The First Amendment did not emerge from theory. It emerged as a specific response to specific historical events, and it was an attempt to settle the oldest conflict in American history. The conflict started nearly 400 years ago when Puritans, envisioning a Christian nation, founded what John Winthrop called “a citty upon a hill” in Massachusetts, and Roger Williams rejected that vision for another: freedom. Their dispute defined for the first time two fault lines which have run through American history ever since, fault lines which opened over both the proper relation between the church and the state and the proper relation between a free individual and the state. Understanding the First Amendment requires understanding that history, and recognizing that those who wrote the constitution believed that separating church and state was the necessary requisite for freedom itself.

In this era of medicalization of dying, many patients near the end of life would prefer the right to request assistance in dying from their physician. With the laws in most American states opposed to this right, patients often must turn to violent methods to end the prolongation of their suffering. In an effort to provide the right to control the location, the manner and the time of dying, a volunteer organization, Final Exit Network, offers information and support to those seeking this option. Peaceful, sure and speedy methods of hastening dying are discussed with the patient and their loved ones. When requested, experienced volunteers will be present with those who wish the reassurance that they will be able to accomplish their own death. Although under indictment in two states, because of their involvement in hastened dying processes, Final Exit Network continues to offer their support program.

Over the past several years, the Religious Right and its allies have waged an unrelenting attack on women’s rights, LGBT equality, church/state separation, social justice, and critical literacy. In this talk, author and educator Sikivu Hutchinson will examine the politics of reactionary anti-human rights public policy and the possibilities freethought and humanism hold for progressive feminist and anti-racist social justice struggle.

The Religious Right is successfully re-conceptualizing private sexual expression into public behavior, making it subject to public control. This is how private swing clubs, for example, can be considered a public danger and shut down. Public policies like abstinence education, the expansion of “conscience clauses” (which are always about sex), the suppression of “obscenity,” and the irrationally expanding definitions of child porn (which now includes cartoons) allegedly reduce the danger of sexuality—but they increase our sense of vulnerability and damage our basic rights as Americans. Because so many people fear their own sexuality, they’re suspicious of others’ sexuality—and have learned to use public policy to try to reduce their anxiety.

A humanist approach to sexuality would address people’s fear of their own—and others’—sexuality without supporting their ignorance, superstition, narrow categories, and anxiety about not being “normal.” What a great way to attract people to humanism.

If you’ve been following the blogosphere, the past year has been a very volatile one where women in the humanist and atheist movement are concerned. For this session, women will be encouraged to talk about the authentic experiences they’ve had in the non-belief community, both the good and the bad, and to offer ideas for how we should address these issues as we grow our organizations in the future. Men are welcomed to attend and listen and will have an opportunity to express their opinions as well. But no doubt, there will be much to say about women and our contributions to humanism and atheism at a grassroots level and how to bring more understanding to our community.

Americans are only now beginning to acknowledge that religious belief can harm children. In this presentation, award-winning journalist Janet Heimlich, author of Breaking Their Will: Shedding Light on Religious Child Maltreatment, discusses how child abuse and neglect occurs in certain kinds of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim homes and communities. Examples of religious child maltreatment include “biblical chastisement,” faith healing-related medical neglect, and sexual abuse perpetrated by religious authorities. In addition, the talk will cover less understood forms of psychological abuse, such as religious terrorizing, spurning, isolating, and exploiting. Ms. Heimlich explains how to identify religious child maltreatment, why so many people refuse to discuss it, and where it is most likely to occur. Most importantly, she proposes solutions that offer hope toward eradicating it.

Humanists who pride themselves in their rationality and common sense need to consider that the story narrative is perhaps the most efficient means of communication known to humanity, one not lacking in intellectual and ethical merits. Whether present in a film, novel, play, poem, or song, a well-told story can affect the mind in a way no didactic lecture or philosophical argument usually can—and the idea so imparted will more easily be remembered. Works of symbolic art, narratives—both folkloric and literary—are almost always deliberate and even rational products of the mind. Behind them stand difficult creative and intellectual processes, not to mention a long and distinguished history of artistic and literary criticism. Narrative art in particular must stay within certain rational bounds in order to maximize its aesthetic and social appeal.

As the world population continues to grow to 7 billion and more, some conservatives are being more open about their opposition to contraceptives. Brian Dixson from Population Connection will discuss the dramatic impact that this has and how it threatens to undermine decades of progress. Progressives need to speak out more loudly and more consistently.

For her book The Good News Club: The Christian Right’s Stealth Assault on America’s Children, Katherine Stewart set out on an investigative journey to uncover the effects of religious initiatives on our schools, our children, and communities. Traveling to dozens of cities and towns, she discovered religion-driven programs inserting themselves into public school systems with unprecedented force and unexpected consequences. Today, there is more religious activity in America than there has been for the past 100 years. The movement is stealthy, calculated, extremely well-financed, and has our future in its sights.

Although these religious initiatives aim at all age groups, a surprising number are directed at very young children. Simply put, they have an agenda based on deceit and far more sweeping and potentially threatening to public education than they let on. And the biggest factor driving this insertion of religion into public education is judicial activism from the right.

Raúl Martínez gives us a humorous look at his fascinating trek into the world of feminism. Some of us may think that believing in gender equality is enough to call ourselves a feminist, but in his own peculiar way, Raúl will explain why it’s a little more complicated than that. In a conference full of humanist erudition, Raúl gives us a nice change of pace and reminds us that being a humanist/feminist and having fun are not mutually exclusive.

There will be some questions at the end of this presentation… and Raúl will give you plenty of time to answer.

Critical thinkers and those of us who hold to a higher morality than “might makes right” must raise our voices loudly against this unconscionable agenda. We say that American lives are not more important than anyone else’s lives, and that those of us living in this country should start acting as if that is true. This workshop will dig into the details of President Obama’s secret drone wars, the disturbing revelations about these wars as uncovered by Wikileaks’ releases, the testimony of anti-war veterans who speak out about the crimes they witnessed and participated in, the truth behind the allegations and threat of war with Iran or other countries, and most importantly of all: the need and possibility for a critical mass of anti-war voices and actions in this country that can bring this all to a halt.

While Hip Hop culture is a global reality that shapes perceptions of proper thought and action, few within the humanist movement have given attention to the pedagogical benefits of attention to this mode of cultural production. In this talk, Anthony Pinn explores some of the important lessons the humanist movement might learn from the posture toward the world offered by the most graphic dimension of hip hop culture—rap music.

Margaret Downey is a native of Louisiana and grew up surrounded by superstitious beliefs. She will reveal little-known superstitions related to death and dying which are deeply rooted in the New Orleans culture. She will also lead a down-to-earth, real-life discussion about death and dying from a humanist perspective. If you are not afraid to speak about this subject, attend this workshop! Downey dares you.

Every year thousands of student members of Secular Student Alliance affiliates across the country graduate from college. They’re trained, they’re ready, and they want to stay involved in the movement. What are they doing? Where are they going? Learn how the SSA is helping graduates make the transition and how we can all help.

David Niose will talk about his book Nonbeliever Nation: The Rise of Secular Americans, an inside look at the secular movement that has emerged in recent years. Niose will outline various culture-war issues, including their historical background, and discuss how secular organizations are utilizing identity-oriented strategies to effectively push back against the religious right.

Questions about the proper boundary between religion and politics abound in this election year. Why do religion and politics continue to interact so closely in America? Is there any hope for a divorce? Will we ever see a humanist president? Rob Boston of Americans United for Separation of Church and State will explore these questions and lay down some ground rules for the interplay between religion and politics during this session.

Arthur Jackson will talk about his book, How to Live the Good Life: A User’s Guide for Modern Humans.” The book details over fifty years of struggle to find a naturalistic model for ethics and morality able to provide existential, emotional support to the individual. Jackson was looking for a position that gave a fundamental understanding of life and the world in which we find ourselves, based on the science paradigm rather than only tradition, authority, or cultural relativism. This effort led to what he proposes is a science of religion and ethics deemed capable of supporting a religion of wisdom.