HumanistsMN

The HumanistsMN South Metro Social is for connecting with like-minded people and making new friends. This is not a singles group or a professional networking group, just a fun way to socialize with fellow humanists and the humanist-curious.

El Tejaban Mexican Grill has an extensive menu so everyone will find something they like! They have happy hour special pricing on drinks until 6PM.

The event is open to all, but we focus on engaging existing HumanistsMN members as well as potential new members in the southern suburbs of Minneapolis.

HumanistsMN is committed to fostering an inclusive, collaborative, and caring community for all our members. We welcome everyone who shares our humanist principles. We acknowledge the dignity and worth of all people -- every race, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, social class, abilities, or disabilities. We actively promote a culture of respect, belonging, and compassion as we strive to create an environment where everyone can thrive. By participating in HumanistsMN events, you agree to conduct yourself in accordance with these values.

This event is sponsored by HumanistsMN. If you are not yet a dues-paying member, please consider joining to help us cover our costs and build the humanist movement. Not yet ready to join? Donations are gratefully accepted. Donate or join us at humanistsmn.org.

SHOW UP TO CHAMPION SECULAR DEMOCRACY!
SHOW UP TO CHAMPION HUMANIST VALUES!

Doors open at 8:30am. Program begins at 9:15am. Free and open to the public but to help us with planning for this special event -- please also register on Eventbrite.

Come when you can or attend the entire event! Buffet lunch is an "add-on." $15/person. Reserve your lunch spot here by Monday, January 12!

Join local and national leaders who support the separation of church and state to champion the true meaning of "religious freedom" and counter the efforts of those who would distort this constitutional principle to discriminate against LGBTQ people, curtail reproductive rights, deny services, impose religion in schools, and justify authoritarian government.

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 "religious freedom" -- 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.

You are invited to join us for lunch at $15/person.
Please register and pay for the lunch here by Monday, January 12!

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

REGISTRATION
Please register for the forum here.
If you plan to attend the lunch, please register and pay here.

*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, SMART Recovery, Vote Common Good.

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.

HumanistsMN invites you to attend our Religious Freedom Champions Lunch featuring Fish Stark, executive director of the American Humanist Association, one of the country's leading groups fighting against Christian nationalism.

We will also present Minnesota Rep. Mike Freiberg with our 2026 Religious Freedom Champion award.

You can obtain tickets to the buffet lunch for $15. Please register here by Jan. 12.

Luncheon Keynote Address: "The Cause of America: Religious Freedom and The Fight Against Tyranny." Fish Stark will tie our tradition of secular government to the revolutionary argument that truth, morality, and power belong to the people, not to some self-justifying authority or derived from divine right or hereditary rule.

"The Cause of America" is a fragment of a quote from Thomas Paine's Common Sense ("The cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind") -- a pamphlet whose 250th anniversary we will celebrate in January.

HumanistsMN is honoring Rep. Freiberg, co-chair of the Secular Government Caucus, for his longstanding work at the Legislature advocating for secular government and religious freedom for those of all faiths and none.

We will also hear from 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.

The lunch is part of a half-day Religious Freedom Forum with state legislators and other local and national advocates for secular democracy. Attend the program and stay for lunch! Get details and register here.

These events are sponsored by HumanistsMN. If you are not yet a member, please consider joining to help us cover our costs and build the humanist movement. Not ready to join? Donations are gratefully accepted! Join or donate on our website.

Whether you are seeking a course of recovery for yourself or have been mandated to attend a recovery program, SMART Recovery provides a path to life beyond addiction.

These sessions are sponsored by HumanistsMN -- a local community of humanists, agnostics, atheists, and freethinkers. If you are not yet a dues paying member, please consider joining to help us cover our costs and build the humanist movement. Not yet ready to join? Donations are gratefully accepted! Donate or join us at humanistsmn.org.