Come Out
One day Alex McElroy told his father he is an atheist. McElroy's dad did not disown him after his confession. He told his son he is simply going through a phase, but his son responded that he could never return to his faith. "The most common response I get when I tell people I'm an atheist is them saying, 'Oh, that's cool,' and then telling me how they have other atheist friends," McElroy said. "People sometimes tell me they'll pray for me," Boleman said. "I just respond, 'I'll think for you.'"
"Coming out" doesn't always go smoothly but it helps to statrt with friends. First, find other non-believers in your area around your age and make new friends. Then, tell your friends who don't already know. Hopefully, they will remain friends but if not, you already have a new group of friends. Next, you should tell family if they haven't already figured it out. They may not react as you expect so don't assume anything. Approach the family member you think will be most understanding first. The whole processs is much easier to face than it was years ago, mainly because so many others have gone before you. Consider the fact that if you are not open as non-religious then you are spending the one and only life you'll get acting as if you are some one else. You may find that when you reach old age, you will greatly regret this. Live you life as yourself! In the words of Kurt Cobain, "I would rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I am not."
A large number of accessible atheist and secularist books, many of which became bestsellers, recently published by authors such as Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins, and Christopher Hitchens have given rise to the "new atheism" movement. Outspoken critics of theism celebrate Blasphemy Day by trading pornography for Bibles - a more aggressive, often belittling posture toward religious believers. PZ Meyers says one reason he favors the provocative approach is that it works, especially for the next generation of atheists. "Edgy is what young people like," Myers says. "They want to cut through the nonsense right away and want to get to the point. They want to hear the story fast, they want it to be exciting, and they want it to be fun. And I'm sorry, the old school of atheism is really, really boring."
As the stigma of atheism has diminished, campus atheists and agnostics are coming out of the closet, fueling a sharp rise in the number of clubs like ISU Atheist and Agnostic Society the 10-year-old group at Iowa State. Campus affiliates of the Secular Student Alliance, a sort of Godless Campus Crusade for Christ, have multiplied from 80 in 2007 to 100 in 2008 and 174 by fall of 2009, providing the atheist movement new training grounds for future leaders. In another sign of growing acceptance, at least three universities, including Harvard, now have humanist chaplains meeting the needs of the not-so-spiritual. More than three-quarters of young adults taking part in the National Study of Youth and Religion profess a belief in God. But almost 7 percent fewer believe in God as young adults (ages 18 to 23) than did as teenagers, according to the study, which is tracking the same group of young people as they mature. What young adults are less likely to believe in is religion. The number of those who describe themselves as "not religious" nearly doubled, to 27 percent, in young adulthood.
The billboard campaign in Cincinnati is only one of ten going on nationwide this year and, while the current situation is unique, threats are not. Additionally, Atheist billboards have been vandalized recently in Colorado and Idaho. Shawn Jeffers, co-coordinator for Cin CoR, said, "Everything that has happened shows just how vital our message is. It proves our point, that bigotry against people who don't believe in a god is still very real in America. Only when we atheists, agnostics and humanists come together and go public about our views will people have a chance to learn that we too are part of the community and deserve respect. Hopefully this turn of events will cause more and more nontheistic people in Cincinnati to realize how necessary it is to get organized."
Also, see About.com for an exhaustive treatment of this subject. There is a nice how-to article from American Atheists. A friendly guide to coming out for ex-christians was written by Robby Berry in 2005.