The 12-steps of Alcoholics Anonymous are steeped with religious and theistic language.

So it's quite surprising when we heard about an AA group for agnostics in Vancouver that was delisted by its parent organization or when we heard from an atheist who lost his job when he refused to follow a treatment plan required attendance at AA.

Tomorrow our executive director, Ian Bushfield, will be bringing these cases to the BC legislature's health committee and arguing for making secular and evidence-based recovery options the norm in BC.

You'll be able to read our full submission on our website tomorrow.

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.

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.

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

This has been an incredible week for the BC Humanist Association.

On Monday, we announced the results of our latest poll with Insights West. We found that:

• 70% of British Columbians are non-religious - up from 64% from 2013,
• 26% do not believe in a higher power - up from 20%,
• 70% oppose public funding for private religious schools and
• majorities oppose property tax exemptions for religious groups.

On each of the issues we surveyed, the public is increasingly on our side.

Then we learned that Abbotsford school district "will no longer distribute the Gideon Bible or other religious materials to students."

This victory only happened because of the pressure that we put on the district to end the practice.

Our efforts are getting noticed. Just this week we've been featured on CBC Vancouver, the Vancouver Sun, Roundhouse Radio, CFAX Victoria, Spice Radio and more.

We are making incredible gains and winning important battles but there is a lot of work still ahead of us.