Before human beings are born, they’re free to live a completely natural existence, without any controls, but as soon as they’re born, all human beings’ natural behaviour is immediately controlled by laws and rules, for the rest of their lives, none of which are of their own making, and they’re judged according to the values, beliefs, norms, and expectations of their family, community, school, employer and religious organisation, and by those of society as a whole, and those of the State.
Natural Humanists believe that all human beings are born to be free, so they value every aspect of freedom extremely highly, believing that the freedom of every child and every adult should never be restricted, unless this is essential to protect another person’s freedoms or rights.
They believe that freedom[i] includes every human being having the power and the right to say and think whatever they want, to control their own life and future, to not be enslaved (for example by the State or capitalism or a monogamous partner), to travel and to live wherever they want in the world, to be free from threats, intimidation and coercive control, to be free from grooming or brainwashing, to not have to fear or follow any god, to not have to fear death or hell, to not have to fear poverty, pain or judgement, to not be governed by habits or traditions, to be able to seek the truth, to be able to spend time with whomever they wish, to have no inhibitions, worries or fears, to have full autonomy and independence, to not have to live their life dominated or controlled by others’ values and beliefs, to be able to share their own thoughts, feelings and beliefs with others, to be able to love widely, deeply and freely, to be able to proudly be exactly who they are[ii], and to become exactly who they want to be, and to be able to live their life in any way they choose, and to do whatever they want, whenever they, themselves, know this to be right.
They acknowledge however, that to quote the human rights campaigner, Nelson Mandela, “to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others” [iii]. To Natural Humanists, this means that, whenever any human being makes any life choice, they should always take into account, and care deeply about, the impact of that choice on other people, and on all of the other species of living thing on Earth, and that they should seek to protect the freedoms and rights of others as much as possible, as well as their own.
They also strongly believe that, although all human beings should be ‘born free’ and remain free throughout their lives, to quote Nelson Mandella, “with freedom, comes responsibility”, so we all have a strong, lifelong, moral responsibility to recognise that all of our actions have consequences, and that we should never knowingly cause harm, unless this is unavoidable.
Natural Humanists take this responsibility very seriously,always seeking to live and behave in ways that cause as little harm, pain, or distress as possible to other people, to other living things, and to the planet and its environment. They do not, however, believe that they have a duty to not cause other’s offence, if they know that what they choose to say or do, or choose not to say or do, is right.
Natural Humanists believe that, in every country of the world, all human beings, of all ages, should be free to meet every one of their natural human needs and drives in the most positive, safe and least harmful way possible, and that they should be encouraged, supported and enabled to do so, by parents, communities and by all branches of the State.
They believe that no human being should be controlled, unless this is essential to protect them, or other people, or other species, or the planet, from harm, and that any essential control should always be as minimal and non-abusive as possible.
They believe that no human being, family, community, business, school, religious organisation or state should ever unnecessarily control or deny any natural freedom to any person or group, or to any other living thing, including freedom of choice, freedom of beliefs and freedom of speech, movement and actions.
Consequently, they’re against all involuntary imprisonment; coercively-controlling behaviour or relationships; traditional marriage (if this involves one or more people gaining the right to control, or in any other way restrict, the freedoms or natural rights of a spouse, including restricting their romantic and sexual freedom); capitalist control and ‘enslavement’ of workers by businesses, or by the State; unnecessary control of children by parents or schools; grooming, coercive control and ‘brainwashing’ by religious organisations; deliberate ‘grooming’ of children by sexual abusers; and any other unnecessary and unreasonable restrictions on any human being, or any other living creature.
Natural Humanists believe that every country and state in the world should have a constitution of human rights, which details everything that all human beings have a legal right to, which Natural Humanists believe should include all of the rights detailed in this book. They believe that, ideally, this should be an international constitution, which every country in the world should sign-up to.
They believe that all human beings, including children, should be equally protected by these constitutions, and that no minority, or disenfranchised person, should ever be abused by their own country’s government, which is something that happens frequently today.
They believe that no government should be allowed to amend these rights, although they could be added to in the future to create additional rights. They also believe it should never be possible for any government to remove any individual human being’s rights, including those of people they don’t approve of.
They also believe that these constitutions should cover important rights that should exist in law to protect the huge number of other species which share our planet, for example, always making the greenest possible use of land and rewilding any land not needed.
Most countries have laws protecting citizens’ human rights, but Natural Humanists acknowledge that most people don’t know about the protections that these laws provide and that the State and businesses often try to deliberately bypass or ignore these laws, to achieve their own goals.
In the UK, the European Convention on Human Rights[iv], which was created after the Second World War and the Holocaust, is enforced by the European Court of Human Rights, which is not connected to the European Union. Since 1951, it’s guaranteed people’s human rights, including protecting them from torture, killing and slavery, and has guaranteed their privacy and freedom of speech, religion and assembly[v].
It helped the press to have freedom of expression, helped decriminalise homosexual acts in Northern Ireland, allowed LGBT+ people to serve in the Armed Forces, increased religious freedom, increased the liberty of some people with disabilities, increased the right to protest, and ensured that everybody has the legal right to change their gender[vi].
More specifically, Article 12 of this Act, protects the right of men and women of marriageable age, to marry and to start a family, but only if national laws permit this marriage[vii]. Consequently, it doesn’t permit marriage of more than two people, or of close relatives, and, although 16 or 17 year olds have always been free to get married until the last couple of decades, they now have full freedom to live together, to have sex, to get pregnant and to raise a child, but they are legally barred from ever getting married until they’re 18.
In 2002, the European Court of Human Rights, extended this right to transsexual people[viii], who are now able to marry or enter civil partnerships in their acquired gender, and it also potentially allowed adults to marry their adult daughter-in-law or son-in-law, as English law preventing this was based mainly on tradition, and there was no legal reason why a couple in this situation couldn’t have a relationship[ix].
Natural Humanists acknowledge that, if this is the case, and if it’s what both people want, then there should also be no legal reason why genetic brothers and sisters, or any other blood relatives can’t marry, particularly if they plan to use contraception and to adopt or foster children, rather than having their own, although, contrary to popular opinion, there appears to be only a relatively small chance that any genetic offspring they produced would have any genetic abnormality, and this is always a risk anyway, with all newborn children. Natural Humanists consider traditional monogamous marriage to be immoral, but they believe that the only people who should ever have any right to decide who should get married, should be those people themselves, and that they should be free to make this decision regardless of whose morality their choices might offend.
Very importantly, in cases like this, and in all areas of life, Natural Humanists believe that people should always be free to make their own choices, without any unnecessary restriction of their freedom at all, and regardless of whether other people disapprove, or find the idea offensive.
They consider that causing offence is not itself a form of harm, and that indeed, such offence can be important in encouraging human beings to make changes, and to find solutions to life’s problems. Indeed, it’s hugely important and positive that inspirational people, like Greta Thunberg, used her offence at the inaction of governments in preventing climate change, to motivate her inspirational campaigning, and that offence at inequality, led Nelson Mandela to fight to end Apartheid in South Africa, and that offence at gender inequality led to women in Britain forming the Suffragette movement.
They believe, strongly, that we all, as human beings, have the moral right to cause others offence, but that, similarly, we ourselves should never negatively judge anyone else for making any free choice which causes us offence.
Natural Humanists believe strongly that, in nature, and in every area of human life, variety is far more beautiful than uniformity and conformity, and so they always try to celebrate variety and diversity, in every area of life, celebrating every type of lifestyle and all of the connections between every human being and everybody they choose to share their lives, their love and their bodies with.
In addition to the European Convention on Human Rights, since 2000, the UK’s own Human Rights Act 1998, incorporated many of the existing rights created by the European Convention into domestic British law, and set out rights and freedoms that everyone in the UK was entitled to, including[x] freedom of thought, belief and religion, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association, freedom to marry and start a family, the right to respect for people’s private and family life, and their home and correspondence, freedom from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, the abolition of the death penalty, freedom from slavery and forced labour, and also the legal right to life, liberty and security, to a fair trial, to peaceful enjoyment of any property, to education, to participate in free elections and to protection from any type of discrimination regarding these rights and freedoms[xi].
Article 8 protects people’s right to respect for their private and family life, includingthe right to determine their sexual orientation, their lifestyle, and the way they look and dress, and it also protects people’s right to control who sees and touches their own body[xii], which Natural Humanists believe should include the legal right to be naked in public and, also, for under 16s, the right to choose to share nudity or sexual intimacy with any human being, of their choice.
They also believe that, because this law gives people the legal right to develop their personal identity, forge friendships and other relationships, and participate in essential social, cultural and leisure activities, and because this law also recognises that, in some circumstances, public authorities may need to help some people to enjoy these rights[xiii], under 16s should have an absolute right to access professional sexual and relationship chaperones to safely and legally enable them to have relationships with anybody of their choice, without restriction.
Natural Humanists recognise that it’s common for so called ‘human rights’ and freedoms, to not apply equally to ‘disenfranchised’ children, which is effectively every single child under 18, as they are all deliberately denied the legal right to vote. They acknowledge that this effectively legalises the ‘dehumanisation’ of every single one of the world’s children, which, according to UNICEF, is over 2,415 million people, who make up a massive 29.8% of the world’s entire human population[xiv], all of whom are legally classed as ‘children’, so are deliberately denied adult human rights and freedoms. Natural Humanists consider this to be completely immoral and abusive, and they believe strongly that every possible way should be sought, both to increase children’s rights, and to safely enable every one of their freedoms.
They acknowledge that, for example, schools are allowed to require children to wear uniforms, to dress ‘modestly’, to wear underwear, and are also legally allowed to punish those children who do not conform. The State also prevents anybody under 18 from willingly taking and sharing photographs of their own naked body, and denies them the right to agree to anybody over 16 years of age forming a romantic relationship with them, or touching their naked body, in a sexual way, even with their permission, and also prevents people over 16 from showing their naked body to any child under 16, even if this is at their request.
Natural Humanists recognise that any government, at any time, can introduce laws which fit in with the ‘moral’ beliefs of their supporters, but which deliberately restrict the freedoms of people they disapprove of, or wish to control or degrade, as well as all of the vast number of disenfranchised people, like children and prisoners, whose disapproval won’t in any way affect their share of future election votes.
Despite existing human rights laws, any of these new abusive, harmful or discriminatory new laws can legally interfere with the right to respect for private and family life, because, legally, this is permissible if they can prove that doing so is ‘lawful, necessary and proportionate’ to ‘prevent disorder or crime’, which such a new law would have made sure that it does, as it would, effectively, have created a new ‘crime’. The State can also interfere with this human right to a private and family life, if they can prove it’s necessary to protect morals or health, protect the rights and freedoms of other people, protect public safety, national security, or the economy, with ‘proportionate’ meaning that it must be appropriate and no more than necessary to address the problem concerned.
Although Natural Humanists do not generally support traditional marriage, they recognise that recent laws which now prevent any marriage of 16 and 17 year olds, are unquestionably not ‘proportionate’ to prevent the minority of these young people from being coerced into marriage, as this immorally prevents the freedom and rights of those who would happily marry, and this problem could easily be dealt with by assessing each couple, on an individual basis, possibly by the use of lie-detectors, if necessary.
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References
[i] Drew, C. “40 Types of Freedom”. July 15 2023. Helpful Professor. 3 June 2025. https://helpfulprofessor.com/types-of-freedom/
[ii] Drew, C. “40 Types of Freedom”. July 15 2023. Helpful Professor. 3 June 2025. https://helpfulprofessor.com/types-of-freedom/
[iii] Nelson Mandela Foundation. “The responsibility that comes with freedom”. 27 April 2017. nelsonmandela.org. 27 May 2025. http://www.nelsonmandela.org/news/entry/the-responsibility-that-comes-with-freedom
[iv] The National Council for Civil Liberties. “What is the ECHR and why does it matter?”. libertyhumanrights.org.uk. 6 June 2025. https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/issue/what-is-the-echr-and-why-does-it-matter/#:~:text=The%20ECHR%20is%20the%20European,repeated%2C%20and%20safeguard%20fundamental%20rights
[v] The National Council for Civil Liberties. “What is the ECHR and why does it matter?”. libertyhumanrights.org.uk. 6 June 2025. https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/issue/what-is-the-echr-and-why-does-it-matter/#:~:text=The%20ECHR%20is%20the%20European,repeated%2C%20and%20safeguard%20fundamental%20rights
[vi] The National Council for Civil Liberties. “What is the ECHR and why does it matter?”. libertyhumanrights.org.uk. 6 June 2025. https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/issue/what-is-the-echr-and-why-does-it-matter/#:~:text=The%20ECHR%20is%20the%20European,repeated%2C%20and%20safeguard%20fundamental%20rights
[vii] Wikipedia contributors. “Article 12 of the European Convention on Human Rights.” 7 Feb. 2025. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 29 May 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_12_of_the_European_Convention_on_Human_Rights
[viii] equalityhumanrights.com. “Article 12: Right to marry”. 4 May 2016. Updated: 3 June 2021. equalityhumanrights.com. 3 June 2025. https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/human-rights/human-rights-act/article-12-right-marry
[ix] equalityhumanrights.com. “Article 12: Right to marry”. 4 May 2016. Updated: 3 June 2021. equalityhumanrights.com. 3 June 2025. https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/human-rights/human-rights-act/article-12-right-marry
[x] Wikipedia contributors. “Human Rights Act 1998.” 29 May 2025. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 30 May 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Act_1998
[xi] Wikipedia contributors. “Human Rights Act 1998.” 29 May 2025. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 30 May 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Act_1998
[xii] equalityhumanrights.com. “Article 8: Respect for your private and family life”. 24 June 2021. Last updated: 24 June 2021. equalityhumanrights.com. 3 June 2025. https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/human-rights/human-rights-act/article-8-respect-your-private-and-family-life
[xiii] equalityhumanrights.com. “Article 8: Respect for your private and family life”. 24 June 2021. Last updated: 24 June 2021. equalityhumanrights.com. 3 June 2025. https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/human-rights/human-rights-act/article-8-respect-your-private-and-family-life
[xiv] UNICEF. “How many children are there in the world?” 2025. unicef.org. 3 June 2025. https://data.unicef.org/how-many/how-many-children-under-18-are-in-the-world/