about us

In Ticino, the presence of the Freethinkers dates back to the beginning of the last century. The anticlerical society of Ticino, as it was then called, was in fact founded in 1901 in the midst of conflicts between liberals and conservatives over the presence of religion and churches, in particular the Catholic one that was and remains dominant in the south of the Alps, in public life.

Porträt

The magazine "L'Anticlericale", which later became "La Ragione" and appeared weekly, dates from these early years.

The ranks of free thinkers included such great personalities as Emilio Bossi, Brenno Bertoni, Romeo Manzoni and Francesco Rusca, who fought on the front line for secular causes, such as permission for cremation. The activism of the free thinkers gradually ebbed away in the 1920s and then revived around 1980 during the debate on the presence of crucifixes in schools.

The Association of Free Thinkers publishes its quarterly magazine "Libero Pensiero" and takes part in the public debate, especially on questions of the relationship between state and religion in the school sector. It is committed to the promotion of individual rights and self-determination of a person in certain areas such as euthanasia. It regularly organises cultural events that contribute to the promotion of a humanist world view and the development of rationalist thinking. The association currently has around 200 members.

Committee

Giulio Micheli

  • president

Giulio Micheli è nato nel 1990. Dopo il conseguimento della laurea triennale a Losanna in storia ed italiano, si è iscritto alla facoltà di scienze storiche all’Università degli Studi di Milano, terminando il suo percorso accademico con una tesi di laurea magistrale sul quotidiano dei radicali ticinese L’Azione (1906-1911).
Da sempre appassionato di storia e di politica locale ed internazionale, ha maturato negli anni un vivo interesse per quanto riguarda l’annosa problematica della laicità dello Stato; tema particolarmente presente nella realtà ticinese d’inizio Novecento.

Renato Tamagni

  • treasurer

I was born on 24 December 1951 in Bellinzona into a Catholic family and a Catholic canton. At the age of 16, I thought a lot about religion and the belief in god, and at 20 I finally gave up on the Catholic Church. I married at 31 in a civil ceremony. I never exposed myself as a non believer for professional reasons and first joined the Society of Freethinkers as a pensioner. I've been on the executive committee since 2016. At the moment I'm on the promotional committee with Giovanni Barella for the separation of church and state.

Edoardo Cappelletti

  • secretary

I was born on 2 December 1994 and live in Lugano. In 2018 I received a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Freiburg, at which I am also studying for a Master's. I have been on the executive committee of the Ticino Freethinkers since 2013. Until 2016, I was a municipal counsellor in Lugano.

Patrick Regazzoni

  • trustee

Ruben Ricca

  • trustee