The Black Freedom Struggle From Reconstruction To The Present
2023-11-19 13:30 - 15:30 (America/New_York) | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST is delighted to have William Chafe, the Alice Mary Baldwin Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History at Duke University, speak to us about the Black freedom struggle. He will go back to the Freedmen’s Bureau agenda in 1865 proposing measures to achieve both political and economic equality for Blacks, then show how the issue of economic equality was neglected, even during the rise of the civil rights movement in the 20th century. The presentation will discuss the evolution of the civil rights movement, and critical moments when the movement’s goals were ignored, with the result that Black Americans earn today only 62 per cent of what white Americans earn.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please email chris.kaman@ehstnc.org with your first and last name to be registered as an attendee for this program.

Revitalizing Ethical Humanism aka Ethical Culture
2023-12-03 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
The ethical movement was founded to help its members find deeper meaning and purpose in their lives – relying upon ethical principles rather than deference to a deity. Today’s declining adherence to traditional religious belief offers a golden opportunity for Ethical Humanist Societies to expand in size and influence. To speak to the needs of the current era, our speaker will invite us to revisit the tenets of our philosophy and how they inform our practice – as individuals and as a movement.
John Daken has been a member of the ethical movement for over 25 years. He is a past President of the Washington Ethical Society and a Board member of the American Ethical Union. He makes his home in Silver Spring, MD.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please email chris.kaman@ehstnc.org with your first and last name to be registered as an attendee for this program.

Insights about Philosophy and Questions about History from the Bibliography of Ethical Culture
2023-12-10 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
Our guest speaker, Carolyn A. Parker, is working on a Bibliography of Ethical Culture: 1876 – 2026. She will share with us some of what she has learned about the early history of the AEU (founded in 1889), the early history of the International Ethical Union (founded in 1896), and the first five Leaders of the Movement (Adler, Weston, Sheldon, Coit, and Salter). Although Dr. Parker’s talk will address the early years of ethical culture, the hope is that this will lead to some discussion of still open questions regarding purpose and “mission” for our Societies as well as for the American Ethical Union and our relationship with the remnants of the ECM globally.
The Bibliography is posted online and is an evolving document. Anyone with the link can view it, download it, and use it for their own edification. The purpose of the Bibliography is to create a single, accessible record of the “literature” of Ethical Culture during its first 150 years. The hope is that doing so will encourage more people to read and talk about Ethical Culture in the present. Dr. Parker also blogs about her work on the Bibliography, which you can read via the above link.
Carolyn A. Parker, PhD, is an Ethical Culturist and member of the Ethical Society of Austin. She is also an activist with experience in advocacy at local, state, and national levels. Carolyn’s education gave her a background in the liberal arts and social sciences, supporting her work in teaching, writing, and organizational management with an international perspective.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please email us at info@ehstnc.org and provide your first and last name in your request.

Memorial and Potluck Sunday
2023-12-17 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
This week for our Sunday Program Meeting we will have a social gathering and potluck memorial for our long-time member Mike Conrad who passed on December 5th. Please bring your memories of Mike to share. We will also have refreshments provided by members and friends of EHST. Visitors need not bring any refreshments. While we welcome all visitors, if you did not know Mike you may want to choose another Sunday to visit with us.
This meeting will be in-person only with no Zooming provided.

Holiday - No program today
2023-12-24 13:30 - 15:30 | NC
EHST is taking this Sunday off as our, so there is no program. We wish all a happy and safe holiday time.

Recovering Women's Fundamental Right to Choose
2024-01-07 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST member Solomon Gibson, III will present our program today. He will explore an effective strategy on recovering women’s fundamental right to choose what she does with her body, how it can be used, and why no one is discussing it. He will also review current strategies, their pros and cons, to restore this right. Mr. Gibson’s view is similar to that of Ruth Bader Ginsberg who argued that the Fourteenth Amendment held the best basis for ensuring a women’s right to choose her medical care.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please email chris.kaman@ehstnc.org with your first and last name to be registered as an attendee for this program.

Ending Disenfranchisement and Discrimination Against People With Convictions
2024-01-14 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
Desmond Meade, Executive Director of Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC), will speak to us via Zoom. FRRC is a grassroots membership organization run by Returning Citizens, Formerly Incarcerated Persons (FIPs) in partnership with allies. Since 2012 FRRC has worked to end the disenfranchisement and discrimination against people with convictions, and creating a more comprehensive and humane reentry system that will enhance successful reentry, reduce recidivism, and increase public safety.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please email us at info@ehstnc.org and provide your first and last name in your request.

Facing the Censorship Challenge in Libraries
2024-01-21 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
In today’s climate of challenges to content in libraries, it is more important than ever that librarians and community members work together to defend the right to read and intellectual freedom. Dr. April Dawkins will provide an overview of the current state of attempts to censor and limit access to information in libraries across the United States and North Carolina. Additionally, she will share what librarians are doing and how community members can assist in those efforts. Dr. Dawkins is an Assistant Professor, Department of Information, Library, and Research Sciences, University of North Carolina Greensboro.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact page to submit your request.

Annual EHST Business Meeting for 2024 for Members
2024-01-28 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST will hold its annual meeting of members. This is a business meeting where the members will (re-)elect board members, and pass a budget for 2024. We will also seek suggestions from members for our priorities for the year. Visitors and friends are welcome to attend, but they will not be eligible to vote. Members who cannot be present must submit proxies to the EHST secretary if they wish to have their interests/votes counted at the meeting. Submission of proxies by email is acceptable. See our bylaws section 6 for more information.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact page to request access.

Duties to the Dead - What If Anything Do We Owe Them?
2024-02-04 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
In this talk, Will Kanwischer, Graduate Assistant, National High School Ethics Bowl at the UNC Parr Center for Ethics, will argue that we have duties to the dead, and that when we fail to perform them, we wrong the dead. If he is right, a person’s death does not mark the end of their importance to morality; we owe it to people to do things like keep promises and treat them with respect even after their life is over. Along the way, he will introduce three influential puzzles facing his view. Thinking through (and hopefully solving) these puzzles will require us to reflect on the nature of time, agency, morality, and prudence.
Mr. Kanwischer is a third-year graduate student in philosophy at UNC Chapel Hill interested in ethics and the history of philosophy. He is particularly interested in accounts of well-being and our duties to promote it, as well as issues related to the connection between agency and time. He also works on the practical and theoretical philosophy of historical figures like Immanuel Kant, David Hume, and Friedrich Nietzsche. He earned his B.A. in philosophy and German from Bowling Green State University.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make the request.

Ted Talk and Discussion: A Plants-Eye View by Michael Pollan
2024-02-11 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
We will watch this Ted Talk by Michael Pollan, the author of “The Omnivore’s Dilemma.” Here is what the Ted Talk website says about this presentation: “What if human consciousness isn’t the end-all and be-all of Darwinism? What if we are all just pawns in corn’s clever strategy game to rule the Earth? Author Michael Pollan asks us to see the world from a plant’s-eye view.” Following this 17 minute talk, we will discuss his ideas and our reactions to them.
This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form to make your request.

Peter Singer and Effective Altruism
2024-02-18 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Hugh Giblin will give a presentation about the ethical philosophy of Peter Singer regarding giving. We will discuss one of his YouTube presentations as well as the “Effective Altruism” movement. Singer is the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics in the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University. Mr. Giblin is a longtime EHST supporter, and devoted humanist.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make the request.

Discussion of Effective Altruism
2024-02-25 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We will discuss the prior Sunday’s program regarding effective altruism. How can we be most effective in giving to help others? How do we divide up our giving between local, national, and international needs?
We will not be Zooming this meeting.

Building a Stronger Community for Racial Justice
2024-03-03 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Karinda Roebuck, and Michelle Wright

Chatham Organizing for Racial Equity (CORE) is a broad-based, community-governed organization that works to build stronger communities through education, healing, and community organizing. This presentation will be an overview of their work as a whole where you can gain an understanding of how to transform communities and institutions for a more equitable community. Mìchelle Wright, Director of Restorative Practices & Community Healing, Trainer & Consultant, and Karinda Roebuck, CORE Executive Director, will present this program.

This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make your request.

Discussion Sunday: Being An Ally, and From Stories to Action
2024-03-10 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
We will watch two brief Ted Talks, and then discuss our reactions to them. The first is about being an ally to those face injustice (https://www.ted.com/talks/dwinita_mosby_tyler_want_a_more_just_world_be_an_unlikely_ally) and the second is about how stories can play an important role in motivating people to take action (https://www.ted.com/talks/sisonke_msimang_if_a_story_moves_you_act_on_it) rather than just enjoying an emotional story.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form to make your request. (Check your tabs to see the form.)

A Proposal for EHST Ethical Action
2024-03-17 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
The EHST Ethical Action Committee is pleased to present a proposal concerning ethical action in 2024. This initiative serves as an interactive forum, inviting stakeholders to engage and provide input. Upon the program’s completion, a brief survey will be disseminated among society’s members, allowing individuals to cast their votes and provide constructive feedback.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make the request.

CROP Walk and Discussion
2024-03-24 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We will have two different programs. Some will participate in the local CROP Walk, and others will gather at our usual venue to discuss current events. The CROP Walk is our ethical action activity for this quarter. It is a walk to raise money to fight hunger both locally and internationally. If you would like to donate to this fundraiser, please visit our team page, and make a donation; all funds raised will go to fight hunger: https://events.crophungerwalk.org/cropwalks/team/ethical-humanist-society-of-the-triangle?utm_medium=email&utm_source=transactional&utm_campaign=2024-crop-hunger-walk.

Neither of these two programs will be Zoomed. We hope you can join us for a future program.

Opening the Door for Democracy with YVote (Why Vote)
2024-03-31 11:00 - 12:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
We will join the morning program sponsored by our national organization, the American Ethical Union. Sanda Baladan, co-founder of YVote, and Audrey Kindred, of the New York Society for Ethical Culture will present on how they collaborate to bring Voter and civic engagement activities to hundreds of youth in ongoing democracy reinforcing programs. They will show how other Ethical Societies can do similar civics / voter actions. The program will include youth who will tell of their concerns and how YVote has prepared them for action and leadership.
Registration for this program is required. Here’s the registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUrd–tqjgoG93G86nOUfIyfo9mJFyJqfB3#/registration

Some Ethical Considerations Concerning Abortion and the Development of Human Consciousness
2024-04-07 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Most biology students have heard the phrase “ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny.” Put simply, this means that the stages of development of a fertilized human egg into a newborn baby (ontogeny) can, to some extent, superficially resemble the evolution of humans from primitive single celled microorganisms (phylogeny). Regardless of the scientific validity of that statement, we can ask at what stage of human development, either ontogeny or phylogeny, does conscious awareness and “personhood” occur? Fred Breidt will lead a discussion about human consciousness and how fetal brain development may help inform ethical considerations about abortion, in vitro fertilization, and the difference between being alive and being a person.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make the request.

Why Gender Equality Matters to Climate Change
2024-04-14 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
Worldwide, population pressures contribute to immediate dangers like food insecurity, natural resource scarcity, inequality, and climate-changing emissions. Yet, the relationship between population and climate change is complex. Although the carbon footprints of most of the world’s population are negligible relative to that of the average American or European, low- and middle-income countries are disproportionately vulnerable to climate impacts like rising sea-levels and extreme weather events. Additionally, the close relationship between high fertility and poverty throughout the world worsens climate vulnerability and puts more people at risk. This presentation uses a climate justice framework to explore the ways in which demographic trends impact and are impacted by climate change and argues that gender equality must be better integrated into global climate solutions. The talk will conclude with a discussion on the ways in which expanding access to health care and education—especially for women, girls, and reproductively capable people—act as necessary building blocks for climate adaptation and resilience across the globe. Our guest speaker, Hannah Evans, Senior Analyst, Population Connection, will help us understand how these factors interplay.

Hannah works as a Senior Analyst at Population Connection, where she focuses on public speaking and the development of open-source, academic-style resources. She also cultivates partnerships between Population Connection and international NGOs. Before joining Population Connection’s staff, Hannah worked as an adjunct professor of Women’s Studies and taught classes on gender, science, and feminist theory. She has non-profit experience working as a program developer for sustainable agriculture and public health programs in Honduras and Panama and has worked as a researcher studying food security issues throughout Southern California. Hannah holds a BA in Environmental Policy and Natural Resource Conservation and Political Science and a Master’s in Political Ecology from San Diego State University, where her research focused on sustainability labeling and ethical consumption between the United States and Nicaragua.

This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form to make your request.

Restoring Reproductive Rights
2024-04-16 18:30 - 19:30 | NC
Tired and frustrated with abortion bans, denial of access to life-saving care, and insensitive politicians? Join in the fight against attacks on our rights as people! Find out more in a 1 hour presentation on working to achieve equality, control, and bodily autonomy, from understanding what novel options are available to challenging State abortion bans. Solomon Gibson, III, will show you what you can do in this struggle for reproductive freedom.

Earth Day 2024 and Climate Change
2024-04-21 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
EHST will celebrate Earth Day with a talk by Chris Kaman, a longtime member and environmentalist. He will delve into climate change, highlighting current challenges, and various technologies for the future. He will also make recommendations for what each of us can do.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make the request.

Is the US Headed for Civil War or Just a Political Shift?
2024-04-28 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Is the US headed for civil war? Is the Neo-Confederate Movement a serious threat, or just people mostly concerned about the tearing down of historic monuments? Might the US abandon democracy in the 2024 election or in early 2025? Or is the US essentially stable and simply going through a realignment of the political parties not unlike the six or seven previous political party realignments in American history? Jim Buie will help us examine our uncertain future.
Jim Buie, a native North Carolinian, is a long-term observer of American politics, and a participant-activist since age 16. He is a graduate of the UNC Journalism School, a former newspaperman in Fayetteville, Durham, and Raleigh, with a master’s degree in journalism and public policy from American University in Washington, DC. He is currently an adjunct instructor in Communications for Augusta University in Georgia, and the publisher of a Substack on the themes of Slender Threads / Global Citizens / Public History, which includes mini-courses on the themes of this presentation. He lives in Fearrington Village. He spoke to us in 2021 about culture shocks in his travels.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make your request.

Ethics, How We Learn Them, and the Importance of Civility in Communication
2024-05-05 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
We live in a difficult time for ethical discourse, with tremendous polarity of viewpoints as well as very strong emotions and opinions about a myriad of topics, impacting events on a local, state, national, and international level. Even in conversations with people whose values align reasonably well with our own, we often struggle to find common ground. This becomes even more difficult when faced with people whose views seem alien and unethical from our viewpoints. This Sunday’s talk discussion will begin at the beginning: How did we learn our ethics? Do your ethical views come from your parents and family, or from later life experiences? We will then move to more discussion of current events. Our goal is to discuss events and our reactions to them with civility and an openness to hearing what others have to say.

This program will not be available via Zoom.

Happiness: A Brief Overview and Discussion
2024-05-12 13:30 - 15:30 | Virtual Program using Zoom
What makes you happy? EHST member, Maura Breidt, will give a presentation on the nature of happiness. How do people define happiness? Are there differences in these definitions across cultures? Across age groups? Is happiness innate or learned? Can we choose happiness, and if so, how?
This program will be presented via a Zoom session. You do not need a Zoom account to “attend” this virtual meeting. If you would like to be a participant in the meeting, please use our contact us form to make your request. (Check your tabs to see the form.)

Restoring Reproductive Rights - Challenging Abortion Bans
2024-05-13 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-05-14 19:00 - 20:00 | NC

Ethical Action: Rise Against Hunger
2024-05-19 14:00 - 16:00 | NC
Come join us for an afternoon of fun and camaraderie with three other Triangle secular groups: the Triangle Freethought Society, Women without Religion in the Triangle, and the Chapel Hill Sunday Assembly. In lieu of our usual program meeting, EHST will host an event at Rise Against Hunger as our 2nd quarter service project at the Rise Against Hunger warehouse in Raleigh. We need more volunteers and time is running out. Register to participate or donate here. This is a non-strenuous event and suitable for all ages.

This event is in person only, and so no Zoom participation will take place.

Poetry Sunday: A Celebration of Our Humanity Through the Arts
2024-05-26 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
This Sunday’s program has been organized by Hugh Giblin, longtime friend of the Ethical Humanist Society of the Triangle. Hugh and two other poets, Pam Baggett and Jay Niver, will read from their original works. Following are a few details about the three of them:

Pam Baggett is author of Wild Horses (Main Street Rag, 2018), which received an honorable mention for the Brockman-Campbell Award. Other awards include an Ella Fountain Pratt Emerging Artist Grant and a 2019-20 Fellowship in Literature from the North Carolina Arts Council. Recent work is featured in Orange County’s Coalesce Project and will soon be displayed on the Lake Johnson Nature Trail in Raleigh. Pam teaches occasional writing workshops through her library in Hillsborough and writes in a sunny studio overlooking a meadow in Cedar Grove.

Jay Niver is an award-winning, career journalist and public-relations specialist who sometimes dabbles in poetry and creative writing. He was a reporter and editor of weekly newspapers in suburban Cleveland, Ohio; Charleston, South Carolina; and Topsail Island and Beaufort County in North Carolina. He also worked as a copy-desk editor for the daily papers in Wilmington and Jacksonville. Jay spent 30 years in the Carolinas before moving to western Canada in 2009, and returned to North Carolina just a few years ago. Jay is very involved with the Final Exit Network, a national nonprofit organization that supports the human right to death with dignity. He is also known to play pool upon occasion.

Hugh Giblin has been writing for years and has a full file of rejections to prove it. He has published a book, a non-fiction feature article in a national men’s magazine, poetry in literary journals, local and online, and has had two ten minute plays produced. His muse is currently on strike, but we hope that will change soon. In the meantime, he remains active and engaged in the world around us, and maintains his humanist values.

UNC Under Fire: The Coalition for Carolina Responds
2024-06-02 13:30 - 15:30 | Extraordinary Ventures, 200 S. Elliott Rd, Chapel Hill, NC, 27514, United States
Mimi Chapman will talk about some of the critical moments in recent UNC Chapel Hill history and how the Coalition for Carolina was formed. She will talk about the aims of the Coalition, how it organizes its work, and will engage in question and answer with the audience.
This meeting is a Zoom “hybrid” meeting. We will meet at our regular venue, Extraordinary Ventures, where the program will take place. We will also Zoom the program. If you wish to attend via Zoom, please use our contact form to make the request.
