23/02/2023
Ronald A Linsday writing in the US based atheist magazine Free Inquiry says that he takes issue with another columnist’s argument that fiscal conservatism is always associated with the religious right and that humanists cannot be right wing on certain issues. He remarks on LGBTQIA rights, noting that nominally left wing dictatorships in the communist bloc countries were ruthless suppressors of human individual and group rights. And he defends the record of secular humanist Republicans, with the remarks: “humanists have traditionally supported individual autonomy, so, for example, humanists have favored gay, lesbian, and transgender rights. Adults should be free to live how they want to live and express their sexual and gender identity as they deem appropriate, provided it does not harm others. And it is true that over the years there has been more resistance to same-sex marriage from conservatives than from the left side of the political spectrum. However, two observations: one, thirty years ago both Republicans and Democrats opposed same-sex marriage, and, two, the bill pending in Congress as of the end of 2022 that would codify same-sex marriage has the support of at least a dozen Republicans.”
