It is our opinion that the State should prohibit religious ceremonies that obstruct public access or require the reservation of public space for adherents of one religion to the exclusion of others. This should apply, among other things, to parks, streets, public squares and government buildings.
Such a measure would ensure free access to public space for all citizens, without discrimination on religious grounds. It would not prevent religious expression, nor limit freedom of expression in public space. On the contrary, it would be a guarantee for all, regardless of religious affiliation or lack thereof.
We are convinced that such legislation would strengthen the secularism of our society while respecting individual rights and freedoms.
Host: Thomas Sheedy
Guest Speaker: David Rand
The Lockean variant of “secularism”—dominant in the Anglosphere—is very incomplete, as it fails to separate religions from the State.
“…Anglo-American political activism has so thoroughly embraced what is arguably one of the worst products of French culture—postmodern philosophy—while simultaneously rejecting one of its finest realizations—secularism…”
The mandate of the Comité des sages (Committee of Experts) is to advise the Quebec government on the subject of so-called “gender identity.” Atheist Freethinkers prepared a brief (in French) on that issue which we presented to the Comité des sages on 21st May 2024. Here are some highlights.
- We oppose any conflation of the terms “sex” and “gender.” Sex is an objective biological binary reality. Gender, however, is a vague, subjective concept.[…]
- Sexual orientation and gender identity are two completely distinct phenomena which should not, in any way, be conflated.[…]
- Self-identification, whereby an individual can simply declare himself or herself to be of the opposite sex and be legally recognized as such, is a disaster and an open door to abuse.
Subject of discussion (in French) :
What questions would we like to see in a real poll about religion?
Première Moisson, 4445 Ontario East, Montreal (QC), Canada
The Mouvement laïque québécois (MLQ), the organization Pour les droits des femmes du Québec (PDF-Q) and the Attorney General of Quebec have each written to the Supreme Court of Canada requesting that Justice Mahmud Jamal be withdrawn from the case involving Quebec Bill 21 because Jamal was on the Board of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA), or even its president, at the time the CCLA initiated its challenge to Bill 21.
Unlike sports activities, festivals, parties and shows which are open to all, a religious ceremony such as a group prayer is only accessible to followers of a particular religion. Such a celebration involves the notion of ritual purity, discriminatory by nature.
Quebeckers and Francophones are a little less credulous than other Canadians.
|
Atheist Freethinkers on the web |
Become a member of Atheist FreethinkersMembership costs only |
Donate to AFTOne-time or MonthlyContribute to our Legal Fund |
