October 22, 2019 Greetings! We. Are. Back! And the fall is already shaping up to be a busy season for the national community of humanists. Thank you for your membership in Humanist Canada and being part of a robust Canadian and International Humanist community. If you're not yet a member, we hope you will take this next step. We're excited to announce the launch of our new website and to catch you up on a variety of Humanist events and activities so that you can stay informed and plan ahead. With all of life's demands, thanks for taking the time to read this issue. Regards, Scott Jacobsen Newsletter Editor

Humanist Canada's new website has just gone LIVE!!!!!!! This new website is built from the ground up to serve the needs of Humanist Canada members, Affiliates and Chapters for years to come. Thanks to Sassan Sanei,  Ruth Henrich,  Dick Combeer and Martin Frith along with our webmaster/developer  Laurelle Keashly, our copy editor  Deborah Evans and, more recently,  Anna Popovitch, our new Administrator /Program Developer. We are proud of the website and hope you are too! Let us know your thoughts and share the love. Check us out at www.humanistcanada.ca

Humanist Canada's 2019 Essay Contest Concludes! Humanist Canada's Essay Contest has concluded for Anglophone and Francophone speakers and writers in Canada. It is a contest held by Humanist Canada for high school students.

First prize went to Joshua Soifer, with his essay The Necessity of a Universal Base Income in Upholding Human Freedom. William Kirk earned second prize with the essay entitled The Right to Knowledge: Using Literacy as a Defence against Tyranny. Jasnoor Guliani made third place with a philosophical paper entitled Evaluating the Role of Contrasting Perspectives in the Critical Pursuit of Knowledge. Humanist Canada's Vice-President, Dr. Lloyd Hawkeye Robertson presented certificates in Regina, SK to Joshua Soifer (L) and Jasnoor Guliani (R). ________________________________

Sinead Gibbs won an honourable mention for Gender Neutrality: A Step toward a better Future. Sarah Rensby also won an honourable mention for The Women's Pay Gap. The Humanist Canada Essay Contest was developed to promote logical thinking and communication skills.

Election Results: Canadians have just elected a Liberal minority government. Are you: happy with the results Select not happy with the results Select

The American Humanist Association Scores Major Legal Victory The U.S. District Court of Maryland ended the American Humanist Association’s (AHA) long battle over legislative prayers in Carroll County, MD, by signing a final order prohibiting county commissioners from leading prayers at public meetings. Since 2010, Carroll County has opened official county board meetings with a prayer delivered by one of the five elected commissioners on a rotating basis. At the time the complaint was filed, all five commissioners were Christian, and all five gave prayers. Under the decree that the judge signed just hours ago, Carroll County commissioners are permanently prohibited from delivering any prayers at their public meetings. More...

World Humanist Congress August 6-9, 2020 Register before January 15th for Early-Bird Prices

HI Blog To stay up-to-date on International Humanist Activities you may want to bookmark Humanists International Blog which features members' news and campaign updates in our International community. This month includes the story of Mohamed Hisham the Egyptian atheist who was traumatized after being kicked off a TV show because he said that he didn’t believe in God. After that appearance, his life changed dramatically. Since then, Mohamed made it safely to Europe. You can read his story here…

“Humanists At Risk” Fundraising Appeal The number of humanists in the world is rising, but the number of us at risk of persecution continues to rise as well. As we move forward into Fall, it is important to remember others who want to live out the same ideals, but continue to encounter robust discrimination for what they believe. Click to Donate .

Humanist Canada's 2020 AGM will be held in Winnip eg on the May 2-3 weekend. Plans are underway for the HC's Annual General Meeting with a Conference Day to bring together Canadian Humanists. The Annual General meeting will be available for remote attendance though stay tuned for updates in the coming months.

Tell us what you'd like to see in the Newsletter. To ensure the newsletter is relevant we invite your response to a few short questions. Having feedback from across the country is our goal. Click here!

Why membership in Humanist Canada is important! We simply can't do it without you. We are entirely funded through memberships and donations. Your involvement is incredibly significant and goes a long way to support lasting change for a better society and a tolerant world where rational thinking and kindness prevail. Your membership status/expiry date is on currently not a member (M/D/Y). If it's time for you to renew, just click on your personal link below, confirm your information and make your payment today.  Click here: http://weblink.donorperfect.com/humanistcanada_join

If you have any questions about renewing, please contact the National Office at members@humanistcanada.ca or 1-877-486-2671.