One of the biggest motivations Humanists have is to help make the world a better place. Almost all of our time and money is spent pursuing activities we think will make a difference in the lives of others. What better way to do good deeds while promoting your favorite philosophy then the channel your donations through one of the following four Humanist charities.
Humanist Charities – run by the American Humanist Association – helps organize the National Secular Service Day in Oct. Past projects funded by Humanist Charities include providing medical textbooks to Afghanistan, expanding emergency medical care for pregnant mothers in Haiti, the building of a library in the Dominican Republic and of course, disaster aid relief when the need arises.
Foundation Beyond Belief – founded by Dale McGowan – the foundation is a way for Humanists to support charitable organizations as Humanists and as a way to support Humanist-parenting initiatives. Members are asked to make a monthly donation to support the work of this foundation. This is a new foundation that will start work in Jan 2010 but is accepting donations now. This foundation supports work done in the areas of peace, education, poverty, human rights, environment, health and children.
The Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious KIVA Lending Team – consists of over 7,000 individuals who have made 41,000 loans totally over 1.27 million dollars. KIVA is an online person-to-person micro-lending organization as a way to alleviate poverty. This is a very dynamic group of Atheists, Freethinkers and Humanists who are helping people one on one to start new businesses and help themselves get out of poverty.
Secular Humanist Aid and Relief Effort (SHARE) – organized by the Council for Secular Humanism. Founded about 20 years ago to provide a way for Humanists to give support to victims of disaster without having to go through religious organizations, SHARE’s most recent projects include aid to tornado victims in TN and also to victims of the Feb 2009 plane crash in Clarence NY. Past projects have including aid to victims of Hurricane Katrina and families displaced by firefires in California.
Comments
Thanks for publishing this, Jennifer. It's a shame that many religious folks like to say that humanists and atheists are not charitable. I like knowing, that, unlike the normal charities, not a penny of "overhead" comes out of donations through SHARE.
And, thanks for writing about freethought activities in the area.
This list is a great idea. I wish you had one for humanist volunteers too. When I wanted to do volunteer charity work a few years ago, the only local place I could do it was at a church. That was ok... at least when they weren't trying to convert me.
Hi Hugh - there are secular volunteer organizations that match volunteers to volunteer projects. In Florida we have a network of Hands On Tampa, Hands On Orlando, Hands on Miami groups. The one in Orlando is run by a Humanist.
In LA - check out Volunteer Los Angeles dot com (all one word) It lists organizations looking for volunteers in a wide range of areas.
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