How much work is still to be done?

In many parts of the world the situation is getting worse as humanists would see it. There’s been a decline in respect for human rights, especially in countries like Turkey or India or China or Russia, which have fallen victim in recent years to very nationalistic ideologies. There’s been a move away in many parts of the world, from secularism toward forms of religious extremism as governing ideologies in states; and there’s been a decline in international co-operation which runs completely counter to the humanist idea that this human species is one and that we need to work together for a better future.

That sounds like a very gloomy situation; the world is still better than it was 200-300 years ago, but humanists certainly don’t think there’s any case for resting on their campaigning laurels. There’s a lot of work still to be done, and if constant active campaigning isn’t always done we can see how easily past achievements can be washed away.