American Humanist Association - Advertising Campaigns

Advertising Campaigns

The American Humanist Association has received national media attention for its various advertising campaigns, with media outlets often referring to their controversial nature among local residents and religious leaders.

In 2008 the AHA ran ads on buses in Washington, D.C. that proclaimed "Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake", and since 2009 the organization has paid for billboard advertisements nationwide. One such billboard, which stated "No God...No Problem" was repeatedly vandalized.

In 2010 the AHA launched another ad campaign promoting Humanism, which the New York Times said was the "first (atheist campaign) to include spots on television and cable" and was described by CNN as the "largest, most extensive advertising campaign ever by a godless organization". The campaign featured violent or sexist quotes from holy books, contrasted with more compassionate quotes from humanist thinkers, including physicist Albert Einstein, biologist Richard Dawkins, and anthropologist Carleton Coon.


In late 2011 the AHA launched a holiday billboard campaign "in cities across the United States where atheists have experienced discrimination due to their lack of belief in a traditional god". Overall, the organization placed advertisements in 7 different cities: Kearny, New Jersey; Washington, D.C.; Cranston, Rhode Island; Bastrop, Louisiana; Oregon City, Oregon; College Station, Texas and Rochester Hills, Michigan.

In November 2012, the AHA launched a national ad campaign to promote a new website, KidsWithoutGod.com, with ads using the slogans "I'm getting a bit old for imaginary friends" and "You're Not The Only One." The campaign included bus advertising in Washington, DC, a billboard in Moscow, Idaho, and online ads on the family of websites run by Cheezburger and Pandora Radio, as well as Facebook, Reddit, Google, and YouTube. Ads were turned down for content by Disney, Time for Kids and National Geographic Kids.

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