Memorial Sunday
Hugh Taft-Morales Leader, Philadelphia Ethical Society Our Memorial Sunday program celebrates the gifts bestowed by those who have died. You are invited to present a brief remembrance about a family member, friend, or famous person whose life taught valuable lessons or enriched you or the world in other ways. Consider sharing an object that represents [...]
Introduction to Ethical Humanism
Be part of a small group conversation, led by Hugh Taft-Morales, about our Ethical Society community, history, and philosophy. This informal gathering is open to everyone. Join online HERE.
Embattled Freedom
Jim Remsen Remsen’s book Embattled Freedom tells the remarkable true story of a group of enslaved men who escaped the South and settled in the author’s hometown near Scranton. During the Civil War, the men joined the Union Army, returning South to fight for their people's freedom. The retired religion editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer, [...]
The Beloved Community
Hugh Taft-Morales Leader, Philadelphia Ethical Society How can we overcome the divisiveness tearing at the fabric of our communities, especially surrounding racism and oppression? Martin Luther King, Jr. proposed an answer: “the beloved community,” founded on economic and social justice. Although not unachievable, King’s vision demands daily work and inner discipline to remove the roadblocks [...]
Climate and Equity: Dodging Despair by Acting Locally
Amy Sinden Professor of Law, Temple University Climate and equity are inextricably linked. The climate crisis is both driving and driven by increasing disparities of wealth, income, power, and privilege and threatens to drive similar inequities across generations. The global scale of these twin crises can overwhelm us. But a focus on the local aspects [...]
Ethically Sourced Cartoons
Signe Wilkinson Political cartoonist Wilkinson will share the highs and the this-is-a-new-low-in-journalism-how-dare-you-publish-it!s of her nearly 40-year career chronicling local and national politics for the Philadelphia Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer. In 2021, she illustrated the book Free Speech and Why You Should Give a Damn, written by Penn’s Jonathan Zimmerman. Wilkinson will display her [...]
Creative Social Change
Hugh Taft-Morales Leader, Philadelphia Ethical Society In two nonconsecutive terms as mayor of Bogota, Columbia, starting in 1995, Antanas Mockus used non-traditional cultural and creative methods to induce positive social change. From hiring mimes to improve crosswalk safety to melting down guns to make baby spoons, Mockus motivated and unified his constituents. Today, when the [...]
Introduction to Ethical Humanism
Be part of a small-group conversation about our Ethical Society community, history, and philosophy. This informal Zoom gathering with Hugh Taft-Morales is open to everyone. Join online HERE at the scheduled time.
Sense in the City: Equity, Public Schools, and Democracy
A winter Wednesday Zoom discussion series with the Center City Residents Association How can citizens nurture constructive dialogue that respects everyone and helps make our society more equitable and inclusive? How can we live more meaningful, engaged, and responsible lives? Join Hugh Taft-Morales, Leader of the Philadelphia Ethical Society, for a series of guided conversations about [...]
Civil Unrest in Black Arts Movement Literature
Casarae Abdul-Ghani Assistant Professor of English, Temple University Abdul-Ghani will explore the legacy of 1960s civil unrest as captured by the contemporaneous Black Arts Movement (BAM) in drama, fiction, and poetry. BAM forged new conversations about the union of art, activism, and social justice; it also centralized the African American perspective in narrative. In the [...]