A Humanist Dad

06/04/2025

Brighton area friends! If you’re looking for something fun on next Sunday, can I recommend joining me Sunday Assembly Brighton?

It’s a secular congregation that meets monthly to celebrate life. They are a great (and family friendly) place to find community. They always have interesting talks and it’s a chance to sing along and just have fun.

This month I'm giving a talk about the history and design of different humanist symbols.

Is it April already?! It must be Design of the Times! For this month’s assembly, we will be RETURNING TO MIDDLE STREET SCHOOL and welcoming humanist dad, thoughtful blogger, and longtime friend of Sunday Assembly Brighton, Alistair Lichten! Alistair has been thinking about humanism from a design perspective, and will be introducing us to some of the choices behind the neurodiversity pride flag, and the use of infinity symbols in both neurodiverse and secular humanist design.
Money raised at this month's assembly will go to local charity, Lighthouse whose work is to nurture digital artists in Brighton, helping them make new work, produce exhibitions & talks, and give them the support they need to succeed.
Beyond that, our regular round of singing, poetry, food bank**, tea (bring your keep-cup!), cake***, and friendly chit-chat with old friends and new****, to keep our spirits up and community warm :) Click the link in bio or see our Facebook/website for more details!

In case you didn’t read earlier, and somehow started in the middle of this blurb - WE ARE BACK AT MIDDLE STREET SCHOOL
* money raised will be split 50:50 between the charity and Sunday Assembly (for running costs, hall hire, tea, etc)
** tins of food, dry packet food, toiletries, and so on to be distributed to Brighton food banks by us at Sunday Assembly :)
*** and if you're a keen baker - bring cake/brownies/your great bake-off practice pieces!
**** hey, tell your friends and bring them along too - more people = more community = more singing and good times :)
***** A local fact for you fifth asterisk fans! The world’s oldest aquarium was conceived, designed and built by Eugenius Birch, right here in Brighton!

05/04/2025

Worries about indoctrination—whether avoiding it ourselves or from external influences – should be proportional, to avoid the very stifling of freethought we are trying to avoid, and to provide space for values, exploration and community.

This is one of my parenting posts from February. If you found it useful or interesting, it would be great if you could share it, and help reach a wider audience.

Worries about indoctrination—whether avoiding it ourselves or from external influences – should be proportional, to avoid the very stifling of freethought we are trying to avoid, and to provi…

05/04/2025

Last month’s post ‘J is for Joy’ is my favourite in my A-Z of humanist parenting series, and I'd love for it to have a bit more reach.

I want my kids to find their own joy in being their authentic selves and in exploring their world. A humanist worldview offers reasons and opportunities to fill our one life with joy.

I want my kids to find their own joy in being their authentic selves and in exploring their world. A humanist worldview offers reasons and opportunities to fill our one life with joy.

05/04/2025

ICYMI my post last week about appearing on The Family Skeptical podcast.

‘Moms’ and ‘Pops’ invited me on for a wide ranging discussion about humanism, parenting, neurodiversity, politics and community.

‘Moms’ and ‘Pops’ of The Family Skeptical Podcast invited me on for a wide ranging discussion about humanism, parenting, neurodiversity, politics and community.

04/04/2025

Last month I published a parenting blog on 'Preparation, chaos and self-care in parenting and community organising'. It's posts like this that I'm trying to spend more time on, and would love to see them getting more engagement. So please check it out and share with anyone who may be interested in these discussions.

Spending the day parenting – or community organising – requires preparation before hand and self care afterwards. In between you need to embrace the chaotic energy, think on your feet and have fun.

Spending the day parenting – or community organising – requires preparation before hand and self care afterwards. In between you need to embrace the chaotic energy, think on your feet a…

04/04/2025

In this personal perspective, I explore the similarities between the development of autistic and humanist identities, and how their intersection has shaped my approach to politics, parenting, and community.

In this personal perspective, I explore the similarities between the development of autistic and humanist identities, and how their intersection has shaped my approach to politics, parenting, and c…

04/04/2025

Did you see my post last week on how we can make humanist communities more family friendly. I’m trying to put these ideas into practice in my local community. If you’re interested please share the post and add your own experiences.

Picking the right venue, focusing on just one activity, setting up a kids room, thinking about how you frame discussion topics, and briefing speakers/volunteers, regardless of your humanist communi…

03/04/2025

Humanists want their medical and parenting decisions to be guided by reason and science. It's been a little while since I published my parenting blog on "An immunocompromised perspective on anti-vaccine misinformation". I hope I got what I needed across, and that if you found it interesting you'll give it a share.

Humanists want their medical and parenting decisions to be guided by reason and science. Against rising anti-vax conspiracism, I’m struck by how amazing vaccine-science is, and how scary it can be …

31/03/2025

I don't have a specific post for International Transgender Day of Visibility. However, I hope it's clear how important justice for transgender (and all marginalised) people is to my personal humanism, my professional activism and my writing about humanist parenting.

Some of my writing on this includes:

* The transphobia problem in atheism - https://humanistdad.uk/2021/04/26/transphobia-in-ahs/

* Questions for ‘gender critical’ atheists - https://humanistdad.uk/2021/11/02/questions-for-gender-critical-atheists/

* Humanist decorating: LGBTQ+ History Month - https://humanistdad.uk/2024/02/02/how-and-why-were-celebrating-lgbtq-history-month/

29/03/2025

In not wanting to play the hero and swoop in for the fun, while avoiding responsibility, I’ve sometimes sacrificed quality time with my kids. I’m trying to find a better balance. It’s been a little while since I published this article and I’m still not sure I got what I was aiming for across, so feedback would be really appreciated.

In not wanting to play the hero and swoop in for the fun, while avoiding responsibility, I’ve sometimes sacrificed quality time with my kids. I’m trying to find a better balance.

29/03/2025

Last month I published a parenting blog on intentionality/being intentional. It would be great to get some more views and feedback, so please share if you found it interesting. I talk about the theme of intentionality in humanism and how it informs how I want to approach both the big questions and day to day work of parenting. https://buff.ly/xMshCVe

28/03/2025

It was great fun joining ‘Moms’ and ‘Pops’ of The Family Skeptical Podcast for a wide ranging discussion about humanism, parenting, neurodiversity, politics and community. You can find links on this week's Humanist Dad post.

‘Moms’ and ‘Pops’ of The Family Skeptical Podcast invited me on for a wide ranging discussion about humanism, parenting, neurodiversity, politics and community.

27/03/2025

Why I write about humanist parenting

It’s been a little while since I wrote this piece - a bit of a reintroduction and mission statement. It would be great to see it shared more widely and help more people find the site.

Parenting should be a cycle of reflection and intentionality. The challenges of being a non-religious parent change with society, But humanism can move us beyond the deficit model to focus on opportunities for joy and wonder.

Parenting should be a cycle of reflection and intentionality. The challenges of being a non-religious parent change with society, But humanism can move us beyond the deficit model to focus on oppor…

27/03/2025

New new episode. We talk about Go’s mounting enthusiasm at school, and then we have an interview with Alastair Lichten, author of A Humanist Dad about progressive humanist parenting. I really love his insight at the end about needing to be brave to stand up to bullies. And it was very interesting to learn more about the differences between the UK and US when it comes to atheism, humanism, and parenting.

After we spoke, but before this episode was finished, Alastair published a great series about why humanist communities can be hard for parents to get involved in, and then tips on how to make them more parent friendly. I felt like we were on a totally similar wavelengths because in my wrap-up I talked about the irony that becoming a parent can make you much more concerned about the world, while also sucking away the time and energy you need to do anything about it. Getting involved with secular communities is definitely in that bucket.

But I’ve been trying to take baby steps. Right now, my concerns are mainly focused on finding small ways I can try to help stop the US from becoming a Christian Nationalist hellscape, but if I can find time for that, maybe there’ll be time for community in the future.

26/03/2025

I had a post last week on why humanist communities can be challenging for families with children. I'm following up with some practical advice, but would love to hear your thoughts and experiences. Have you had any of these issues?

The demands on parents make any sort of volunteering or community participation difficult. But there are other reasons some humanist communities aren’t attracting parents and families with childre…

25/03/2025

Spending the day parenting – or community organising – requires preparation before hand and self care afterwards. In between you need to embrace the chaotic energy, think on your feet and have fun.

Spending the day parenting – or community organising – requires preparation before hand and self care afterwards. In between you need to embrace the chaotic energy, think on your feet a…

22/03/2025

As a dad, I’m concerned about the rise of misogynistic ideologies and influencers. Humanism, with its emphasis on reason, compassion, and skepticism, offers powerful tools for deconstructing toxic masculinity and presenting positive alternatives.

As a dad, I’m concerned about the rise of misogynistic ideologies and influencers. Humanism, with its emphasis on reason, compassion, and skepticism, offers powerful tools for deconstructing toxic …

22/03/2025

Did you see my post last month on the hierarchy of needs? It's part of my A-Z of humanist parenting series, and I'd love for it to have a bit more reach. It's about how values based approaches to our kids' most basic needs lay the foundation for values based approaches to their higher needs.

When I use reason and evidence in decisions about their food, clothing, sleeping or healthcare arrangements, I am using my humanist values. Without empathy I can’t understand their most basic needs. Even in the most basic tasks of feeding and clothing them I can value and begin to develop their freedom of choice. When assessing risks and safety, I use the tools of skepticism and humanism.

When I understand and criticise the systems responsible for their basic needs, I am valuing collective as well as individual action.

Sometimes the hard work of parenting can feel separate from our values and ideals, but even in meeting kids’ most basic needs, values can inform our approach, laying the foundations from whic…