Secularism

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


Let's make April 15 "Religious Neutrality Day"

On April 15, 2015, the Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada released their decision in Mouvement laïque québécois vs the City of Saguenay. It ended a nearly nine-year battle between atheist Alain Simoneau and the City's Mayor over whether prayers could be said before a municipal council meeting. The...

Prayers end at Selwyn Township council meetings following constitutional challenge

The Township of Selwyn, Ontario, has agreed to drop prayers from future inaugural council meetings after a request by constitutional lawyer Donald Bur.

Federal Finance Committee endorses end to religious charitable status

In December, a Parliamentary committee recommended Canada end automatic charitable status for religious groups, mirroring recommendations from the BC Humanist Association (BCHA).

Humanists argue for ex-religious privacy rights at BC Court of Appeal

Lawyers argued over the constitutionality of BC's privacy law at the BC Court of Appeal yesterday in an ongoing dispute between the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of BC. The BCHA was able to bring the voice of those who've chosen to dissociate from...

Vancouver's faith based housing motion undermines duty of neutrality

The BC Humanist Association has written in opposition to a forthcoming City of Vancouver Council Members' motion, arguing it runs contrary to the spirit of the City's constitutional duty of religious neutrality.


Report: Saskatchewan Municipalities Including Unconstitutional Prayer in Meetings

For the sixth time, research from the BCHA has identified municipalities violating the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms A new report from the BC Humanist Association (BCHA) found that multiple Saskatchewan municipalities continue to include prayers in their council meetings, despite a 2015 Supreme Court of Canada ruling that...

Rossland rejects Catholic Church tax exemption

The small city of Rossland in the West Kootenays voted last month to tax some vacant land around the local Catholic Church.

Majority would ditch legislative prayers: Poll

The BC Humanist Association is renewing its call for legislatures to end the practice of opening each day's sitting with prayers following a new poll that found a majority of Canadians would prefer a moment of silent reflection or nothing.

Church partisanship warrants CRA scrutiny

On June 30, 2024, as rainbows and drag queens marched down Yonge Street with the Toronto Pride Parade, a trio of evangelical churches in Greater Toronto hosted the leader of the opposition and local Conservative Party candidates for campaign-style rallies at their church services. Thomas Jefferson's "wall of separation between Church...

See more secularism posts.



Created with NationBuilder Creative Commons License