Tags: Opinion Out Loud
Beware the government’s “new normal” of faith-based public services
Posted: Thu, 23 Sep 2021 by Megan Manson
A new government fund exclusively for faith groups threatens to embed religious privilege into public services, warns Megan Manson. Read More »
Schools should be liberated from the compulsion of worship
Posted: Thu, 16 Sep 2021 by Stephen Evans
As a bill to reform collective worship progresses in parliament, Stephen Evans argues that the time has come for lawmakers to recognise that laws mandating worship have no place in modern Britain. Read More »
Schools aren’t there to save the church
Posted: Thu, 22 Jul 2021 by Stephen Evans
The Church of England's new evangelical missional strategy should lead us to question its entitlement to proselytise in schools, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Helping the public shouldn’t mean pushing religion on people
Posted: Mon, 12 Jul 2021 by Megan Manson
A parliamentary group has removed provisions in its 'faith covenant' that prevent faith groups from proselytising when delivering public services. This leaves vulnerable people open to exploitation, says Megan Manson. Read More »
Parents’ religious wishes must not trump children’s safety and education
Posted: Thu, 20 May 2021 by Megan Manson
Every child has been withdrawn from sex education classes at an independent faith school. Megan Manson says the parental right of withdrawal is incompatible with children's right to an education that keeps them safe. Read More »
The religious threat to global human rights must be taken seriously
Posted: Thu, 20 May 2021 by Keith Porteous Wood
UN efforts to challenge violations of human rights should consider both oppressive laws which theocrats uphold in former colonies and efforts to impose similar agendas further afield, says Keith Porteous Wood. Read More »
The DfE must show leadership when religious hardliners turn on schools
Posted: Thu, 06 May 2021 by Stephen Evans
The start of an investigation into the Batley Grammar affair raises questions over the government's willingness to ensure assertive religious voices don't dictate what happens in classrooms, says Stephen Evans. Read More »
Women Leaving Islam: the rights of those who leave religion must be protected
Posted: Wed, 14 Apr 2021 by Helen Nicholls
The film Women Leaving Islam shows the risks facing those who stand up for the fundamental right to leave religion and the ongoing neglect of minorities within minorities in public life, says Helen Nicholls. Read More »
Christian nationalism is a key part of Trump’s legacy
Posted: Thu, 21 Jan 2021 by Alastair Lichten
Alastair Lichten argues that understanding Christian nationalism is essential to understanding the presidency of Donald Trump and its consequences for the world. Read More »
Religious conversion isn’t a charitable endeavour
Posted: Thu, 14 Jan 2021 by Megan Manson
Some registered charities exist primarily to convert members of one religion to another. Megan Manson says such activity is harmful to community cohesion – and shouldn't be treated as a valid charitable purpose. Read More »
The Catholic Church’s control over abortion policy has sparked a furious backlash in Poland
Posted: Thu, 12 Nov 2020 by Aleksandra Myslek
A ruling on abortion in Poland has again highlighted the government's damagingly close relationship with the Catholic Church. But many Poles are now questioning the church's power, says Aleksandra Myslek. Read More »
Church and state should be separate
Posted: Tue, 03 Nov 2020 by Stephen Evans
Ahead of the NSS's 2020 Bradlaugh Lecture on the subject, Stephen Evans says the disestablishment of the Church of England is right in principle and could benefit church and state alike. Read More »
It's not too late to fulfil George Holyoake's secularist vision
Posted: Thu, 30 Jul 2020 by Ray Argyle
With secularist principles under siege across much of the world, it's worth reconsidering the vision of the man who coined the term 'secularism' in the 19th century, says his biographer Ray Argyle. Read More »
