Humanists: a brief outline

Outlook - Humanists have a view of life based on believing that human problems can be solved only by human beings themselves and not by reliance on any god or gods, the existence of which is unsupported by any evidence. Humanists believe we must face our problems with our own moral and intellectual resources, using the accumulated knowledge and experience of humankind. Unlike religions, they make no claim to special knowledge or final answers and regard the search for understanding as an ongoing process.

Morality - Humanist morality is based on concern for human dignity and welfare, the ultimate aim being happiness and fulfilment. Humanists see moral values not as edicts from a god, but as the principles evolved biologically and socially in the course of humanity's development ,upon which good human relationships depend. Such values include telling the truth, being honest, accepting responsibility, co-operation for the common good and caring for others. These basic human values lie at the heart of societies, however much they may be ignored in practice.

Law - Humanists believe in the concept of universal human rights and legal equality, which should be recognised in both international and national law in all countries and subject to the jurisdiction of an independent judiciary. They believe that personal morality is not a proper subject for legislation unless actions infringe the basic rights of others.

Reform - Humanists and Humanist organisations have a long record of working for social reforms and have been active campaigners for the reform of laws on abortion, birth control, censorship, divorce, homosexuality, and voluntary euthanasia – often in the teeth of opposition from religionists. The Humanist movement played a prominent role in the campaign for homosexual law reform that led to the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1967 and the more recent equalisation of the age of consent for gay men. It consistently backed calls for further reforms, including anti-discrimination and partnership legislation and continues to do so.

Education – Humanist organisations have argued that education should be given a high priority in the allocation of national resources. Schools and colleges should model themselves as far as possible on the Open Society, placing the minimum of reliance on authoritarian methods. Education should not avoid questions of social controversy since this divorces education from real life and perpetuates the social divisions which it should be prepared to tackle. It is essential to provide children with an insight into sexual matters including LGBT issues. They should be taught about different systems of belief and attitudes to morality in an objective, fair and balanced way, and allowed to make a personal choice between them. The legal requirement for an act of worship in schools each day should be ended and the school assembly used in a way which will involve all children.

Religion - Humanists acknowledge that for many people religion provides substantial emotional support, but they consider that belief in the supernatural is irrelevant to the development of moral and social values. They object to the attempts by some religionists to impose their values on everyone in the conviction that moral behaviour can be based only on the teachings in some ancient ‘holy’ book.