Never Can Say Goodbye (original) (raw)

In recent years the world has witnessed a massive resurgence of fanatical dogmas and doctrines. The fundamental premises of the modern world and the Enlightenment are either being forgotten or completely ignored. The commitment to scientific evidence and reason as a method of knowing, belief in the value of individual freedom and dignity, and the view that superstition can be eradicated by increased education and affluence—all of these have been replaced by positions which are often blatantly irrational.

The above words were written nearly forty-four years ago, although they certainly describe conditions in the United States and other parts of the world today. They were published by Paul Kurtz in the first issue of Free Inquiry, Winter 1980/81, under the title: “Announcing a New Magazine.” Seemingly, not much has changed since then.

In fact, some things seem worse. In his announcement, Kurtz commented on “the rapid growth and popularity of Christian fundamentalism, faith healers, and charismatics in the United States, Islamic sects, the growth of Asian cults, and the new fascination with bizarre paranormal beliefs.” What would he and Free Inquiry’s other founders say about the Christian nationalist movement, which is rapidly gaining influence and power in government and society and hopes to realize even more gains through connections with the Republican Party?

Religious fundamentalists who dominate in other countries have wrought despair and injury: women can be imprisoned for not dressing according to code, LGBTQ communities are persecuted, and religion critics can be labeled “blasphemers” and executed. The impacts have extended beyond national boundaries to play out on the international stage.

Antivaxxers and climate change deniers have spurned scientific guidance on how to protect public health and safety in potentially catastrophic conditions.

There’s much more to be concerned and even alarmed about both in the United States and abroad. This editorial is being written in late July, and readers will not encounter it until mid-September. At this moment, we are digesting fast-moving political events, and it’s anyone’s guess as to how things will stand by the time you read this.

But among midsummer’s current national and international events, there was another that involved far fewer people but has given me the greatest hope and optimism for the future. Center for Inquiry (CFI) staff gathered at its headquarters in Amherst, New York, in late July for several days of sharing information about each other’s work and community building. (As with other organizations, CFI has found that it is still effective with some staff working remotely, allowing it to hire the best people for the job no matter where they live. But periodic face-to-face meetings are still invaluable.)

Over the course of several days, we learned that, among other initiatives, Outreach Coordinator Eric Shaver is working on making Free Inquiry and its sister magazine, Skeptical Inquirer, available for listening online, broadening our possible audience. We heard about our community’s successes and setbacks in Washington, D.C., from CFI Director of Government Affairs Azhar Majeed, our Office of Public Policy’s one-man operation who has built a network of observers in many states who share alerts and track developments. A bill that put restrictions on teaching evolution in New Hampshire was voted down, but in West Virginia, teachers got the green light for intelligent design instruction. On the federal level, CFI is working to increase regulations on homeopathy.

The Communications and Marketing Department—Jeff Dellinger, Melissa Sherrard, and Julia Hassan—detailed their strategies for expanding awareness and support for CFI and its programs. We viewed some of the results of one initiative called ScienceSaves, including its scholarship contest in which graduating high school seniors create and share videos that attest to the importance of science in their lives. Bertha Vasquez, whose TIES (Teacher Institute for Evolutionary Science) program bolsters science education in schools, had the group try out one of the lessons she has created.

Wafa Bahri is expanding CFI’s international presence through her work at the United Nations and CFI’s Translations Project. Matt Cravatta of Secular Rescue reminded us that CFI is an organization of actions, not just words. The program has helped secular activists around the world find safety after they have been threatened with imprisonment and even death by opposing forces (including governments) in their own countries. In fact, one of Free Inquiry’s authors, Avijit Roy, was himself killed and his wife injured in a machete attack at a book fair in Bangladesh in 2015. Although he was based in the United States, he returned to his home country for the fair, requesting that we accelerate the process of publishing his article to accommodate his travel plans.

That is a bad memory; better ones surfaced during a seven-member panel of staff who had worked at CFI for twenty-five years or longer. Some of us go back forty years or more. We remember being part of a handful of people working in half of the first floor of a rundown building (the other half was a small convenience store). Now we have a much larger staff with many more resources at their disposal. (Development Director Debbie Allen and Development Assistant Jess Davis could attest that we could always use more of both!)

All told, our staff retreat gave a glimpse of the talents, energy, and commitment of the people in the CFI organization. I’m sure I am not alone in being impressed and heartened for the future.

This issue of Free Inquiry is the last I will be involved with as interim editor. By the time you read this, Ronald A. Lindsay will already be hard at work. A Free Inquiry contributor, former CFI president and CEO, and recent CFI interim general counsel, I can’t think of a better person to take the helm. His breadth of knowledge, literary abilities, and advocacy for the cause are unparallelled.

I served as managing editor of Free Inquiry from 1983 to 2017, with some interruptions, and had my first stint at interim editor from September 2021 to June 2022 after the inimitable Tom Flynn, longtime FI editor, suddenly died. I can tell you that you can leave the job, but it never leaves you. The desire to contribute to creating and maintaining a society based on secular values, reason, and science is a lifelong passion. Join us in finding a way to do your part.

Andrea Szalanski

Andrea Szalanski began work for what is now the Center for Inquiry in 1983. She was the managing editor for Free Inquiry and editor of the Secular Humanist Bulletin until 2017. Over the years, she also performed public relations, editorial, and production duties for many CFI endeavors.