Mel Lipman

From Philosopedia

Lipman, Mel (1936 - )

Lipman, who was President of the American Humanist Association (AHA), hails from Las Vegas where he has lived for the last 25 years. Raised in New York City by immigrant parents, he first began supporting his family at age 14. Raised Jewish, he didn’t question his faith until one of his two children asked if he believed in God. He soon became involved in the freethought movement.

A lawyer, a chartered bank auditor, and a former supervising examiner for the Federal Reserve Board, Lipman brings business savvy to the world of Humanism. He is a former board member of the Nevada Civil Liberties Union and remains active in many ACLU efforts. A Humanist minister, Lipman is a member of the Las Vegas Interfaith Council and frequently lectures on church-state issues.

Also, Lipman is a founding member of the Humanist Association of Las Vegas and Southern Nevada, has served as its president for four years, and is now a board member and spokesperson for the group. As a prominent leader in the chapter, and now as president of AHA, Mel welcomes the opportunity to clarify the Humanist perspective. He frequently uses letters to the editor and participation in talk shows as means of voicing his advocacy for the community of reason. In a recent Las Vegas Review-Journal article, Lipman asserts,

• My biggest concern is to counter the propaganda from people who think that people who don't believe in a supernatural being can't live moral, ethical lives.

Lipman's top priority is to change people's attitudes about Humanists: "It is not OK to discriminate against somebody simply because they do not believe in God."

Though retired from full-time legal practice, he works as an arbitrator and mediator while teaching constitutional law and U.S. history at the Nevada campus of the University of Phoenix and at Nevada State College.