April 27, 2025 It’s the annual Secular Week of Action! Here are things you can do to make the world a better place: - Volunteer with Atheists Helping the Homeless distribution on May 3. Click here for details.
- Join Freedom from Religion Foundation-Valley of the Sun and Humanist Society of Greater Phoenix for Community Service Projects Day. Volunteers of all ages are needed on May 3 to help our neighbors with projects like packing hygiene and period product kits, turning plastic bags into sleeping mats, and creating uplifting handmade cards. Click here for details.
- Donate a book to Secular AZ’s Banned Books library. Click here for details.
And, of course, you can take action by speaking out against harmful public policies. If you haven’t done it already, contact Governor Hobbs and ask her to veto: - SB1256, which prevents state agencies or contractors from providing or requiring DEI in hiring, training and promotion, and promotes white Christian nationalism
- SB1269, which allows volunteer school chaplains to replace trained social workers; takes away parents’ rights to manage children’s religious education, and tracks students’ religious affiliations.
Contact your own Senator and tell them to oppose these bills that violate the Constitutional requirement of church:state separation: - SB1298: Allows for broad definition of religious-related activities, not just worship, to receive get tax breaks, including include education and housing. Opens door for government funding of religious schools.
- HB2439: Refers to a website that isn’t required to discuss the full range of reproductive health; such as abortion care, and promotes fake “pregnancy clinics.
- HB2438: Bans judges from amending birth certificates in an attempt to prevent accurately reflecting transgender individuals’ identities — a form of legal erasure.
- HB2724: Requires schools to cooperate with indoctrination/recruitment efforts by “patriotic youth groups,” including presentations during instructional time, posters hanging in schools, etc. Attempt to indoctrinate students with Christian nationalism propaganda.
- SB1694: Makes higher education institutions ineligible for state funding if they teach information on gender identity, systemic racism, whiteness or other forms of discrimination.
- SB1443: Parents have the legal right to make all healthcare decisions for minor children, including mental health; if a “government official or entity” (i.e. an educator or school) offers support for minor mental health, they could be fined up to $2,500. This could harm LGBTQIA+ students.
Last Tuesday marked the 100th day of the Arizona Legislative Session. Of more than 1,600 bills introduced this session, 145 have passed, 92 are now signed into law, and the Governor has vetoed 52, including many that we’ve been asking you to speak out about over the last few months. Among the bad bills quashed last week were: - HB2058 and HB2063, anti-vaccine bills that would have threatened public health;
- HB2062, a bill to eliminate gender-related terms in AZ law and replace with sex-related terms, effectively erasing trans, non-binary and intersex people;
- HB2670 which would have required instruction about fetal development but not info about birth control, abortion, consent, etc.; and
- SB1584 re: hiring policies for public schools which would have encouraged individuals to sue for claims of reverse racism. Would lead to discrimination based on religion, sexual orientation, etc.
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