The British Columbia Humanist Association supports a secular society that affirms:
- the right of every individual to practice any religion or none, free from coercion by the government, private institutions or their community and
- that the state has a duty of religious neutrality, meaning it must neither endorse nor prohibit any belief or non-belief.
Open secularism is the best way to fully guarantee the freedom of religion and conscience of all citizens in a plural society. Secularism is the principle that the government should not privilege or disadvantage any religious or non-religious belief over any other.
We oppose government funding being given preferentially to religious organizations and tax exemptions that only benefit the religious (for example, permissive exemptions for houses of worship or the Clergy Residence Deduction). We call on the federal government to remove "the supremacy of God" from the preamble of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and to create a secular national anthem.
Latest news
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· June 23, 2022
The BC Humanist Association today renewed its call for a Secular BC in its response to the finance committee's consultations for Budget 2023. In its response, the organization calls for an end to funding of religious and elite private schools, the end of the statutory property tax exemption for places...
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· June 23, 2022
Religious organizations are not exempt from disclosures of personal information under BC's privacy law, according to a new ruling by BC's Privacy Commissioner.
The BC Humanist Association is hailing the decision as a victory for secularism and the rights of apostates and those who leave religious communities.
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· June 15, 2022
Following a settlement between White Rock Pride Society and Star of the Sea Parish, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver has issued a formal apology to the LGBTQ2S+ community.
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· June 08, 2022
At a special debate over the Standing Orders last week, two Members of Parliament spoke in favour of ending the prayers said each day in the House of Commons.
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· May 11, 2022
Today, Members of Parliament (MPs) voted against a motion that would have abolished the practice of opening daily sessions of the House of Commons with prayer. Nevertheless, secularists are pledging to continue the fight to end the practice of legislative prayers. Vote result: The @BlocQuebecois #OppositionMotion (Change to Standing Order...
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· May 10, 2022
The move would make Parliament an inclusive and welcoming space
Members of the BC Humanist Association are asking their Members of Parliament (MP) to vote in favour of a motion to end the practice of beginning each day’s sitting of the House of Commons with a prayer.
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· April 01, 2022
Reviewing the predictions made one year ago today in the gaia shattering report, Separation of Religion and Government in Retrograde, the spiritual researchers of the BC Humanist Association have concluded that they achieved a 98.2% accuracy with their astrological prognostications. This unrivaled success puts all other forms of divination to shame...
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· March 28, 2022
In its latest report, the BC Humanist Association (BCHA) documents seven municipalities that have opened council meetings with prayers, seemingly in open violation of an edict from the Supreme Court of Canada. Three of those municipalities, including the City of Winnipeg, begin every council meeting with a prayer. One additional...
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· December 13, 2021
To coincide with the release of the second edition of its Legislative Prayers Across Canada report, the BC Humanist Association is launching a renewed call to end the practice of starting sittings in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia with prayers. The new edition of the report reflects a change...
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