We mourn for the people who have died in the context of the pandemic, side by side with their families, companions, friends, neighbors and colleagues. The HVD is calling on people to symbolically participate in a central memorial service on Sunday by lighting a candle.
Many non-denominational people do not feel sufficiently recognized in our society. This is why secular groups are pushing for greater visibility. To this end, the Coordination Council of Secular Organizations (KORSO) wants to present itself more strongly as a secular lobby organization in the future. The Humanist Association of Germany – Federal Association (HVD) will no longer be represented.
In a joint appeal, a broad alliance of more than 100 organizations, including the Humanist Association of Germany, is calling on the parliamentary groups in the Bundestag and the federal states to agree by the summer break on a law to incorporate children’s rights into the Basic Law that meets the requirements of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The coronavirus pandemic has caused a global setback in terms of equality for women. Women are more disadvantaged and burdened by the pandemic, and precarious working conditions and traditional role distributions have even deepened. We need to take a close look and act to ensure that these setbacks are not cemented and gender equality is not set back by years.
After many years of preparation, the Humanist Association of Germany (HVD), the Giordano Bruno Foundation (gbs), the Humanist Academy of Germany (HAD) and the Federal Association of Humanist Students (BAG) have founded the Bertha von Suttner-Studienwerk. With its help, humanist students are to receive the same support as their religious fellow students.
The Humanist Association of Germany (Humanistischer Verband Deutschlands – Bundesverband) welcomes the fact that, one year after the ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court, a draft law to regulate assisted suicide has been put forward by the German parliament. To date, doctors in Germany have continued to use an unsuitable cocktail of drugs for assisted suicide or have used an euthanasia association for a four-figure sum.
Our history, the remembrance of Germany’s Nazi past, means a special responsibility for our actions in the present. We must not just pay lip service to this. A statement by Erwin Kress, spokesman of the board of the Humanistischer Verband Deutschlands – Bundesverband, on today’s Day of Remembrance for the Victims of National Socialism.
The fight for the abolition of Section 219a is entering the next round: on January 15, 2021, the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court dismissed the appeal by doctor Kristina Hänel, making the ruling legally binding. Hänel has announced that she will now lodge a constitutional complaint against Section 219a. The Humanist Association of Germany – Federal Association declares its solidarity with the Giessen doctor and once again calls for the deletion of § 219a without replacement.
Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time – if not the greatest. In the current issue of our humanist magazine, we therefore ask: What relationship do humanists actually have with nature? Should it change? What can we do to prevent excess in the use of our limited natural resources? And how do we move from knowledge to action?
Many people are hoping that 2021 will be better than last year – thanks to the vaccinations, overcoming the Covid-19 pandemic now seems within reach. But the pandemic is far from our only problem. Thoughts on the new year from Erwin Kress, Spokesman of the Board of the Humanist Association of Germany.
