There will never be another Steve.
Steve was my colleague, mentor, sparring partner, and devoted friend.
He was brilliant, determined, funny, quirky, and spirited. His intellectual curiosity was infectious and his love of the law had no bounds. I miss him every day, and I consider myself so lucky to have worked with him and to be part of this amazing organization and movement he started.
There will never be another Steve, but his ideas have begun to take hold and inspire change, including with judges and the next generation of lawyers, scholars, and activists. Steve understood that the core problem facing all nonhuman animals is that for centuries they have been considered “things” with no rights. He illuminated this problem in a totally unique and powerful way and charted a course for change. He argued that the only way to truly protect nonhuman animals is for the legal system to recognize their rights. Through his unyielding perseverance, the pace at which this progress has been achieved is truly remarkable.
In his writings Steve introduced a metaphor to describe his mission—our mission. A thick legal wall unjustly separates all humans from all nonhuman animals, and it’s our job, indeed the job of everyone who cares about our values and principles of justice, to break down that legal wall.
Steve and I spoke often about how we had successfully made that first crack in the wall in a very short amount of time. So today, on what would have been his 74th birthday, I wish to thank Steve for having given us the tools to finish the job that he so brilliantly began.
I use the word “tools” because, while Steve’s vision was of course deeply inspirational and hopeful—he imagined a world so defined by respect for the inherent dignity and worth of all beings that we don’t hesitate to extend this respect to nonhuman animals—his approach to securing nonhuman animal rights was eminently practical. I think this is what made Steve so unique and what makes the NhRP so powerful. Steve was an idealist—interested in no less than changing the world—but he was also a pragmatist, and he knew this work would take time, and persistence, and flexibility based on real-world accounting. This duality is in our organizational DNA.
And finally, thank you for joining us today in remembering Steve–and for all you do to keep a light shining on the suffering of animals. In Steve’s honor, we make the solemn promise that this light is never going to go out or subside. I believe, as Steve did, that while many obstacles remain, a better world is in reach for them and for us.
To donate to the NhRP in Steve’s memory, visit this page.
All my best,
Elizabeth Stein
Litigation Director, the NhRP
