By Benjamin Huskinson, Queen's University Belfast

In the early 1980s, the US’s religious right seemed an unstoppable behemoth in terms of political clout. The Moral Majority, Focus on the Family, and other groups came to dominate public policy discussions by mobilising large groups of conservative Christians into a formidable force. Over time, however, fundamentalist voting blocs simply lost ground to larger, more diverse coalitions, and the heft of big evangelical organisations has slowly waned, making room for other voices in public policy.

So at a glance, it might appear that politically influential conservative Christians have had their day. But look more closely, and the movement looks to be in rude health.

Over the past year, our Sunday meetings in Vancouver have attracted an increasing number of interesting and insightful speakers on topics ranging from free will to creationist museums to the Syrian refugee crisis.

While most of these meetings have been recorded and posted to our new podcast, being there in person allows you to connect with fellow members and take part in the enlightening discussions that always follow.

So if you've never been to one of our meetings, and live in Metro Vancouver, I'd encourage you to come and check one out.

By Charles Hankla, Georgia State University

Back in 1991, the eminent political scientist Samuel Huntington pointed out that democratic transitions around the world often come in waves.

He pointed to a “third wave” of democratization that began in the 1970s with Spain and Portugal and continued into the 1980s, particularly in Eastern Europe and Latin America. After he wrote his book, this liberal wave seemed only to pick up speed, with transitions in the 1990s in parts of Africa and Asia.

Sadly, today we seem to be experiencing an “illiberal wave.” This wave, which has left no part of the world untouched, is not necessarily about a return to authoritarian government. Nor is it about liberalism as commonly understood in American politics.

The petition, launched last week, is only the latest effort to repeal Canada's blasphemy law.

Over the past few years, numerous columnists, civil liberties groups and legal experts have called for the law to be repealed. If you're not convinced that the law needs to go, read some of these links.

And make sure to sign and share the petition.

The BC Civil Liberties Association has today launched a challenge to the assisted dying bill that became law earlier this month. Under the restrictions passed by the government, 25-year old Julia Lamb is not able to choose to end her intolerable suffering.

Yesterday a Vancouver woman came forward who had been approved to have an assisted death under the Carter decision but has lost that option as she does not qualify under the new law.

Meanwhile, Christian doctors in Ontario are threatening access with a legal challenge to that government's requirement that doctors provide an effective referral. One of the Christian doctors told The Globe and Mail, “I think the patient is of greater value than their preference.”

It is abundantly clear that the law has failed to protect Canadian's right to personal autonomy and those who value suffering more than human dignity are going to continue to fight against choice.

The secular community must step forward to make the arguments in favour of compassion and choice. Help make sure that we're able to keep up this fight by donating to the BC Humanist Association today.

Evolution is a fact.

Evolution is so established as a scientific fact that I’m not actually going to spend time proving that here. Instead you can go read entire databases debunking anti-evolution myths.

So it should be fair and uncontroversial to say that something like Biblical creationism, which offers an alternate and incompatible hypothesis for the diversity of life, is a religious myth, a story or even a superstition.

But apparently doing just that crosses the line for some people.

Groups representing Humanists, atheists and secularists across Canada are calling on the Government to repeal an outdated section of the criminal code penalizing so-called “blasphemous libel.”

The e-petition launched yesterday and was signed by over 1000 Canadians in the first day, more then double the minimum number required to be tabled in the House of Commons.

The petition argues the law is unconstitutional and “serves no purpose.” It points out that there have been no charges for blasphemy in Canada for over 35 years and no convictions in over 80 years. Meanwhile “authoritarian states” have used the existence of blasphemy laws in countries like Canada to justify their own clampdown on free expression.

Greg Oliver, President of the Canadian Secular Alliance initiated the petition in collaboration with Centre for Inquiry Canada and Humanist Canada. Oliver said, “The idea that certain subjects should be off limits from criticism or scrutiny has no place in a liberal democracy. Canada's blasphemy law needs to be repealed.”

Writer Raihan Abir, who claimed asylum in Canada after fleeing Bangladesh:

Just days ago we saw the famous Pakistani singer, Amjad Sabri, shot dead by the Taliban in Karachi for hurting religious belief by singing during Ramadan. But even before this act of extremism, he was first accused in a Pakistani court using their blasphemy law and a case was filled against him. He was then shot. As a human rights leader, why should Canada have the same law as Pakistan?

I watched my friends be murdered in Bangladesh for criticizing religion. I was afraid for my own life. By repealing this blasphemy law, Canada can send a signal to Bangladesh and every country that no one should be killed or sent to jail for what they write.

Ali Ehsassi, Liberal Member of Parliament for Willowdale, sponsored the petition. After the petition closes for signatures on October 20, 2016 it will be tabled in the House of Commons and require a response from the Government.

Yesterday we were at Car Free Day on Commercial Drive, raising awareness about our work and our recent data on the size of the non-religious community in BC.

Gord Leslie & Ian Bushfield at Car Free Day Vancouver on Commercial Drive.

We had a lot of great conversations with people throughout the day. The ones that stuck with me were about the need for supportive communities for families with young children and for secular ceremonies.

While we're still working to provide more family-friendly programming, we have recently appointed our first Humanist Officiants who can help recognize important life events. Please feel free to contact any of them or refer your friends.

On Friday, Bill C-14 received Royal Assent and became law in Canada. The bill was the government's response to the Carter ruling that struck down Canada's prohibition on medical assistance in dying.

While the bill provides important safeguards to doctors, nurses, pharmacists and family members who assist a suffering Canadian to die with dignity, the bill's eligibility criteria will limit access to those whose "natural death is reasonably foreseeable."

Senators, arguing that this restriction was neither compassionate nor constitutional, had removed the phrase in an amendment. However, the Liberal Government used their majority in the House of Commons to reintroduce it and a majority of Senators then agreed to maintain the restriction.

The final law does include Senate amendments that restrict family members from helping if they were a beneficiary of the person requesting an assisted death and to force doctors to inform patients of all palliative care options before providing an assisted death.

Ian Bushfield, Executive Director, BC Humanist Association:

The sky did not fall in the two weeks that Canada had no law criminalizing medical assistance in dying. Instead, people in suffering were able to start frank conversations with their medical team about their end of life options.

While this new law should help to reassure the overly conservative parts of the medical community, it remains problematic and will undoubtedly be challenged in court very soon. The eligibility criteria are vague and arbitrary and the amendments Parliament did accept could make it harder for people to be with a dying family member. Further issues of access, particularly in publicly-funded religious hospitals, remain.

The government has promised further consultations on expanding access to medical assistance in dying and the secular and compassionate majority must hold them to that.

Read Dying With Dignity Canada's response.

Last month, following news of wildfires forcing the evacuation of the Alberta city of Fort McMurray, the BC Humanist Association arranged a fundraiser for the Canadian Red Cross.

Members came forward and quickly donated over $2000 in a few days toward the relief efforts. Another donor, who had promised to match every donation up $5000, decided in the end to donate the full $5000, making our collective contribution to over $7000.

Each and every one of those dollars was then matched by the Government of Canada, representing an additional $14,000 to support the thousands of individuals and families affected.

In total, the Canadian Red Cross was able to raise over $125 million from individuals, governments, community groups and companies. They have since produced a report giving a one month update on where those funds have gone.

Thank you to everyone who donated. Your compassion has made a real difference in this crisis.

Image credit: Wikipedia