Join us on Saturday 14 September at the Secular Europe Campaign’s annual march and rally in Central London. Our chair Naomi Phillips will be speaking on behalf of Labour Humanists from 14.00 on Richmond Terrace, opposite Downing Street.
The “Secular Europe Campaign” is an annual effort that sees many diverse groups united in demanding an end to religious privileges and asking that the European Institutions must remain secular.
Starting in 2008, this Campaign has a special focus on the Vatican, given the enormous political and economical power it holds, but aims at representing all the issues around secularism and human rights, including opposition to state-funded faith schools, rejection of religious tribunals and support to equal rights for LGBT citizens.
The Campaign promotes:
- freedom of religion, freedom of conscience and freedom of speech
- women’s equality and reproductive rights
- equal rights for LGBT people in all the European Union
- a secular Europe – democratic, peaceful, open and just, with no privilege for religious or belief organisations
- one law for all, no religious exemptions from the law
- state neutrality in matters of religion and belief
The Campaign opposes:
- the privileged status of the churches under Article 17 of the TFEU (Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union)
- the privileged status of churches in countries where they are established
- the special status of the Vatican at the United Nations and its economic and political privileges across Europe
- state-funded religious schools