Thwarted Freedoms

By Groff Schroeder

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recommends that adolescent girls visit a gynecologist by age thirteen. In Texas today, this medically important and once deeply private coming of age event for adolescent girls and their families presents significant financial and personal risk. In apparent violation of their oaths of office under the United States Constitution, on September 1, 2021, conservative fundamentalist Texas politicians advanced Law SB 8 into force. On the same day, also in apparent violation of their oaths of office, five justices of the United States Supreme Court allowed SB 8 to become law, ignoring the fact that SB 8 uses circuitous means to thwart many civil rights and human freedoms enumerated in the Bill of Rights. Specifically, SB 8 makes most abortions illegal, enlists “any person” to enforce Texas law (aka vigilantes) through civil suit, pays court fees and at least $10,000 if they prevail, eliminates double jeopardy protection and most legal defenses for the accused, and establishes state law enforced, defacto reproductive enslavement of women and girls to rapists. SB 8 grants sweeping new powers over the lives, bodies, and reproductive processes of women and girls to state government, vigilantes, rapists, and basically anyone and everyone - except women and girls.

Religious doubt as instinct

By Ken Burrows

Even at a time when atheists were widely considered to be depraved, sometimes referred to as monsters afflicted with a spiritual madness, doubts about God and religion in general frequently still surfaced. Why?

The limits to religious freedom

By Ken Burrows

The novel coronavirus pandemic has told us a lot about the origins of disease agents, infection risks, society’s response to an outbreak, and more. Less prominent in the headlines has been a separate but pivotal COVID-19 risk issue: the danger of allowing “religious freedom” claims to pose virus-related harm to others.

TAKING ACTION

by Jim "Hawk" Hawkins

We are aware of the urgencies facing our nation and the world. The American Humanist Association publishes resolutions on key issuesⁱ which address the critical issues of climate change, affirming human rights, fighting for voting rights and the equal rights amendment for women’s equality, and protecting ourselves (especially our children) from gun violence. Such urgencies cause a variety of responses from each of us, from indifference to protest to outright civic disobedience, and the activity of the people will range from apathy to activism.