Dr. Anthony Pinn spent 13 years in ministry before he couldn't preach what he no longer believed. What he found on the other side of that was humanism, and what he's found inside humanism since then has not always been pretty.

Hip hop and religion are asking the same questions, he says. Who are we, what are we, and why are we here. The difference is who gets to answer those questions, and who gets forgotten in the process. By the end of this conversation, the call-out lands squarely on (white) humanists to do better, starting now.

ABOUT DR. ANTHONY PINN

Agnes Cullen Arnold Distinguished Professor of Humanities and Founding Director of the Center for Engaged Research and Collaborative Learning--Rice University

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AHA Conference 2026: https://conference.americanhumanist.org
For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

Two Fish walk into a podcast... One is the Executive Director of the American Humanist Association. The other is the President of American Atheists. They have been getting each other's mail, confusing each other's colleagues, and creating increasingly dorkier inside jokes with one another. Yet somehow, in the middle of all that chaos, they managed to become one of the most effective partnerships in the secular movement.

If you have ever tried to explain the difference between humanism and atheism and ended up more confused than when you started, Fish and Fish -- or "The Fish Tank" -- are here to help. They talk about where the movements overlap, where they diverge, why the endless God debate might finally be losing its grip on the community, and what it actually looks like when two organizations decide to just be good neighbors.

ABOUT NICK FISH

Since 2018, Nick Fish has served as the president of American Atheists. Nick first joined American Atheists in 2012 and has spent his career defending the separation of religion and government, advocating for equality under the law, and protecting civil rights for all Americans. Nick was born and raised in Michigan but now calls Philadelphia home.

American Atheists Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/atheists.org

American Atheists Instagram: https://instagram.com/AmericanAtheists

American Atheists Action Alerts and Emails: https://atheists.org/sign-up

Nick Fish Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/nickfish.me

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AHA Conference 2026: https://conference.americanhumanist.org
For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

Chris Line is a lawyer at the Freedom From Religion Foundation who lost 270 pounds and has kept it off for years. But this isn't a weight loss episode. Well... it is, but... it's a lot more, too.

It's a conversation about what happens when you stop looking for a trick and start thinking clearly about your own life. Chris talks about growing up in a family where processed food was just the reality, what it actually feels like to have a brain that won't stop telling you to eat, and why the same moment he got serious about secular thinking was the same moment things started to change. And we promise, he doesn't have a magic pill he'll try to sell you. Just a really honest conversation about being human and doing the best you can with that.

ABOUT CHRIS LINE

Chris began working for Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) in 2015 as a legal intern while attending law school at the University of Wisconsin. Shortly after receiving his Juris Doctor in 2017, Chris began working full-time for FFRF as an attorney. He is an accomplished photographer whose work has appeared in The Humanist magazine, the Progressive, and FFRF’s Freethought Today. In 2017, Chris began a weight loss journey, losing more than 270 pounds and maintaining that transformation ever since.

Chris' Story: https://www.freethoughttoday.com/free/chris-line-ffrf-attorney-tips-scales-back-in-his-favor/

AHA Conference 2026: https://conference.americanhumanist.org
For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

Have you or anyone you know ever been pulled over for speeding? What if instead of issuing a ticket and a court date, you were stripped of your rights and thrown into a gulag across the country, with no way for your loved ones to know where you are or if you're even safe. This nightmare scenario only scratches the surface of what predominantly Black & Brown immigrants are facing in the United States, for what is supposed to be treated as a civil infraction, much like speeding.

Human Rights lawyer Qasim Rashid joins us to share the moving goalposts of legal immigration, why its history is inherently racist, and what steps immigrants should take starting today to protect themselves. If there has ever been an episode worth sharing, this is the one to start with.

¿Alguna vez te han puesto una multa por exceso de velocidad, o conoces a alguien a quien le haya pasado? Imagina que en lugar de recibir una multa y una fecha en el tribunal, te despojaran de tus derechos y te enviaran a un centro de detención al otro lado del país, sin que tus seres queridos pudieran saber dónde estás ni si estás a salvo. Este escenario de pesadilla apenas rasca la superficie de lo que están viviendo los inmigrantes predominantemente negros y mestizos en los Estados Unidos, por lo que se supone debe tratarse como una infracción civil, al igual que el exceso de velocidad.

El abogado de derechos humanos Qasim Rashid nos acompaña para hablar sobre los objetivos cambiantes de la inmigración legal, por qué su historia es inherentemente racista, y qué pasos deben tomar los inmigrantes a partir de hoy para protegerse. Si alguna vez ha habido un episodio que valga la pena compartir, este es por donde empezar.

Avez-vous déjà été arrêté pour excès de vitesse, ou connaissez-vous quelqu'un à qui c'est arrivé ? Imaginez qu'au lieu de recevoir une amende et une date d'audience, on vous prive de vos droits et vous envoie dans un centre de détention à l'autre bout du pays, sans que vos proches puissent savoir où vous êtes ni si vous êtes en sécurité. Ce scénario cauchemardesque n'effleure qu'à peine la surface de ce que vivent les immigrants majoritairement noirs et métis aux États-Unis, pour ce qui est censé être traité comme une infraction civile, tout comme l'excès de vitesse.

L'avocat spécialisé en droits de l'homme Qasim Rashid nous rejoint pour parler des objectifs changeants de l'immigration légale, des raisons pour lesquelles son histoire est intrinsèquement raciste, et des mesures que les immigrants devraient prendre dès aujourd'hui pour se protéger. S'il y a jamais eu un épisode qui mérite d'être partagé, c'est bien celui-ci.

ABOUT QASIM RASHID

Qasim Rashid is a human rights lawyer, author, and former nominee for U.S. Congress. Qasim is the Founder and President of Just Win, a creator representation firm focused on social justice and human rights. He runs a popular human rights Substack with more than 167,000 subscribers titled "Let's Address This with Qasim Rashid,” and has more than 2.8M total social media followers. You can find him across platforms @QasimRashid.

Qasim Website: https://qasimrashid.com

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AHA Conference 2026: https://conference.americanhumanist.org
For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

As kids, we sometimes grow up fantasizing about the many jobs we can have simultaneously. Somehow, we'll manage to be a fireman, a fashion designer, and a florist all at the same time. And while that example does a piss-poor job of conveying the realities of a multi-hyphenate professional with big dreams, it should land you somewhere in the ballpark of understanding what makes someone like Franchesca Ramsey so damn special. The balls stay afloat thanks to her commitment to know when to say "no".

In this conversation, Franchesca talks about The Artist's Way, about building a career across comedy, writing, acting, and advocacy without losing the thread, and about what it looks like to set goals you can control when the industry keeps moving the goalposts. It's the kind of conversation that makes you want to grab a good pen and paper and get to work.

ABOUT FRANCHESCA RAMSEY

Franchesca Ramsey is a TV writer, actress, producer and social media strategist.

Franchesca Website: https://franchesca.net

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AHA Conference 2026: https://conference.americanhumanist.org
For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

Someone reached out to our team not long ago and asked a question that a lot of people are probably carrying around: when you stop believing, where does the magic go? Faith Litchfield, content creator and professional lover of people, is basically a living answer to that question. Her entire existence is proof that wonder, whimsy, and the deep conviction that life is genuinely special do not require a supernatural source. If we know where to look, magic is everywhere.

This conversation is about what it looks like to find the extraordinary in the ordinary, from crushed ice at the gym to the millions of people in your lineage who had to find each other just so you could exist. Faith also opens up about her own winding journey out of Christianity, what she misses, what she doesn't, and what it means to be the one calling the shots for your own life when you've spent years being really good at obeying someone else. It's a good one.

ABOUT FAITH LITCHFIELD

Faith Litchfield is a content creator whose videos are meant to find the light, silly, and magical moments in her life, and the world around her. Faith strives to create community and people-first conversation both in the digital world and the tangible one.

Faith on TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@faithisntcool
Faith on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/faithissonotcool

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AHA Conference 2026: https://conference.americanhumanist.org
For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

Reverend Dr. Je' Exodus Hooper is an arts and cultural community curator, clergy leader, and scholar, but none of those words will prepare you for what it actually feels like to be in conversation with them. Je' moves through ideas the way a painter moves through color, layering meaning on top of meaning until you realize you've been seeing the world in a shade you didn't have a name for before.

From the gentrification of Black knowledge within humanist spaces, to why cancel culture is a form of erasure, to the three values Je' will go to their grave defending, this conversation is a full-body experience. Shay walked away from this recording and immediately needed to dance in her living room. If you scooch over the coffee table, you just might dance too.

ABOUT REV. JE' EXODUS HOOPER

Rev. Jé Exodus Hooper, PhD (them/they) is an arts and cultural community curator, clergy leader, and scholar who serves in Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Summit, NJ, the Ethical Culture Movement, and other congregational Humanist spaces.

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For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist

Jack Harrison-Quintana has spent his career doing work that has shaped LGBTQ lives in corners of the world most advocates never get to reach. He has shown up, in person, in over 76 countries, building real relationships with LGBTQ activists on the ground, helping communities collect their own data on discrimination when their governments wouldn't, and working to make sure that the most vulnerable queer people in the world had access to resources, safety, and each other. His resume reads like a life fully committed to the idea that no one should have to fight for their dignity alone.

This conversation is a rare opportunity to hear someone who has seen the global state of LGBTQ rights up close and still chooses to believe in the direction we are heading. Jack is honest about how bad it is in too many places, and equally honest about why the backlash we are living through right now is not the whole story. If you have been trying to hold onto hope without looking away from the truth, this is the episode for that.

ABOUT JACK HARRISON-QUINTANA

Jack Harrison-Quintana, M.A., is a queer Latino activist, author, and researcher. His work at the intersection of digital advocacy and LGBTQ justice has earned him recognition as one of Foreign Policy magazine’s top geopolitical thinkers of 2016 as well as Fast Company’s most creative people in business.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-harrison-quintana-5002958b/
Kink for Dummies: https://bit.ly/kinkfordummies

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For more on humanism: https://linktr.ee/americanhumanist