Скачать или смотреть Protect Our Secular Democracy: A Forum on Religious Freedom

Program and stream begins at 9:15am.

Join local and national advocates for secular government at a forum to discuss the true meaning of religious freedom. This half-day event — sponsored by HumanistsMN and culminating with lunch (see details below) — will commemorate National Religious Freedom Day by exploring how we can uphold the constitutional principle of separation of church and state as Christian nationalism and authoritarianism become ever more pervasive in the halls of government.

MORNING SPEAKERS

Mariko Hirose: "Year in Review and Looking Ahead: The Christian Nationalist Threat to Our Communities." Hirose is chief program officer of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
Rev. Susan Hayward, "Whose Freedom? Religion and Power from the Global to the Local." Hayward is a Minneapolis scholar and minister specializing in religion, peacebuilding, and human rights; co-host of "America Unexceptionalism," a podcast series about what Americans can learn from people around the world who have resisted religious nationalism.
A panel of Minnesota legislators discussing what religious freedom means to them, with Sen. Jen McEwen and Rep. Athena Hollins, co-chairs of the Legislature's Secular Government Caucus; Rep. Brion Curran, chair of the Queer Legislators Caucus; and Rep. Andy Smith, an outspoken critic of Christian nationalism.

LUNCHEON SPEAKERS

Rep. Mike Freiberg, co-chair of the Secular Government Caucus, will receive HumanistsMN's Religious Freedom Champion award.
Fish Stark, "The Cause of America: Religious Freedom and The Fight Against Tyranny." Stark is executive director of the American Humanist Association (AHA), a national organization representing humanists that has taken a lead in fighting Christian nationalism.
Beatrice Handlin, who as a student testified for legislation supported by Rep. Freiberg to end religious discrimination in the state-funded Postsecondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) program.

SCHEDULE
8:30 a.m. Registration, coffee/tea; visit co-sponsor information tables*
9:15 a.m. Welcome
9:20 a.m. Mariko Hirose
10 a.m. Break (visit co-sponsor info tables)
10:20 a.m. Rev. Susan Hayward
11:00 a.m. Break (visit co-sponsor info tables)
11:15 a.m. Panel of Minnesota legislators
12:00 p.m. Break (visit co-sponsor info tables)
12:15 p.m. Lunch
12:45 p.m. Award to Rep. Mike Freiberg; Beatrice Handlin
1:00 p.m. Fish Stark
1:45 p.m. Visit co-sponsor info tables
2:00 p.m. Program ends

THANKS TO OUR CO-SPONSORS
ACLU of Minnesota, American Humanist Association, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Christians Against Christian Nationalism Minnesota, First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Gender Justice, Health Care for All Minnesota, Jews for a Secular Democracy, Minnesota Atheists, Or Emet, OutFront Minnesota, Secular Student Alliance, Vote Common Good. (More to be announced later.)

BACKGROUND ON NATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DAY (Jan. 16)
National Religious Freedom Day commemorates the Virginia General Assembly’s adoption of Thomas Jefferson’s landmark Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom on Jan. 16, 1786. The statute became the basis for the establishment clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guaranteeing the separation of church and state. The U.S. President has proclaimed Religious Freedom Day annually since 1993.