffiliated with any particular religion, remains completely unrepresented on Capitol Hill. Not one of the 435 members of the House of Representatives or one of the 100 senators serving in the 112th Congress lists his or her religion as atheist, agnostic or ‘nothing in particular.’”
Congress has a historical past of not mirroring the many constituencies in the United States. Is it time for more atheists and agnostics to run for office and represent this small but growing population?
Meanwhile, finance, insurance, and real estate companies get plenty of representation.
