This is part of The Humanist’s monthly series highlighting openly nonreligious elected officials across the nation. Because of the work of the Center for Freethought Equality, the political and advocacy arm of the American Humanist Association, there are over 120 elected officials at the local, state, and federal level who identify with the atheist and humanist community serving in thirty-three states across the country. Join the Center for Freethought Equality to help politically empower the atheist and humanist community—membership is FREE!
The Center for Freethought Equality’s advances have been groundbreaking. Prior to the 2016 election, there were only five state legislators and no members of Congress who publicly identified with our community; because of its efforts, today we have seventy-seven state legislators and a member of Congress, Jared Huffman (CA-2), who publicly identify with our community. It is critical that our community connect and engage with the elected officials who represent our community and our values—you can see a list of these elected officials here.
Councilmember Marissa Postler
Representing Wyoming, Michigan
“I was pressured to attend an event called “God and Country Music”…personally, that event sounds like my worst nightmare, but a well-intentioned friend was really trying to convince me to fake it…I’m glad I put my foot down and didn’t claim to be anything that wasn’t true to me, and I believe it ultimately was what won me the seat.
Marissa Postler was elected to the Wyoming City Council in 2016 and won reelection unopposed in both 2020 and 2024, securing her third four-year term. She currently serves as the council liaison to the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Wyoming Water System Advisory Council. A musician, artist, and music teacher, she was a student and COSTCO employee at the time she ran for the Council.
While Marissa was born and raised in the suburbs of Milwaukee, WI, she relocated to West Michigan in 2012 for a fresh start where she ended up studying at Grand Rapids Community College and finishing her Bachelor of Music Education at Grand Valley State University.
Postler became deeply invested in politics and ran her initial campaign while still in college, becoming the youngest councilmember in Wyoming’s history. She is deeply passionate about getting younger generations involved in politics and encouraging them to play a greater role in decision making.
Since leaving her job as a public school music teacher, Marissa has been teaching private music lessons and performing as a gigging musician.
Sarah Levin: What motivated you to run for office?
Marissa Postler: To sum it up in one word, rage! I was twenty-three and still in college at the time, and I had an evening class on the day of the presidential primary in early spring 2016. Before class started, the entire class was buzzing with political chatter—Bernie Sanders in particular. It was very clear to me that the majority of people in the room were keeping up with election stuff and had opinions. That made me very happy!
But then when the professor came in and started class, she took a poll of how many of us had actually voted…and my smile was very quickly turned upside down. Only THREE people in the room raised their hand, including the professor and myself! So only ONE other person out of all of them actually bothered to go DO anything with those opinions they clearly held!
To say I was angry with my generation would be an understatement. I started following politics very closely around that time, and I realized pretty quickly that a LOT of people fail to see how speaking in support of a candidate on Facebook or in conversation does not actually get them elected.
That day was one of those huge lightbulb moments for me. I decided right then that if the average person in my generation wasn’t even going to step up and participate in the SMALLEST way—leaving a few minutes early to stop at the polls on the way to class, or waking up early to go in the morning before school—then I was going to have to do more.
It frustrates me so much to see how over-represented the older generations are and how under-represented the younger ones are when it comes to leadership at every level of politics, but that day I realized that younger folks not choosing to participate is a big part of the problem.
So that day, I impulsively decided I was going to run for office. I joke that it was one of those “ugh, do I have to do EVERYTHING around here???” kind of moments, but seriously, I was not okay sitting on the sidelines and watching seventy-five-year-olds make every single decision for me any longer. And if no one else around me was going to do anything about it, then I was.
And yes, I ended up beating the seventy-eight-year-old incumbent in that race!
Levin: What are your policy priorities and how does your nonreligious worldview impact your policy platform?
Postler: Truthfully, I struggle to really move forward with any kind of policy because I’m a one-person minority, up against a six-person conservative majority. So I try to simply be a voice of reason and ask questions no one else thinks of and stick up for groups of people who would otherwise be completely glossed over or mischaracterized.
My nonreligious worldview definitely allows me to zoom out and see a bigger picture where religious folks often falsely assume everyone in the community shares their beliefs and thus make decisions that alienate others.
Really, that word “others” kind of says it all. Many issues tend to bring out a dangerous “us” vs. “them” mentality, where people are terrified of “others” infringing on their right to live in a homogenous community.
For example, whenever it comes to issues of zoning, particularly in matters of housing/density, there is always an uproar from the public. Homeowners who view renters like dangerous “others” will fill up the council chambers and each use their three minutes to say some pretty vile things about apartment dwellers. I kid you not, I was once boo’ed by an angry mob for saying “renters are people too.”
But you know what? After that meeting—after I gave an impassioned speech about how I was also a renter at the time and took personal offense to those statements, and how my neighbors and I were absolutely a community and how we, too, took pride in our homes despite not owning them—one of the people who had spoken negatively came up to me, thanked me for sharing all of that, and apologized! I certainly did not expect that kind of outcome, but it really reminded me why it’s important for me to be on the council and use my voice, whether I have enough power to actually change the vote or not.
In situations like that, while the issue may not be directly tied to religion, it definitely brings out the same kind of us vs. them energy that religion is based in, and I do my best to speak up for the “others” whether or not I am able to actually sway the outcome.
Levin: Why was it important for you to be open about your nonreligious identity?
Postler: To be honest, I never made a big thing of it. I wasn’t walking around campaigning as “the atheist city councilwoman”—I was simply campaigning as me. I was very open about the fact that I really didn’t know much of anything about local government but I was committed to doing my homework and researching each issue carefully before voting.
I did have to set some clear boundaries with those who were trying to help my campaign by insisting I attend random events that were not aligned at all with me as a person. The funniest was when I was pressured to attend an event called “God and Country Music.” (I can’t make this stuff up!) Personally, that event sounds like my worst nightmare, but a well-intentioned friend was really trying to convince me to fake it and go because “the voters will be there.” Yes, I understand this event will be attended by a crowd of older, conservative folks who absolutely vote, but those are not MY people, and showing up there to pretend I’m aligned with them felt like a downright lie, whether I even opened my mouth or not.
I’m glad I put my foot down and didn’t claim to be anything that wasn’t true to me, and I believe it ultimately was what won me the seat.
Levin: How did voters respond (if at all) to your openness about your nonreligious identity?
Postler: Like I said, it didn’t come up very much during the campaign, but after I was elected I did get some press from secular organizations that put it more out in the open. I also didn’t use a bible when I was sworn in. So shortly after that, I did receive some fun congratulatory emails from people all over the country, but truthfully there was never much of a response from the actual community. Occasionally I hear from people who are aligned with me and super relieved to see someone who shares their views on the council, but I rarely if ever hear from those who are not aligned with me, and I’m very okay with that
To learn more about Councilmember Marissa Postler:
Wyoming, MI City Council page
Voyage Michigan profile
The post Representation Matters: Councilmember Marissa Postler appeared first on TheHumanist.com.
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