Humanist Manifesto II
Preface
It is forty years since Humanist Manifesto I (1933) appeared. Events since then make that earlier
statement seem far too optimistic. Nazism has shown the depths of brutality of which humanity is capable. Other totalitarian regimes
have suppressed human rights without ending poverty. Science has sometimes brought evil as well as good. Recent decades have
shown that inhuman wars can be made in the name of peace. The beginnings of police states, even in democratic societies,
widespread government espionage, and other abuses of power by military, political, and industrial elites, and the continuance of
unyielding racism, allpresent a different and difficult social outlook. In various societies, the demands of women and minority groups
for equal rights effectively challenge our generation.
As we approach the twenty-first century, however, an affirmative and hopeful vision is needed. Faith, commensurate with
advancing knowledge, is also necessary. In the choice between despair and hope, humanists respond in this Humanist Manifesto
II with a positive declaration for times of uncertainty.
As in 1933, humanists still believe that traditional theism, especially faith in the prayer-hearing God, assumed to live and care
for persons, to hear and understand their prayers, and to be able to do something about them, is an unproved and outmoded faith.
Salvationism, based on mere affirmation, still appears as harmful, diverting people with false hopes of heaven hereafter. Reasonable
minds look to other means for survival.
Those who sign Humanist Manifesto II disclaim that they are setting forth a binding credo; their individual views would be stated
in widely varying ways. This statement is, however, reaching for vision in a time that needs direction. It is social analysis in an
effort at consensus. New statements should be developed to supersede this, but for today it is our conviction that humanism offers an
alternative that can serve present-day needs and guide humankind toward the future.
The next century can be and should be the humanistic century. Dramatic scientific, technological, and ever-accelerating social and
political changes crowd our awareness. We have virtually conquered the planet, explored the moon, overcome the natural limits of travel
and communication; we stand at the dawn of a new age, ready to move farther into space and perhaps inhabit other planets. Using
technology wisely, we can control our environment, conquer poverty, markedly reduce disease, extend our life-span, significantly modify
our behavior, alter the course of human evolution and cultural development, unlock vast new powers, and provide humankind with
unparalleled opportunity for achieving an abundant and meaningful life.
The future is, however, filled with dangers. In learning to apply the scientific method to nature and human life, we have opened the
door to ecological damage, over-population, dehumanizing institutions, totalitarian repression, and nuclear and bio-chemical
disaster. Faced with apocalyptic prophesies and doomsday scenarios, many flee in despair from reason and embrace irrational cults and
theologies of withdrawal and retreat.
Traditional moral codes and newer irrational cults both fail to meet the pressing needs of today and tomorrow. False "theologies of
hope" and messianic ideologies, substituting new dogmas for old, cannot cope with existing world realities. They separate rather than
unite peoples.
Humanity, to survive, requires bold and daring measures. We need to extend the uses of scientific method, not renounce them, to fuse
reason with compassion in order to build constructive social and moral values. Confronted by many possible futures, we must decide
which to pursue. The ultimate goal should be the fulfillment of the potential for growth in each human personality — not for the favored
few, but for all of humankind. Only a shared world and global measures will suffice.
A humanist outlook will tap the creativity of each human being and provide the vision and courage for us to work together. This outlook
emphasizes the role human beings can play in their own spheres of action. The decades ahead call for dedicated, clear-minded men and
women able to marshal the will, intelligence, and cooperative skills for shaping a desirable future. Humanism can provide the purpose and
inspiration that so many seek; it can give personal meaning and significance to human life.
Many kinds of humanism exist in the contemporary world. The varieties and emphases of naturalistic humanism include "scientific,"
"ethical," "democratic," "religious," and "Marxist" humanism. Free thought, atheism, agnosticism, skepticism, deism, rationalism,
ethical culture, and liberal religion all claim to be heir to the humanist tradition. Humanism traces its roots from ancient China,
classical Greece and Rome, through the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, to the scientific revolution of the modern world. But
views that merely reject theism are not equivalent to humanism. They lack commitment to the positive belief in the possibilities of human
progress and to the values central to it. Many within religious groups, believing in the future of humanism, now claim humanist
credentials. Humanism is an ethical process through which we all can move, above and beyond the divisive particulars, heroic
personalities, dogmatic creeds, and ritual customs of past religions or their mere negation.
We affirm a set of common principles that can serve as a basis for united action — positive principles relevant to the present human
condition. They are a design for a secular society on a planetary scale.
For these reasons, we submit this new Humanist Manifesto for the future of humankind; for us, it is a vision of hope, a direction for
satisfying survival.
Religion
FIRST: In the best sense, religion may inspire dedication to the highest ethical ideals. The cultivation
of moral devotion and creative imagination is an expression of genuine "spiritual" experience and aspiration.
We believe, however, that traditional dogmatic or authoritarian religions that place revelation, God, ritual, or creed above human
needs and experience do a disservice to the human species. Any account of nature should pass the tests of scientific evidence; in
our judgment, the dogmas and myths of traditional religions do not do so. Even at this late date in human history, certain elementary
facts based upon the critical use of scientific reason have to be restated. We find insufficient evidence for belief in the
existence of a supernatural; it is either meaningless or irrelevant to the question of survival and fulfillment of the
human race. As nontheists, we begin with humans not God, nature not deity. Nature may indeed be broader and deeper than we now
know; any new discoveries, however, will but enlarge our knowledge of the natural.
Some humanists believe we should reinterpret traditional religions and reinvest them with meanings appropriate to the
current situation. Such redefinitions, however, often perpetuate old dependencies and escapisms; they easily become obscurantist,
impeding the free use of the intellect. We need, instead, radically new human purposes and goals.
We appreciate the need to preserve the best ethical teachings in the religious traditions of humankind, many of which we share
in common. But we reject those features of traditional religious morality that deny humans a full appreciation of their own
potentialities and responsibilities. Traditional religions often offer solace to humans, but, as often, they inhibit humans from
helping themselves or experiencing their full potentialities. Such institutions, creeds, and rituals often impede the will to serve
others. Too often traditional faiths encourage dependence rather than independence, obedience rather than affirmation, fear rather
than courage. More recently they have generated concerned social action, with many signs of relevance appearing in the wake of the
"God Is Dead" theologies. But we can discover no divine purpose or providence for the human species. While there is much that we do
not know, humans are responsible for what we are or will become. No deity will save us; we must save ourselves.
SECOND: Promises of immortal salvation or fear of eternal damnation are both illusory and harmful. They distract
humans from present concerns, from self-actualization, and from rectifying social injustices. Modern science discredits such
historic concepts as the "ghost in the machine" and the "separable soul." Rather, science affirms that the human species is an
emergence from natural evolutionary forces. As far as we know, the total personality is a function of the biological organism
transacting in a social and cultural context. There is no credible evidence that life survives the death of the body. We continue to
exist in our progeny and in the way that our lives have influenced others in our culture.
Traditional religions are surely not the only obstacles to human progress. Other ideologies also impede human advance. Some
forms of political doctrine, for instance, function religiously, reflecting the worst features of orthodoxy and authoritarianism,
especially when they sacrifice individuals on the altar of Utopian promises. Purely economic and political viewpoints, whether
capitalist or communist, often function as religious and ideological dogma. Although humans undoubtedly need economic and
politicalgoals, they also need creative values by which to live.
Ethics
THIRD: We affirm that moral values derive their source from human experience. Ethics is autonomous
and situational needing no theological or ideological sanction. Ethics stems from human need and interest. To deny this distorts
the whole basis of life. Human life has meaning because we create and develop our futures. Happiness and the creative realization of
human needs and desires, individually and in shared enjoyment, are continuous themes of humanism. We strive for the good life, here
and now. The goal is to pursue life's enrichment despite debasing forces of vulgarization, commercialization, and dehumanization.
FOURTH: Reason and intelligence are the most effective instruments that humankind possesses. There is no
substitute: neither faith nor passion suffices in itself. The controlled use of scientific methods, which have transformed the
natural and social sciences since the Renaissance, must be extended further in the solution of human problems. But reason
must be tempered by humility, since no group has a monopoly of wisdom or virtue. Nor is there any guarantee that all problems can
be solved or all questions answered. Yet critical intelligence, infused by a sense of human caring, is the best method that
humanity has for resolving problems. Reason should be balanced with compassion and empathy and the whole person fulfilled. Thus,
we are not advocating the use of scientific intelligence independent of or in opposition to emotion, for we believe in the
cultivation of feeling and love. As science pushes back the boundary of the known, humankind's sense of wonder is continually
renewed, and art, poetry, and music find their places, along with religion and ethics.
The Individual
FIFTH: The preciousness and dignity of the individual person is a central humanist value. Individuals
should be encouraged to realize their own creative talents and desires. We reject all religious, ideological, or moral codes that
denigrate the individual, suppress freedom, dull intellect, dehumanize personality. We believe in maximum individual
autonomy consonant with social responsibility. Although science can account for the causes of behavior, the possibilities of
individual freedom of choice exist in human life and should be increased.
SIXTH: In the area of sexuality, we believe that intolerant attitudes, often cultivated by orthodox religions
and puritanical cultures, unduly repress sexual conduct. The right to birth control, abortion, and divorce should be recognized.
While we do not approve of exploitive, denigrating forms of sexual expression, neither do we wish to prohibit, by law or social
sanction, sexual behavior between consenting adults. The many varieties of sexual exploration should not in themselves be
considered "evil." Without countenancing mindless permissiveness or unbridled promiscuity, a civilized society should be a tolerant
one. Short of harming others or compelling them to do likewise, individuals should be permitted to express their sexual
proclivities and pursue their lifestyles as they desire. We wish to cultivate the development of a responsible attitude toward
sexuality, in which humans are not exploited as sexual objects, and in which intimacy, sensitivity, respect, and honesty in
interpersonal relations are encouraged. Moral education for children and adults is an important way of developing awareness
and sexual maturity.
Democratic Society
SEVENTH: To enhance freedom and dignity the individual must experience a full range of civil liberties in
all societies. This includes freedom of speech and the press, political democracy, the legal right of opposition to governmental
policies, fair judicial process, religious liberty, freedom of association, and artistic, scientific, and cultural freedom. It
also includes a recognition of an individual's right to die with dignity, euthanasia, and the right to suicide. We oppose the
increasing invasion of privacy, by whatever means, in both totalitarian and democratic societies. We would safeguard, extend,
and implement the principles of human freedom evolved from the Magna Carta to the Bill of Rights, the Rights of Man, and the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
EIGHTH: We are committed to an open and democratic society. We must extend participatory democracy in its
true sense to the economy, the school, the family, the workplace, and voluntary associations. Decision-making must be decentralized
to include widespread involvement of people at all levels — social, political, and economic. All persons should have a voice in
developing the values and goals that determine their lives. Institutions should be responsive to expressed desires and needs.
The conditions of work, education, devotion, and play should be humanized. Alienating forces should be modified or eradicated and
bureaucratic structures should be held to a minimum. People are more important than decalogues, rules, proscriptions, or regulations.
NINTH: The separation of church and state and the separation of ideology and state are imperatives. The state
should encourage maximum freedom for different moral, political, religious, and social values in society. It should not favor any
particular religious bodies through the use of public monies, nor espouse a single ideology and function thereby as an instrument of
propaganda or oppression, particularly against dissenters.
TENTH: Humane societies should evaluate economic systems not by rhetoric or ideology, but by whether or
not they increase economic well-being for all individuals and groups, minimize poverty and hardship, increase the sum of human
satisfaction, and enhance the quality of life. Hence the door is open to alternative economic systems. We need to democratize the
economy and judge it by its responsiveness to human needs, testing results in terms of the common good.
ELEVENTH: The principle of moral equality must
be furthered through elimination of all discrimination based upon
race, religion, sex, age, or national origin. This means equality
of opportunity and recognition of talent and merit. Individuals
should be encouraged to contribute to their own betterment. If
unable, then society should provide means to satisfy their basic
economic, health, and cultural needs, including, wherever
resources make possible, a minimum guaranteed annual income. We
are concerned for the welfare of the aged, the infirm, the
disadvantaged, and also for the outcasts — the mentally retarded,
abandoned, or abused children, the handicapped, prisoners, and
addicts — for all who are neglected or ignored by society.
Practicing humanists should make it their vocation to humanize
personal relations.
We believe in the right to universal education. Everyone has a
right to the cultural opportunity to fulfill his or her unique
capacities and talents. The schools should foster satisfying and
productive living. They should be open at all levels to any and
all; the achievement of excellence should be encouraged.
Innovative and experimental forms of education are to be welcomed.
The energy and idealism of the young deserve to be appreciated and
channeled to constructive purposes.
We deplore racial, religious, ethnic, or class antagonisms.
Although we believe in cultural diversity and encourage racial and
ethnic pride, we reject separations which promote alienation and
set people and groups against each other; we envision an
integrated community where people have a maximum opportunity for
free and voluntary association.
We are critical of sexism or sexual chauvinism — male or
female. We believe in equal rights for both women and men to
fulfill their unique careers and potentialities as they see fit,
free of invidious discrimination.
World Community
TWELFTH: We deplore the division of
humankind on nationalistic grounds. We have reached a turning
point in human history where the best option is to transcend the
limits of national sovereignty and to move toward the building of
a world community in which all sectors of the human family can
participate. Thus we look to the development of a system of world
law and a world order based upon transnational federal government.
This would appreciate cultural pluralism and diversity. It would
not exclude pride in national origins and accomplishments nor the
handling of regional problems on a regional basis. Human progress,
however, can no longer be achieved by focusing on one section of
the world, Western or Eastern, developed or underdeveloped. For
the first time in human history, no part of humankind can be
isolated from any other. Each person's future is in some way
linked to all. We thus reaffirm a commitment to the building of
world community, at the same time recognizing that this commits us
to some hard choices.
THIRTEENTH: This world community must renounce
the resort to violence and force as a method of solving
international disputes. We believe in the peaceful adjudication of
differences by international courts and by the development of the
arts of negotiation and compromise. War is obsolete. So is the use
of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. It is a planetary
imperative to reduce the level of military expenditures and turn
these savings to peaceful and people-oriented uses.
FOURTEENTH: The world community must engage in
cooperative planning concerning the use of rapidly depleting
resources. The planet earth must be considered a single ecosystem.
Ecological damage, resource depletion, and excessive population
growth must be checked by international concord. The cultivation
and conservation of nature is a moral value; we should perceive
ourselves as integral to the sources of our being in nature. We
must free our world from needless pollution and waste, responsibly
guarding and creating wealth, both natural and human. Exploitation of natural resources, uncurbed by social conscience, must
end.
FIFTEENTH: The problems of economic growth and
development can no longer be resolved by one nation alone; they
are worldwide in scope. It is the moral obligation of the
developed nations to provide — through an international authority
that safeguards human rights — massive technical, agricultural,
medical, and economic assistance, including birth control
techniques, to the developing portions of the globe. World poverty
must cease. Hence extreme disproportions in wealth, income, and
economic growth should be reduced on a worldwide basis.
SIXTEENTH: Technology is a vital key to human
progress and development. We deplore any neo-romantic efforts to
condemn indiscriminately all technology and science or to counsel
retreat from its further extension and use for the good of
humankind. We would resist any moves to censor basic scientific
research on moral, political, or social grounds. Technology must,
however, be carefully judged by the consequences of its use;
harmful and destructive changes should be avoided. We are
particularly disturbed when technology and bureaucracy control,
manipulate, or modify human beings without their consent.
Technological feasibility does not imply social or cultural
desirability.
SEVENTEENTH: We must expand communication and
transportation across frontiers. Travel restrictions must cease.
The world must be open to diverse political, ideological, and
moral viewpoints and evolve a worldwide system of television and
radio for information and education. We thus call for full
international cooperation in culture, science, the arts, and
technology across ideological borders. We must learn to live
openly together or we shall perish together.
Humanity As a Whole
IN CLOSING: The world cannot wait for a
reconciliation of competing political or economic systems to solve
its problems. These are the times for men and women of goodwill to
further the building of a peaceful and prosperous world. We urge
that parochial loyalties and inflexible moral and religious
ideologies be transcended. We urge recognition of the common
humanity of all people. We further urge the use of reason and
compassion to produce the kind of world we want — a world in
which peace, prosperity, freedom, and happiness are widely shared.
Let us not abandon that vision in despair or cowardice. We are
responsible for what we are or will be. Let us work together for a
humane world by means commensurate with humane ends. Destructive
ideological differences among communism, capitalism, socialism,
conservatism, liberalism, and radicalism should be overcome. Let
us call for an end to terror and hatred. We will survive and
prosper only in a world of shared humane values. We can initiate
new directions for humankind; ancient rivalries can be superseded
by broad-based cooperative efforts. The commitment to tolerance,
understanding, and peaceful negotiation does not necessitate
acquiescence to the status quo nor the damming up of dynamic and
revolutionary forces. The true revolution is occurring and can
continue in countless nonviolent adjustments. But this entails the
willingness to step forward onto new and expanding plateaus. At
the present juncture of history, commitment to all humankind is
the highest commitment of which we are capable; it transcends the
narrow allegiances of church, state, party, class, or race in
moving toward a wider vision of human potentiality. What more
daring a goal for humankind than for each person to become, in
ideal as well as practice, a citizen of a world community. It is a
classical vision; we can now give it new vitality. Humanism thus
interpreted is a moral force that has time on its side. We believe
that humankind has the potential, intelligence, goodwill, and
cooperative skill to implement this commitment in the decades
ahead.
We, the undersigned, while not necessarily endorsing every detail
of the above, pledge our general support to Humanist Manifesto II for
the future of humankind. These affirmations are not a final credo or
dogma but an expression of a living and growing faith. We invite
others in all lands to join us in further developing and working for
these goals.
