Category: Speaker

Category to indicate a forum is a single speaker.

Is the “Rise of the Nones” Over in the US?  Not So Fast!

Prof. Elizabeth Drescher

11 a.m., June 29, 2025

Join Santa Clara University professor Elizabeth Drescher in person OR online.

Recent demographic data has suggested a leveling off or perhaps even a turn-back of the 30-year trend of increasing religious unaffiliated in the United States. Are we in the midst of a new “religious revival” in America? A deeper dive into the data raises challenging questions for the religious and nonreligious alike about the changing role of religion and nonreligion in American life.

Professor Drescher teaches religious studies at Santa Clara University, where she also directs the Living Religion Collaborative, a place-based center for student and faculty engagement with local religious and nonreligious communities. A scholar of non/religion as it is experienced by ordinary people in everyday life, she is the author of Choosing Our Religion: The Spiritual Lives of American Nones (Oxford 2016) and numerous other books and articles on lived religious and nonreligious experience.

The Atheist Community of San Jose joins with the Humanist Community to co-host this event.

06/29/2025 Is the None-ing of America Over? – Elizabeth Drescher from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
On the first and fourth Sunday of the month, like this Sunday, attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Neutra House Conference Center, 181 Hillview Ave, Los Altos, CA 94022. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

Join the meeting by phone: +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

Find an international number to call: https://zoom.us/u/afYkAuvE6

———-

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Add this event to your Google calendar: Google Calendar

Like us on Facebook:
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Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2025-06-29/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/308447049/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20250629/af2a800b-f4c7-4bd0-af37-68943893f3fa/is-the-none-ing-of-america-over

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1932977332782051497

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Playing God: An Evolutionary History of World Religion

David Fitzgerald

11 a.m., June 1, 2025

Join us either in person or over Zoom, as the Atheist Community of San Jose and the Humanist Community co-host our old friend and superb speaker David Fitzgerald.

Recently scholars around the world have made some jaw-dropping discoveries in the field of global religious history—including ones that overturn so much of what we think we know about the founders and origins of major world religions.

Mr. Fitzgerald, author of Nailed and The Complete Heretic’s Guide to Western Religion series, including The Mormons and Jesus: Mything in Action, reveals the changing scholarly views and surprising new developments in the study of the origins of our top ten world religions. His 3-volume book on these findings, PLAYING GOD: An Evolutionary History of World Religion, is out now. Dave will bring some of his new books for sale and for signing.

Author David Fitzgerald is an award-winning writer, historical researcher, and atheist activist who lectures internationally at universities and secular events, and is a frequent guest on many podcasts. He has been a passionate advocate for atheism, civil rights, and secular humanism his entire adult life. From 1990 to 2020, Dave was a top atheist leader in San Francisco. He now lives in Eureka, CA.

Please don’t miss Dave Fitzgerald!

To quote our freethought compatriot from the Stockton Atheists, David Diskin, “Dave Fitzgerald has a list of engaging, entertaining, and informative talks on all walks of religion. He’s an absolute favorite.”

06/01/2025 Playing God: An Evolutionary History of World Religion – David Fitzgerald from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
On the first and third Sunday of June, such as June 1, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

Join the meeting by phone: +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

Find an international number to call: https://zoom.us/u/afYkAuvE6

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
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Add this event to your Google calendar: Google Calendar

Like us on Facebook:
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Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2025-06-01

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/308057396/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20250601/acdb628c-c893-458a-87ea-27b15662176f/playing-god-an-evolutionary-history-of-world-religion

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1927014554027827664

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Curing All Diseases, Again! Trampling Scientific Boundaries for Fun and Profit

David Weinberg, MD

11 a.m., April 6, 2025

Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we welcome a guest speaker over Zoom.

What can medical frauds in history teach us about their parallels in the modern day? What were the Violet Ray Device of the 1920s, Mrs. Winslow’s Soothing Syrup, and the Microbe Killer by William Radam in 1886? Let’s also examine a recent case, a US Stem Cell Clinic in Florida.

The answer to the dangers of pseudoscience in medicine are critical thinking, scientific rigor, and effective regulation to protect public health.

David Weinberg is a full-time academic vitreoretinal surgeon, and professor of ophthalmology at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. His interest in the less-than-science-based aspects of medicine was sparked by inquiries from his patients. Investigating their questions led to his discovery of numerous grandiose claims for implausible, unproven treatments of potentially blinding eye diseases. (All opinions expressed by Dr. Weinberg are his alone, and do not represent those of his employer or any other organization with which he is affiliated.)

04/06/2025 Curing All Diseases, Again! Trampling Scientific Boundaries for Fun and Profit – David Weinberg, MD
 from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
On the first and third Sunday of the month, such as March 2nd, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

Join the meeting by phone: +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

Find an international number to call: https://zoom.us/u/afYkAuvE6

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
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Add this event to your Google calendar: Google Calendar

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2025-04-06/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/305732153/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20250406/1f67c2ea-9244-4a7a-846b-900bb9e54d49/curing-all-diseases-again-trampling-scientific-boundaries-for-fun-and-profit

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1907277602357993472

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Conversational Strategies to Avoid Being Fooled

Carolyn Dougherty

11 a.m., March 16, 2025

Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we welcome a guest speaker from the Central Valley.

Disinformation is a huge problem in our society. What can we do to help friends who fall for it? We will discuss why using conversational strategies, based on research, may be more effective than debunking alone to help our friends – and ourselves – from being fooled.

Carolyn Dougherty is a retired teacher. She is a volunteer and instructor at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at University of the Pacific, a member of the planning committee for the SkeptiCal Conference, and the founder and facilitator of Rational Roundtable, a group that promotes science and critical thinking in the Central Valley of California.

03/16/2025 Conversational Strategies to Avoid Being Fooled – Carolyn Dougherty from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
On the first and third Sunday of the month, such as March 2nd, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

Join the meeting by phone: +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

Find an international number to call: https://zoom.us/u/afYkAuvE6

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar: Google Calendar

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2025-03-16/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/305732153/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20250316/24785a0e-a07c-4c02-8525-9c73b56de2cd/conversational-strategies-to-avoid-being-fooled

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1898968216703217970

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Are There Constitutional Constraints Against President Trump’s Actions?

Prof. Leland Chan

11 a.m., March 2, 2025

Join us for a combined meeting of the Bay Area Humanists (BAH) and the Humanist Community in Silicon Valley, either in person or online, as Prof. Leland Chan speaks to us in Mountain View.

The second Trump administration hit the ground running with a flurry of Executive Orders, the scope of which raises questions of legality and constitutionality.

  • Can the presidency unilaterally eviscerate USAID activities if the programs had been created and funded by Congress?
  • Doesn’t that violate the principle of separation of powers?
  • Can President Trump unilaterally eliminate birthright citizenship?
  • Can he eliminate all “DEI” programs within the federal government?
  • Can he unilaterally form the Department of Government Efficiency and, if so, what powers could it have?
  • What about Panama, Greenland, and Canada?

In this presentation, Prof. Chan will discuss how the U.S. constitution had been crafted in order to prevent the concentration of power (that the Trump administration is now attempting to wield), and how those constraints can fail.

ABOUT LELAND CHAN
Leland Chan is currently an adjunct professor of law at Golden Gate University. He is a retired General Counsel of the California Bankers Association. He holds a Juris Doctor (JD) degree from the University of California at Berkeley.

03/02/2025 Are There Constitutional Constraints Against President Trump’s Actions? – Leland Chan from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
On the first and third Sunday of the month, such as March 2nd, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation for lunch.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

Join the meeting by phone: +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)

Find an international number to call: https://zoom.us/u/afYkAuvE6

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2025-03-02/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/305604963/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20250302/ad045dab-0086-4ef6-af70-eaacd8bf2432/are-there-constitutional-constraints-against-president-trumps-actions

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1889188715395969041

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508