Humanism is a nontheistic worldview with ethical values informed by scientific knowledge and driven by a desire to meet the needs of people in the here and now. At the foundation of those values is an affirmation of the dignity of every human being.
DECEMBER 2025: PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
Peter Dickinson
As I am writing this on the day after our national Day of Thanksgiving, I want to use this space to express my deepest gratitude to all of you for creating this caring and welcoming community. From the first meeting I attended just over two years ago, to the wonderful time we shared with Lauren Camp last Saturday, I have felt at home with you all. It gives me a lot of hope, even in these troubling times, that we have been able to work together to build this community based on basic humanist values like compassion, empathy, acceptance, and commitment to truth and understanding reality.
I am also grateful for all those people who first decided more than a decade ago to form a group called the Humanist Society of New Mexico, and all those who joined over the years and kept that community alive. I am glad I’ve been able to get to know some of you, and that you have shared your memories of the others
with us.
Fish Stark: Today Is a Golden Opportunity for Humanists
On Saturday, May 24, American Humanist Association (AHA) Executive Director Fish Stark told a gathering at the Albuquerque Museum that humanism offers hope for a divided country. His talk attracted HSNM members and guests who wanted to learn more about humanism and its role in American society.
“Humanists have a golden opportunity right now, in an age of loneliness and dispossession, to reach out to people and say this: You are not alone. There are so many people who think the way you do,” Fish said.”
His definition of a humanist? “You’re a humanist if you believe in the Golden Rule, but not in God,” Fish explained. “It is my deep belief that there are 45 million humanists in America who don’t know it yet. The number of people who are broadly secular and broadly progressive is far greater than those who are involved in our community today.
“We must embrace, repeat, and popularize a simple truth—that humanism has been the driving force of American social innovation, not by mere accident but by design—because humanist beliefs shaped the revolutionaries, the innovators, the healers, and the artists who define the American spirit,” he continued.
In a Q&A session, Stark encouraged humanists to support their local chapters through membership, political action and donations. He also highlighted the impact of giving to the AHA and its advocacy and political arm, the Center for Freethought Equality and its political action committee, the Freethought Equality Fund.
Humanist Society of New Mexico, A Nonprofit Corporation * P.O. Box 27293, Albuquerque, NM 87125-7293 * Contact@HumanistsNM.org
