Who We Are
HAC is an organization for Humanists, atheists and freethinkers in the South and Central Connecticut areas, and is based in the Hamden/New Haven area. Members come from as far afield as Hartford, Litchfield, and lower Fairfield counties.
Members have diverse social, religious, and political backgrounds. They have included several staff members from Yale University, full and part-time teachers, engineers, and even a retired diplomat! Several members are Unitarian-Universalist ministers.
We are a chapter of the American Humanist Association and also enjoy a close relationship with the Council for Secular Humanism. Both are U.S. member organizations of the International Humanist and Ethical Union. Additionally we are a local group of the Unitarian-Universalist Humanists, and a charter member of the Connecticut Coalition of Reason.
We have strong ties with local and national organizations including:
- The Humanist Institute.
- The Unitarian-Universalist Humanists (formerly HUUmanists).
- The Unitarian Society of New Haven (USNH).
- The Yale Humanist Community
What We Do
HAC provides a community for Humanists in Connecticut through regular meetings and social events. (At one point we were the only humanist organization in the state, but now there are several others.)
What's a Humanist?
The American Humanist Association has several definitions, which can be found here. You should also look at Humanist Manifesto III: Humanism and its Aspirations.
History
The association was founded in 1989 as a chapter of the American Humanist Association and has about 60 members. Jean Kotkin of the Humanist Institute was the speaker at both our inaugural and our Tenth Anniversary meetings.
Dan Xenatro of Connecticut Valley Atheists and Dan Blinn of the Humanist Association of Connecticut were the in-studio guests on the August 1, 2012, broadcast of WNPR's "Where We Live," with Susan Campbell guest hosting for John Dankosky.
Services
Humanists like to celebrate major life events, just like everyone else. We used to encourage people to contact us as members of the organization included several Humanist celebrants. We now recommend that you go to the Humanist Society web site to find one as that's quicker than asking us.