American Humanist Association, Center for Freethought Equality Praise Introduction of National Day of Reason Resolution in Congress

For Immediate Release

May 2, 2025
Contact: Court Beyer, cbeyer@americanhumanist.org

WASHINGTON – Today, the American Humanist Association and the Center for Freethought Equality applaud co-chairs of the Congressional Freethought Caucus, Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-8) and Congressman Jared Huffman (CA-2), on the introduction of the National Day of Reason Resolution, which honors the central importance of reason in the betterment of humanity, society, and government.

The National Day of Reason, celebrated annually on May 4th, honors the vital role that reason and critical thinking play in safeguarding secular democracy and upholding the separation of church and state. The resolution articulates the importance of reason in evidence-based policy making, protecting the separation of church and state, resisting the rise of authoritarianism in the US, and advancing civil and human rights. It also emphasizes reason as “the essential pre-condition for humanity’s extraordinary scientific, medical, technological, and social progress”, prevailing as a beacon of hope in trying times. Read the resolution here.

“America needs reason more than ever in an age of rampant nonsense,” said Fish Stark, Executive Director of the American Humanist Association and the Center for Freethought Equality. “Across the country, Christian Nationalists are forcing religious doctrine into law, attacking public education, whitewashing history, and targeting LGBTQ+ people—and we are seeing these priorities echoed in the halls of Congress. Reason protects our rights, grounds our decisions in evidence rather than dogma, and ensures our government serves the public good – not a religious agenda. Thank you, Representatives Raskin and Huffman, for your continued leadership to protect the role reason plays in government.”

To learn more about the National Day of Reason and how you can demonstrate your support, visit nationaldayofreason.org.

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The Center for Freethought Equality (CFE) is the political and advocacy arm of the American Humanist Association. CFE is dedicated to advancing the policy interests of humanists and atheists, and politically empowering our community in the United States. Alongside its advocacy and organizing efforts, CFE has an affiliated political action committee, the Center for Freethought Equality PAC, whose mission is to achieve equality for our community by increasing the number of open humanists and atheists, and allies, in public office at all levels of government.

The American Humanist Association (AHA) works to protect the rights of humanists, atheists, and other nontheistic Americans. The AHA advances the ethical and life-affirming worldview of humanism, which—without beliefs in gods or other supernatural forces—encourages individuals to live informed and meaningful lives that aspire to the greater good of humanity.