[[link removed]]

“ We’re simply saying [to judges] that the world is changing outside of your courtroom, and you may want to change with it. ” – NhRP President Steven M. Wise [[link removed]]

Dear John,

Seventy-one years ago today, the United Nations ratified the Universal Declaration of Human Rights [[link removed]] to affirm the importance of respect for the freedom, equality, and dignity of all individuals regardless of “race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, or other status.” The fight for nonhuman animal rights is rooted in the same values and principles of justice as human rights, which is why December 10th is rightly celebrated around the world not just as Human Rights Day, but also, as of 2011, Animal Rights Day.

Now more than ever, it’s important that we neither take for granted our own human rights nor allow rights to arbitrarily stop with members of our own species. A more just world for all is possible [[link removed]"] , and the fight for nonhuman rights must and will be a fundamental part of how we build it.

In the words of our new staff attorney Amy Kapoor (welcome, Amy!):

The artificial line that society has drawn between human and nonhuman animals is but another legal barrier that must be broken. Recognizing the rights of nonhuman animals, beginning with great apes, elephants, dolphins, and whales’ fundamental right to live freely, will only reinforce and elevate our fundamental values of liberty, justice, equality, and fairness. I feel privileged to be able to work on such a groundbreaking issue with such dedicated people. Although the battle will be arduous, as Nelson Mandela poignantly stated, “It always seems impossible until it is done.”

Before joining the NhRP, Amy was a senior associate attorney at Johnson & Klein, LLC, where her practice focused on civil rights and criminal defense. She has also worked at Killmer, Lane & Newman, LLP, a civil rights firm that litigates police brutality and prisoners’ rights, and served as a Trial Attorney at the Federal Defenders of San Diego, where she represented numerous criminal defendants in federal jury trials. Perhaps needless to say, we’re thrilled to have Amy on our team and look forward to further introducing her to you in the months ahead!

In other NhRP news:

*
As
the
NhRP
legal
team
prepares
to
again
argue
in
the
Bronx
Supreme
Court
for
the
release
of
our
elephant
client
Happy
from
solitary
confinement
in
the
Bronx
Zoo,
we
would
like
to
express
our
deepest
gratitude
to
the
anonymous
donor
who
recently
made
a
gift
of
$20,000
to
assist
with
Happy’s
elephant
rights
case.
Learn
more
here
[[link removed]]
.
*
Last
month
on
Facebook
Live,
NhRP
Director
of
Government
Relations
and
Campaigns
Courtney
Fern
discussed
our
ongoing
work
to
free
Minnie—the
sole
surviving
Commerford
Zoo
elephant—to
a
sanctuary
and
compel
the
relevant
authorities
to
investigate
Beulah
and
Karen’s
deaths.
Learn
more
here
[[link removed]]
,
and
read
the
latest
on
our
legal
fight
in
the
Connecticut
Law
Tribune
[[link removed]]
.
*
Have
a
Netflix
subscription?
Our
elephant
rights
case
on
behalf
of
Happy—the
first
elephant
in
the
world
to
demonstrate
self-awareness
via
the
mirror
self-recognition
test—is
cited
in
the
“Animal
Intelligence”
episode
of
the
second
season
of
Explained
.
Watch
the
trailer
here
[[link removed]]
.

Have a great week and we’ll be in touch again soon with further updates!

Lauren Choplin
Communications Director, the NhRP

DONATE NOW » [[link removed]]


The Nonhuman Rights Project
5195 NW 112th Terrace
Coral Springs, FL 33076
United States
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