When Gage Pulliam saw that his high school had plaques with the Ten Commandments on them in every classroom, he wasn’t sure what he could do about it, so he told the Freedom From Religion Foundation. At the time, his name wasn’t known to the public. But after identifying himself on this site, Gage has shown himself to be a brave activist, speaking to news crews about why he supports church/state separation and letting the public know that he’s not anti-Christian; he’s just pro-equality.

Now, the FFRF has awarded him with their first “Strong Backbone Student Activist Award,” worth $1,000:

A New York FFRF member who prefers not to be named endowed the “Strong Backbone” award. The donor sent FFRF the $1000 contribution as his own “80th birthday present,” specifying the award should go to a high school student who has “showed uncommon strength in standing up for his or her freethought sentiments.”

Gage is well-deserving of the award and I’m hoping it also inspires other students in his situation — students who see Christianity being promoted in their schools in an illegal way — to alert a real higher power to the injustice.



