It is anti individual

It actually stops personal responsibility (I do what I'm told cos god tells me)

It also stops people thinking

Religion discourages rational thinking, and belief in superstition and myth.  It teaches people to be obediant, and not to question. It also breeds intolerance against other groups (like gays) for no good reason than the fact that they read it in a 2000 year old mythology book.

sorry I have no suggestions right now, but I would love to read your essay when you get it done.

You could also show the greed of the church throughout history. From the very beginning, it's all been about money and control. CapnOAwesome has a good video about this (after a bit at the beginning)

Another one is the division, even amongst other believers, that religion sows. Look at modern Iraq, where Sunni muslims kill Shia muslims and vice versa for believing a slightly different thing. This is different than "incites violence" because it encourages discriminatory laws, such as the one in Anglican England that Catholics could not own property or businesses.

Here's a couple off the top of my head.. 

1.)  Religion usually demands conformity, thereby stifling freedom. 

"Conformity leads to uniformity.  Uniformity and Freedom will always be incompatible".  Aldous Huxley

2.)  Religion very often promotes (or better...caters to) excessive narcissism in the individual, especially when stressing the personal relationship with said deity). "I have the answers that you do not.  I understand what you cannot".  This blinds or numbs the individual to compassion and any objectivity.  (See also.."Will to Power" - Nietschke)

3.)  Religion often encourages denial in the human.  A mentally healthy individual should strive to be honest with themselves.  Religious ideology often prevents this from happening.  It teaches the individual to be (or feel) certain about things that they cannot be certain about and to lie to themselves about themselves.

This often forces the individual into never living their own life, but living it through others vicariously (Think reality TV, the TV evangelist, the sky daddy, etc.).

"It is fateful and ironic that the lie we need in order to survive dooms us to a life that is never really ours"  Ernest Becker  

{edited to compensate for not being awake yet}

I have another one. It inhibits emotional growth and gives people an easy out of their problems.   After a fight with my christian boyfriend last night over religion it finally came out why he still won't accept there is no god.  He said no matter what evidence is shown, he can't accept it because that would mean his mother is gone for good.  His mom passed a few years ago and he's never delt with it.  By believeing in god and heaven he doesn't have to deal with the fact that she's gone and he refuses to let go.  Atheists mourn the passing and loss of someone, then accept it, emotionally grow and become stronger, and move on.  By bypassing the mourning stage with a belief that they're still around and watching and will be seen again in some kingdom these people are not able to emotionally grow, nor move on.  They cover and suppress their grief to "put it in god's hands".

The sad part is that his mother is, in fact, gone for good whether he accepts it or not.

Excellent post Arletta.