An atheist isn't necessarily someone who has rejected belief in god. An atheist is simply a person who disbelieves or lacks belief in the existence of a god or gods.
Then the White House is an atheist. You can't have your cake and eat it too. Your own definition specifies the rejection as a condition.
Rejection is not required for that definition to apply...
Then orange trees are atheists. I reject any argument with such a ludicrous conclusion.
Infants are people.
You might as well call infants trees.
The statement that infants lack belief in the existence of a god or gods is meaningful to this discussion.
It lacks meaning in any discussion. It is tautology.
It directly Impacts if they meet the criteria necessary to be an atheist.
Then trees and platypuses do too. Your definition said rejection of a belief in God or gods was a criteria. A rejection requires knowledge of. Babies do not meet the criteria.
This leaves us to determine if they disbelieve or lack belief in the existence of a god or gods.
No sir. This leaves us to determine if they know of and rejected belief in the existence of a god or gods. They did not.
Their lack of belief in the existence in a god or gods is what makes them atheists.
Then flat head screwdrivers are atheists too!
Now you say, flat head screwdrivers aren't people. So, tell us, why is people-hood is a criteria? Because only people think. But babies don't think! It is not being people Alone that makes one an atheist, it is being people + rejecting belief in God.
if you say babies are atheists, then it must be only their people-hood causing them to be atheist, for they have rejected nothing! That is on its face illogical.
If you think the only criteria is not having a belief in god, then frisbees are atheists, for your criteria of people-hood must be coherant. In other words, why must an atheist be a people? Do you have an answer?
...it is the only conclusion that makes sense given the above definition of atheist.
Sorry, it simply doesn't make sense. There is a reason atheists have been restricted to people. That reason is not true for babies. Babies are people, but do not qualify under the definition.
Your only 2 logical choices are to,
1. Ditch the peoplehood/thinking requirement, rendering all inanimate objects as qualifying as atheists, or...
2. Keep the peoplehood/thinking requirement, rendering all infants as unqualified under the definition.
Now, if you can show us a reason that is not dependant on cognition for why only people can be atheists, then I will agree with your inclusion of babies. Otherwise, the fact of babies being people is immaterial.