Thread by @USATODAY

Atheists have the highest rates of vaccination against COVID-19 compared to religious counterparts, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.
usatoday.com/story/news/nat…

“Part of the core of our life stance is trusting in science and reason...” said Nicole Carr, who considers herself an atheist. "We know the rates of vaccinated people versus unvaccinated people hospitalized due to COVID, and we trust that science.”

The number of atheists who are fully vaccinated was higher than the 86% of Hispanic Catholics, and 82% of Catholics overall.

And it was notably more than Protestants, including 73% of white non-evangelicals, 70% of Black Protestants and just 57% of white evangelicals.

In February, the Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a statement advising against the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, calling it “morally compromised” for having been developed with cloned stem cells from aborted fetuses.

Neil Gross, a sociology professor at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, sees a growing distinction between two groups of people in the United States divided by the institutions and authorities they consider legitimate. One side follows science, the other faith and faith leaders.

“Atheists are more responsive to science,” said Texas A&M chapter president of the National Secular Student Alliance Aref Sadeghi Googhari.

“As opposed to religious people who may have ideas about God protecting them or it being God’s plan, that there’s no point to getting the vaccine.”