More than half a billion euros of state payments per year are currently transferred by the federal states of Germany to the churches - in addition to all the money with which the state finances church social institutions. 100 years ago, the abolition of these state benefits was laid down in the Weimar Constitution. Yet despite the fact that this demand for abolition was reiterated in 1949 in the Basic Law, the money still goes to the Protestant and Catholic Church today. And despite massively shrinking membership numbers of the churches, the sum increases annually.

The so-called compromise proposal to modify § 219a of the German Criminal Code ("Advertising for Abortion"), which the government coalition presented in December 2018, does not improve the situation of physicians, pregnancy conflict counseling centers, and unintentionally pregnant women whatsoever. Therefore, the "Bündnis für sexuelle Selbstbestimmung" ("Alliance for Sexual Self-determination"), including the gbs, calls for a "nationwide campaign day for the abolition of § 219a StGB" on 26 January.

"But where there is danger, the saving powers will grow as well." With this Hölderlin verse, gbs spokesman Michael Schmidt-Salomon commented on the remarkable increase in the foundation's activities and the number of supporting members in 2018. In the past twelve months the number of "friends and supporters of the Giordano Bruno Stiftung" has grown by more than 1,500 persons, which means that for the first time, in the "Year of Human Rights", the gbs was endorsed by more than 10,000 supporting members.

On December 10, 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. To duly commemorate its 70th anniversary, the Secular Forum Hamburg, with support from the Giordano Bruno Stiftung and other cooperating partners, invites Jacqueline Neumann (Institut für Weltanschauungsrecht - Institute for World View Law) and Michael Schmidt-Salomon (gbs) as speakers to a ceremony at Patriotische Gesellschaft Hamburg on Monday, December 10, 2018 (start: 8 pm, admission 7 pm).