Several recent studies have revealed that a rapidly increasing percentage of young people are affiliating with no religious tradition. Greg Epstein, founder and leader of a vibrant secular community organization, will describe a unique response to “the rise of the nones” that is succeeding beyond expectations.

Achieving Social Justice through art and literature will be a focus of the HUU booth, June 19-23 at the Louisville General Assembly.

Documentary film-maker Janet Fitch will present her program "Changing the Conversation on Gun Violence" and will be present at our booth throughout the week.  Stop by to learn how your congregation can get involved, and the times and locations of Janet’s presentations.

The fabric arts panels crafted by two dozen UU and humanist artists from around the country, will make up the "Ribbon" for Immigrant Rights, on display at our booth, and shown outside several major GA events.  Panels depict themes from the Arizona Banned Books, and Immigration related projects carried out by UU congregations and Humanist groups. Read more about HUUmanists GA Booth to Feature Art ‘n Justice (Location 523) »

Beyond Congregations: The Humanist Community Project at Harvard

Saturday, June 22, 5:30 – 6:45 p.m.

Convention Center 109-112

Several recent studies have revealed that a rapidly changing percentage of young people are affiliating with no religious tradition. The Humanist chaplain at Harvard University, founder and leader of a vibrant secular community organization, will describe a unique response to “the rise of the nones” that is succeeding beyond expectations.  Our speaker is Gregory M. Epstein, Humanist chaplain at Harvard University, who will be joined by Dr. John B. Hooper, president of the HUUmanists.

HUUmanists Annual Meeting

Saturday, June 22, 6:50 – 8:20 p.m. – Convention Center 109-112 Read more about Humanist Events at General Assembly »

UU Humanism is alive and well in the Midwest!  Jack Reich and Roger Brewin have been crisscrossing Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin - by mid May they will have run ten information tables this spring at UU churches and District Annual Meetings (Heartland and Central Midwest).  The reaction to the combination of HUUmanist eye candy (buttons, magnets, books, etc) and social justice work (see article on "Ribbons Not Walls") has been encouraging.  Hundreds of people have made small purchases or donations, dozens have joined HUU or signed up to financially sponsor one of our projects.   Bill Murry's book "Becoming More Fully Human" sells steadily, and conversation is constant about the need for more humanist resources and presence in local congregations. Read more about Tables, Tables, Tables … »

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS, BANNED BOOKS, BOOKS

Books are often at the center of the HUUmanists booth in the Exhibit Hall at General Assembly. A couple of dozen Humanist titles most years – part of offering to our fellow liberal religionists, a wide spectrum of thought on issues of import to us. Read more about GA Booth 2012 in Phoenix »

Those who put together Justice GA (in which HUUmanists participated effectively and enthusiastically) urged all UUs to "Bring it Home," that is, to take the emphasis on Social justice from our week in Phoenix, and convert it to both serious study AND targeted action in our local groups and congregations. Read more about Justice is love and reason, in action »

On the last day of the 2012 General Assembly meeting all of the banned books smUUggled into Phoenix were donated to Librotraficante, to be used to launch Librotraficante’s fifth underground library, located at the office of the community organization Puente in Phoenix.   And cash donated to the HUUmanists for Librotraficante was given to the project to buy more books.

Packing up books at the exhibition hall

A grand opening of the underground library at Puente was held on Sunday evening.  The books were made available for lending.  Thirty-six were borrowed in the first hour.  John Hooper and Roger Brewin represented HUUmanists at the celebration, which included readings from the banned books by young people, skits, music, food, and poetry.  Roger addressed the attendees and voiced the continued support of the underground library movement by HUUmanists Asscociation. Read more about Phoenix underground library opening »

Arizona has banned books used in teaching in Arizona public schools that advocate the overthrow of the government, which has been applied to ethnic studies in a devastating way.  Arizona House Bill 2281 was created to prohibit teaching courses in Mexican American Studies, although it can be applied to any ethnic group.  The Tucson school system closed the entire K through 12 Mexican American Studies program in order to comply with this bill, and removed some 83 books from the curriculum.

Many of the books banned were on the reading lists of teachers in the Mexican American Studies program in Tucson, and include such radical books as Thoreau’s Walden, Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and books by celebrated authors such as Isabel Allende and Howard Zinn. Read more about smUUggler's project at GA »

The 2012 Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) “Justice” General Assembly (GA) in Phoenix was a very special one for UU Humanists. Our keynote presentation, our booth presence, and our annual meeting/reception were all clearly focused on the GA theme of Economic Justice.

Bill Murry provided a keynote address entitled “Economic Justice: A Moral Imperative for UU Humanists.” 

Our booth in the exhibition area was organized around the theme of economic justice and was shared with the American Humanist Association, The Institute for Humanist Studies and several local social justice groups including the Secular Coalition for Arizona. A special issue of our journal, Religious Humanism, dedicated to the GA theme was available at the booth, along with other publications and membership opportunities. Read more about UUA General Assembly 2012 »

We HUUmanists have accomplished a lot this year in our quest to be a stronger voice for reason and compassion in Unitarian Universalism and in our society at large. Let me bring you up to date:

HUUmanists Association was enthusiastically accepted as a full member organization of the Secular Coalition for America at the SCA Annual Board meeting last January. By joining the other ten freethinking organizations we gain the opportunity to leverage our activities in defense of First Amendment principles. In turn, our partner organizations in SCA will benefit from the synergy of joining forces with thousands of Unitarian Universalists for whom the separation of church and state is a moral imperative. As specific issues emerge, I’ll be calling on you to add your voice to our efforts. Read more about Recent HUUmanists Activities »