In these times where credulity is becoming a virtue, developing the capacity to make critical judgements on what we hear and read is becoming an urgent goal. It is high time to react against the pollution of our minds by the "politically correct", by "conventional wisdom" and by the so called "journalistic objectivity" conveyed by the media whose world vision is becoming more and more homogenous due to their corporate concentration.

Humanist values and the place of non-believers in society are threatened in the United States where right wing fundamentalists are gaining ground. Bernard, the initiator of FHQ exposes this situation in detail in the essay "Reflexions on truth". He concludes that the promotion of humanist values and the defence of the rights of non-believers require meeting the broader objective of developing critical thinking in our society and this, starting at the youngest age.

The Humanist Foundation of Quebec therefore intends to support the efforts of a wide range of organizations which favour, directly or indirectly, the development of critical thinking and consequently, the spread of humanist values in our society.

In Montreal today, Les Sceptiques du Quebec campaign for the development of critical thinking with respect to paranormal phenomenon and the Movement Laique Quebécois keeps a watchful eye on the separation of church and state. These two organizations are doing a priceless job, each in their own niche, but they have very limited resources. Other Quebec groups also participate in the promotion of reason for the benefit of individuals and still others could be put on track if financial means were available to help them.

Volunteers favourable to our goals exist, it's a matter of gathering financial means and distributing them in the most efficient manner among all the organisms and projects likely to promote critical thinking and humanist values in Quebec.

Providing support to all these volunteers represents a considerable effort that will require a solid professional organization involving all the material means and prestige needed to challenge the defenders of blind faith who enjoy solid and long established positions in society.

This will not be done overnight. It's a long term project but we must aim for the ultimate goals from the onset. We can consider three stages to get there.

1) In the first phase, the FHQ will need to concentrate it's efforts to accumulate sufficient funds so that the income from investments is sufficient to have a significant effect on the organizations it subsidizes. A fund of $100,000 which would generate about $5000 a year is the goal for the first year, 2005.

2) In the second phase, following the accumulation of greater funds, the revenue could become sufficient to cover the cost of joint logistic services (secreterial etc.) not already covered by the traditional financing of the beneficiary organizations of the Foundation. This phase is crucial in reaching a level of efficiency that organizations that depend only on volunteers cannot attain.

3) Eventually, we must set our sights on a third phase where donations and legacies accumulated by the Foundation will become sufficient to allow us to aquire an appropriate building to set up a "Humanist Center" that would serve diverse organizations promoting the development of critical thinking and Humanist values in Quebec.

This establishment could also include an appropriate hall for holding ceremonies of passage (birth, marriage, death), for Humanists seaking rituals that reflect their values.

This phase has been reached by the Transnational Center for Inquiry based in Amherst in the state of New York whose affiliates, the Council for Secular Humanism (CSH), the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CISCOP) and the Commission for Scientific Medicine and Mental Health (CSMMH), share common premises in Amherst, New York, Los Angeles, California and Tampa, Florida. These establishments serve several organizations pursuing related objectives such as Skeptical Inquirer, Free Inquiry, Pensar, Philo Online etc..

This concerted action plan has also been adopted by the Institute of Humanist Studies which, in 2005 has just inaugrated its Humanist Center in an elegant building in the center of Albany, the capital of New York state.

Two other foundations worth studying as examples of what the FHQ can become are the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) of Fort Lauderdale in Florida and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) based in Madison, Wisconsin .

Believers of all religions and sects have allways regrouped in communities based on the distinction between "we who believe in XYZ" in opposition to "all the others who don't believe in XYZ." Believers have consequently been infinitely better organized to establish dominant positions in their respective societies than have been Humanists and other non-believers who quite naturally tend to be more individualistic.

It is however high time for Humanists and other non-believers in Quebec to refuse to be marginalised any longer. Lets all get organized in order to defend our rights here as others have started to do elsewhere. This is what Bernard maintains in the text " Why" where he reveals the personal journey that has led him to setting up the Humanist Foundation of Quebec .