A billboard advertising the Rationalists of East Tennessee, an atheist organization, was removed from its Kingston Pike location last week — five days into its month-long lease.
The billboard, which read “Don’t Believe in God? You’re Not Alone,” was allegedly removed by Lamar Advertising after the property’s owner objected to the billboard’s message content, according to an employee of Arnwine’s Home Furnishings, which sits beneath the billboard’s location.
During its short run, the billboard received several voices of support from the community, including Wade Bibb, a pastor at Central Bearden Baptist, which sits across the street from the billboard’s location. In an interview with WATE-TV, Bibb made it clear that while he disagreed with the billboard’s message, he supported the organization’s right to express it.
“We’re very strong supporters of freedom of speech,” Bibb said of his congregation. “If you wanted that to be a pro-God message there, then I think you should have rented it out and put a pro-God message.”
Matt Howell, campus minister for Reformed University Fellowship at UT, said he similarly feels that the right to free expression should be applied to all people, regardless of their beliefs.
“I think we live in a pluralistic society, and people can pay to advertise whatever they want to advertise,” Howell said. “I would officially want the atheists to have the same rights to promote their perspective as much as I would want a Christian to be able to promote their perspective.”
For Larry Rhodes, president of the Rationalists of East Tennessee and the Atheist Society of Knoxville, the removal of the billboard came as no big surprise.
“We tried to be understanding to Lamar’s position that they’re in,” Rhodes said. “As an organization, we hope that we don’t have to tear it down again.”
While the arrival of an atheist-themed billboard may be new to Knoxville, similar advertisements have been making headlines across the nation.
In 2010, an American Atheist billboard in New Jersey depicting three men riding camels toward a rural manger read “You Know It’s a Myth: This Season, Celebrate Reason!”
Another American Atheist billboard gained national attention in 2011 when New Jersey commuters noticed the message “37 million Americans know myths when they see them,” straddled above portraits of Jesus and a representation of the devil.
Noting the relative tameness of Knoxville’s billboard when compared to other atheist advertisements, Rhodes maintained that the purpose of the advertisement was to make friends rather than make new enemies.
“We didn’t want to challenge anybody,” he said, emphasizing that the billboard’s placement across the street from a church was purely coincidental. “We didn’t want to put anyone down or make any enemies. We were just going for high traffic. The church really didn’t enter into it.
“Try putting a billboard in Knoxville or East Tennessee anywhere without getting close to a church.”
The billboard was erected in a new location shortly following its removal from Kingston Pike. Rhodes and other members of Rationalists of East Tennessee are keeping the billboard’s new location a secret to help promote membership for their organization.
