Where science and ethics intersect with politics.
Stand Up for Animals
A follow-up video featuring James Schultz, Chair of the Humane Party Policy Committee, sharing his thoughts on constitutional reform, ethics, and structural change — in his own words.
Two press-freedom stories publishing this evening:
4:44 PM EST — The arrest of Don Lemon
5:55 PM EST — The journalist most people didn’t hear about
Free At Last
What if animal liberation weren’t confined to courtrooms and campaigns—but passed quietly into law? This satirical illustration imagines a future where New York City recognizes what activists have …
Across multiple regions, large-scale harm to animals prompted public outrage and judicial intervention, while new legal tools aimed at preventing abuse came into force elsewhere.
Animal Rights and Welfare: Key Developments, January 1–26, 2026
From mass killings of free-roaming dogs in India to the launch of a public animal cruelty registry in Florida, the opening weeks of 2026 reveal both the fragility of animal protections and the grow…
The Humane Herald does not typically publish weather coverage for its own sake. We are doing so now because this storm represents more than a routine winter event.
When the Storm Comes
As a rare and powerful winter storm moves across a wide swath of the country, The Humane Herald looks beyond forecasts and infrastructure to examine what preparedness rooted in care looks like — fo…
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Importantly, the memo does not represent a change in statute, court ruling, or constitutional interpretation. It is an internal agency directive — not a publicly enacted law.
ICE, the Constitution, and the Quiet Erosion of the Fourth Amendment
A newly disclosed internal ICE policy has raised constitutional concerns after reports revealed guidance allowing agents to enter private homes using administrative warrants rather than judge-signe…
How passive headlines erase actors—and accountability
Language, Examined: When Responsibility Disappears
When headlines remove the actor from the sentence, harm begins to look like an accident rather than a choice. This installment of Language, Examined explores how passive phrasing and abstract langu…
This is not a story about spectacle. It is a story about power, fear, and the erosion of trust between federal authority and the people it claims to serve.
When the Panthers Return
When armed Black Panther–affiliated groups appeared at recent anti-ICE protests, much of the media fixated on optics: uniforms, firearms, symbolism. But the real story isn’t the presence of Panther…
Dr. King was not merely a symbol of hope. He was a radical challenger of systems—of racism, of militarism, of economic exploitation. To honor him truthfully requires more than remembrance. It requires reckoning.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Remembering the Radical, Not the Relic
Martin Luther King Jr. was not a symbol crafted for comfort. He was a radical voice who challenged racism, militarism, and economic injustice at their roots. To honor him today means remembering th…
Opposing ICE does not mean opposing humanity, borders, or law. It means rejecting a system that has proven—again and again—that it cannot exist without violence.
When the State Becomes the Threat
A U.S. citizen was killed during a federal immigration operation she was not the target of. Within hours, the state rewrote the narrative to justify her death. This editorial examines the killing o…
This installment of Language, Examined looks at a familiar pattern in contemporary reporting: the use of softened or managerial language to describe actions that involve harm—without altering the underlying facts.
Language, Examined: How Headlines Soften Harm Without Saying So
News headlines often appear neutral—but neutrality achieved through abstraction can obscure harm. This first installment of Language, Examined explores how common headline constructions soften impa…
Whether motivated by health, environmental concerns, animal rights, or simple curiosity, Veganuary demonstrates that meaningful change often begins modestly—with a single choice, repeated, shared, and allowed to grow.
Veganuary: A Month That Sparks a Movement
Every January, millions of people worldwide take part in Veganuary, a month-long invitation to explore vegan living. What begins as a simple dietary shift often sparks deeper reflection on animal e…
May the year ahead sharpen our vision rather than dull it.
May it deepen our resolve rather than exhaust it.
And may we continue, together, to choose a future shaped by ethics rather than expedience.
At the Threshold of Time
As the year draws to a close, The Humane Herald reflects on a year marked by ethical clarity, resistance to euphemism, and the refusal to look away from interconnected crises facing humans, nonhuma…
James Schultz approaches animal liberation through the lens of justice, law, and moral philosophy. Trained as a lawyer and philosopher, his work reflects a careful but uncompromising commitment to ethical consistency—one that ultimately refused to stop at the human species boundary.
Voices of the Movement: James Schultz
Legal scholar and policy strategist James Schultz reflects on veganism, justice, and animal liberation—examining how law, moral consistency, and collective responsibility shape a more just future.…
Under California’s good-behavior credit system, Rosenberg served approximately two weeks in jail before being released early.
Zoe Rosenberg Released Early From Jail
Animal rights activist Zoe Rosenberg has been released early from Sonoma County Jail and will complete the remainder of her sentence under house arrest following her conviction related to a 2023 ac…
Peace, after all, is not something we inherit simply by marking a date on the calendar. It is something we practice—or fail to—every day.
Christmas Day: A Season for Peace—If We Choose It
Christmas Day is often framed as a season of peace, goodwill, and generosity—but those ideals are not automatic. This reflection explores what it means to practice compassion beyond tradition, and …
Alexander Hamilton warns that separate American states will not remain peaceful neighbors — because human nature has never allowed such peace to last.
Rivalry, Ambition, and the Seeds of Civil Conflict
In Federalist No. 6, Alexander Hamilton argues that separate American states would eventually clash out of rivalry, ambition, and economic competition — making the Constitution essential to preserv…
Yule, Renewal, and the Ethics of Protection
As the winter solstice approaches, Yule’s ancient themes of renewal and protection take on renewed relevance in a time of ecological instability. Across cultures, this season has long emphasized sa…
Winter Light, Unbroken
In the quiet of winter’s longest night, we kindle small flames of mercy and carry them forward for every being still waiting for warmth.
Jay cautions that even if the new confederacies began as friendly partners, they would inevitably turn into competitors. Differences in power, trade, alliances, or leadership would spark distrust. And once distrust takes hold, peace rarely survives.
The Dangers of a Divided America
In Federalist No. 5, John Jay warns that separate American confederacies would drift toward rivalry and conflict — making unity essential for lasting peace.
When New York Assemblymember Harvey Epstein won a seat on the New York City Council, it was widely seen as a positive step forward. Epstein was one of the very few openly vegan legislators in the state — a rarity in any legislature, let alone one as large as New York’s.
When a Vegan Seat Isn’t a Vegan Seat
When a New York Assembly seat opened unexpectedly, the outcome was settled long before voters had a say. The loss of the state’s only vegan legislator reveals how special election rules and party-c…
A study detecting trace amounts of metals — including lead and arsenic — in several popular tampon brands ignited a wave of viral alarm. Claims that “100% of tampons contain toxic metals” spread rapidly across social media, producing shock, outrage, and understandable concern.
When Women’s Health Is Treated as an Afterthought
When trace metals were detected in tampons, panic wasn’t the real problem — policy failure was. The viral reaction exposed a deeper truth: menstrual products used inside the body for thousands of h…
Maple-Pecan Sweet Potatoes
Caramelized sweet potatoes tossed in warm maple syrup and topped with buttery toasted pecans — a simple, cozy winter side dish perfect for Yule gatherings and cold solstice nights.
The December gift economy is often framed as tradition and joy, yet its consequences fall hardest on ecosystems, workers, and nonhuman species whose suffering remains invisible behind the checkout counter.
Holiday Consumerism vs. Planetary Reality: Why Ethical Gifting Matters More Than Ever
Mid-December marks the peak of America’s most waste-intensive season — a surge in trash, factory-farming output, and environmental harm often hidden behind holiday cheer. Ethical gifting offers a w…
The Tarantula and the Storm
When a fierce desert storm threatened every creature underground, it was the gentle, misunderstood tarantula who held the earth together with silk and courage.
Animal issues moved from the margins into mainstream policy debates in 2025, with governments confronting industrial agriculture, wild-horse roundups, and companion-animal protections in ways that signaled growing public and political pressure.
2025 Animal Year in Review: Policy Shifts, Global Labels, and Rising Scrutiny of Exploitation
From global food labels to wild-horse roundups, 2025 pushed animal issues into the center of climate, policy, and public-health debates. New transparency laws, plant-based investment, companion-ani…
History is clear: societies that allow their debt to spiral lose their stability, their democracy, and often their sovereignty.
America’s Debt Reckoning: Why Fiscal Ethics Must Lead the Way
The United States finds itself with war-level debt in peacetime, a generational burden no child asked for, and a currency system that rewards the rich and punishes the rest. If we do not restore fi…
John Jay argues that only a united America can avoid unnecessary wars, resolve disputes fairly, and maintain peaceful relations with the world.
Peace, Safety, and the Strength of a Unified Nation
John Jay argues that a strong national government is essential for preventing conflict and protecting America’s peace — a truth that remains relevant in an interconnected world.
Yule Morning Vegan Cinnamon Rolls
Soft, sweet, and warmly spiced, these vegan cinnamon rolls are the perfect Yule morning ritual—golden spirals of cinnamon sugar topped with a melting vanilla glaze to welcome the return of the ligh…
John Jay argues that America’s survival depends on national unity — a principle as vital now as it was in 1787.
Unity as the Safeguard of Liberty
John Jay argues that America’s survival depends on national unity — a truth that remains as essential in the 21st century as it was in the founding era.
War is often presented as a series of strategic decisions, battles, and treaties. Left out of the narrative are the beings—human and nonhuman—whose lives and habitats are destroyed in minutes and forgotten within years.
Rethinking Pearl Harbor Through a Humane Lens
On December 7, America remembers Pearl Harbor—but remembrance means more than ritual. The Humane Herald examines the war’s true cost: human suffering, environmental devastation, emergency powers, a…
Democrats in Congress have introduced a resolution to remove the “punishment” exception from the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, calling their proposal the “Abolition Amendment.”
Democrats’ Appropriation of the Name “Abolition Amendment” Is Misleading and Problematic
Democrats’ recent attempt to brand their proposal as the “Abolition Amendment” obscures the term’s established meaning and appropriates language created by the Humane Party years earlier. While rem…
Today, we honor the courage of those who fought for freedom and recommit to the ongoing work of creating it.
Abolition Day
Abolition Day marks the ratification of the 13th Amendment—an end to legal slavery, but not an end to the forces that shaped it. For the Humane Party, this day is both remembrance and responsibilit…
Lancaster County is known for its rolling fields, its cultural traditions, and its long history of agriculture. But tucked within this landscape is a different kind of farm—one that reimagines what human–animal relationships can look like when exploitation is removed from the equation.
Lancaster Farm Sanctuary
Lancaster Farm Sanctuary is reshaping what sanctuary work means inside one of Pennsylvania’s most agriculturally entrenched counties. In this in-depth conversation, the LFS team reflects on their o…
On December 5, we confront a truth the federal government refuses to speak: the world’s rainforests are dying, and with them, the future of every species—including our own.
Why Rainforest Survival Is a Human and Animal Rights Emergency
On December 5, The Humane Herald examines the accelerating destruction of the world’s rainforests—and the political and economic systems driving it. From Indigenous displacement to mass extinction,…
This article includes an open letter to
@governor.ca.gov
When Compassion Is Criminalized
Animal rescuer Zoe Rosenberg faces a 90-day jail sentence — and potentially life-threatening medical neglect — for saving four suffering chickens from a Perdue slaughterhouse. Her case exposes a de…
The Humane Party and the broader abolitionist movement argue that saving cheetahs — or any species — requires more than isolated interventions. It requires dismantling the worldview that treats nonhuman life as scenery, property, or resources to be managed.
Cheetahs, Conservation, and the Politics of “Charismatic” Wildlife
On World Wildlife Conservation Day and International Cheetah Day, The Humane Herald examines the crisis facing cheetahs and the global systems driving wildlife decline. Beyond charismatic species, …
This story keeps resurfacing because something in the public conscience refuses to let it rest. It lingers because people recognize, even if they cannot articulate it, that this is not just about what one politician did but what our politics has become.
When Cruelty Becomes a Credential: What the Kristi Noem Puppy Story Reveals About American Political Culture
A leader who kills a puppy and then proudly markets the story is not an anomaly — she is a symptom of a political culture that confuses cruelty with strength. The Kristi Noem scandal is not about a…
Hamilton opens the Federalist Papers with a defining question: Can a nation choose its future through reason — or will it be shaped by accident and fear?
Choosing a Nation by Reason or by Force
Hamilton warns that the nation must choose whether it will be shaped by reasoned choice or by accident and force — a question that continues to define American democracy.
These boundaries, known collectively as the rules of war, are more than legal codes. They are a global vow:
Humanity must not lose itself, even in war.
The Rules of War: What They Are, Why They Exist, and Why They Are Crumbling
In the wake of escalating global conflicts, the rules of war remain clear — yet increasingly ignored. This article examines what international humanitarian law actually requires, why war crimes are…
A Warm Solstice Treat for Yule and Winter Nights
Vegan Hot Cocoa with Spiced Whipped Cream
A rich and velvety vegan hot cocoa infused with warm winter spices and topped with cinnamon-kissed whipped cream — a cozy Yule treat made for the longest nights of the year.
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This Month in Compassion is The Humane Herald’s ongoing effort to track the places where compassion should be — and the places where it is being withdrawn.
This Month in Compassion: December 2025
December opens with World AIDS Day — a global moment of remembrance and resolve — but it also reveals a deeper reality unfolding across the United States: a federal government growing increasingly …
Seventy years ago today, Rosa Parks said “No.”
It was not an act of defiance—it was an act of truth.
Her courage sparked a movement.
Her community carried it forward.
We remember her not for a seat on a bus, but for refusing to accept injustice as normal.
Before America could adopt the Constitution, it had to answer a more fundamental question: can a nation choose its future through reason, or will it be shaped by accident, conflict, and force?
THE FEDERALIST PAPERS — SERIES I: THE NEED FOR UNION
Before the Constitution could be written, America had to answer a single question: can a nation govern itself by reason — or will it fall to accident and force?
The Tenth Amendment defines the division of authority in the United States, reserving all undelegated powers to the states or the people. Its meaning has shifted over time, shaped by debates over governance, rights, and the scope of constitutional authority.
Amendment X — The Balance of Federal and State Power
The Tenth Amendment defines how power is divided in the United States, reserving undelegated authority to the states or the people. As federal and state responsibilities evolve, the amendment remai…
The Barn Owl Who Guarded the Quiet
When a strange tension settles over the Moonridge fields, a barn owl named Embera senses danger long before anyone else. By listening to the quiet others overlook, she helps the animals prepare for…
