a Lifetime Achievement Award from the association in 2016 at its 75th anniversary conference in Chicago. Personal life Aside from a stint in the United States Army, Chambers has lived in Nebraska all his life. He is known for his casual attire of blue jeans and short-sleeved sweatshirts, even when in session at the Nebraska Legislature. He often brings his dog with him to work. Chambers is a sketch artist, a therapeutic activity he adopted during long legislative sessions. Chambers was married to Jacklyn Adele (née Lee) Chambers (January 31, 1940 – July 15, 2000), with whom he had four children before they divorced. Atheism Chambers is an atheist. He views Christianity as a tool of oppression that white people use against Black Americans. For example, in 1965 he called the shooting of fellow Omaha native Malcolm X a "brutal, American-Christian style assassination." Chambers is very familiar with and quotes frequently from the Bible, which he jokingly calls "the Bibble". For years Chambers was the only openly atheist member of any state government in the nation. A 2015 State Legislatures Magazine survey confirmed that he was the only atheist in a state legislature. He was still the only one in the nation in 2017 according to Kurt Andersen in The Atlantic. In 2019 another atheist, Megan Hunt, joined Chambers in the Nebraska legislature. Despite not being religious, in January 2009 Chambers obtained credentials as a non-denominational minister so he could officiate at weddings. See also African Americans in Omaha, Nebraska Civil rights movement in Omaha, Nebraska List of riots and civil unrest in Omaha, Nebraska History of North Omaha, Nebraska Timeline of racial tension in Omaha, Nebraska Timeline of North Omaha, Nebraska history History of Omaha, Nebraska References Further reading Larsen, Lawrence Harold, Barbara J. Cottrell, and Harl A. Dalstrom. The Gate City: A History of Omaha. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1982. "Black Omaha: From Non-Violence to Black Power." pp. 272–274. See also: Excerpt at Quintard Taylor "History 313: The History of African Americans in the West." Steed, Camille, Pat Aylward, and Julie Valentine. Ernie Chambers: Still Militant After All These Years. Lincoln: Nebraska ETV Network, 1997. Video, 59 min. Ali Johnson, Tekla Agbala. Free Radical Ernest Chambers, Black Power, and the Politics of Race. Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press, 2012. Free Radical Ernest Chambers at Project MUSE (PDF) External links Sen. Ernie Chambers, District 11 at Nebraska