The NhRP · [email protected]

September 1, 2026 at 12:31 AM

FINAL HOURS: We’re almost there!

We’re so close to our goal! Help us close the final gap before midnight.  Dear John, This is it. World Elephant Month ends in just a few hours. And thanks to an incredible surge of support, we are now just $1,829 away from reaching our goal.  We are so close, John. But we only have until midnight …

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  Gabby, The NhRP · [email protected]

August 31, 2026 at 7:03 PM

We’re so close to our World Elephant Month goal

Today is the last chance to donate to the NhRP for World Elephant Month.  Dear John,I want to personally thank you for your support this World Elephant Month! This month, we honored the legacy of our former client, Happy, and shined a light on the stories of elephants who, like Happy, were stolen…

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  Kelly, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 30, 2026 at 9:27 PM

Why legal rights. Why right now.

Existing animal welfare laws are practically useless without enforceable legal rights. World Elephant Month ends in 48-hours and we’re still shy of our goal. Would you consider making a donation today to help us close the gap?  Dear John,   Before joining the NhRP, I had no idea that most animal …

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 28, 2026 at 11:57 PM

"There are no real counterarguments"

Dr. Bob Jacobs breaks down the neural cost of captivity—and why our court cases are so urgent.   “Given the social and cognitive abilities of elephants, it is simply impossible for them to have a meaningful existence in zoos.” - Bob Jacobs, Ph.D.  Dear John,   When the NhRP files a lawsuit, we ex…

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  Jessica, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 27, 2026 at 10:41 PM

A quick note from our new Executive Director

We’re gaining historic legal momentum but are $10,000 away from our goal.  Dear John,   I joined the Nonhuman Rights Project just four weeks ago, right as World Elephant Month began. Immediately, I immersed myself in the stories of our clients Mari and Vaigai, and Savanna, Tasha, Angeline, Victori…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 26, 2026 at 7:06 PM

The momentum is real. So is our $15,000 gap.

What we raise this week will help determine how far we can push the work ahead.  Dear John,When our team read Justice Welch’s dissent from the Michigan Supreme Court’s decision last month, one thing was clear: our strategy is working. Her dissent was a historic legal milestone. It proves that when…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 25, 2026 at 8:04 PM

$19,081 short with 7 days left

We have the legal momentum. Your gift today can help us turn it into the next breakthrough.  Dear John,When our team read Justice Welch’s dissent from the Michigan Supreme Court’s decision last month, one thing was clear: our strategy is working. Her dissent was a historic legal milestone. It prov…

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  Kelly, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 24, 2026 at 5:18 PM

TODAY: Take collective action for elephants

Join supporters around the world taking action for elephants today.  Hi John,  Today, NhRP supporters around the world are coming together for our World Elephant Month social storm, and we want your voice to be a part of it.  When hundreds of us speak up at the same time, we can reach new audience…

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  Michelle, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 21, 2026 at 8:16 PM

Why Alyne is matching your gift today

Our $10,000 match ends at midnight tonight. Dear John, Today is the final day to double your impact for elephants. Our $10,000 match will end at midnight tonight, and I hope you will jump at this opportunity while it’s here.  Today only, your $20 gift becomes $40, and $100 becomes $200, up to $1…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 20, 2026 at 9:16 PM

We’re falling short. Your gift can go 2X as far

Our Elephant Month match ends Friday at midnight! Dear John,This World Elephant Month, we set an ambitious goal: raise $50,000 to fuel our continued fight to secure fundamental legal rights for nonhuman animals. Right now, we’re not where we need to be.  The NhRP is the only organization in the U…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 19, 2026 at 7:22 PM

DOUBLE your impact for World Elephant Month!

Big news: now through Friday, every donation to the NhRP will be matched!  Dear John,We have some big news! Until this Friday at midnight, every dollar you give to the NhRP will be DOUBLED, up to $10,000, for World Elephant Month.  That means a $25 gift becomes $50. A $50 gift becomes $100. This …

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 18, 2026 at 9:18 PM

The ground beneath her never stops shaking

Weeping Elephant Project Executive Director, Danielle, shares Simba’s story.  Dear John,   My name is Danielle Carnahan, executive director at Weeping Elephant Project, and today, I want to tell you about Simba.  Simba is a 58-year-old Asian elephant currently residing at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. …

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  Kelly, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 16, 2026 at 7:01 PM

Don't miss our next advocacy action

Join our WhatsApp Action Network to stay connected with advocacy actions, campaign updates, and other ways to help elephants throughout World Elephant Month.  Hi John, I wanted to make sure you saw our invitation to join the NhRP's WhatsApp community: NhRP Action Network. Throughout August, for Wo…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 14, 2026 at 8:20 PM

"I still remember the smell of the forest..."

Sneezy was captured from the wild as a calf. He's spent 50 years in captivity. Today, we're asking the Tulsa Zoo to free him.   In the early 1970s, several baby elephants were taken from the forests of Thailand and shipped to the US. They were given names from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the…

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  Courtney, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 12, 2026 at 9:35 PM

This World Elephant Day, Tina needs us.

Take one minute to urge the Tulsa Zoo to release her to sanctuary.  Dear John,   Today is World Elephant Day. It's a day to celebrate the incredible lives of elephants—but true celebration also requires us to confront the reality that many elephants remain confined in captivity by the very institu…

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  Kelly, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 12, 2026 at 12:31 AM

You're invited to join our Elephant Action Network

Help lead our biggest World Elephant Month advocacy effort yet.  Hi John,   Last World Elephant Month, supporters from around the world came together to speak up for elephants living in captivity.  Together, we flooded social media with messages calling for a more just future for elephants, helpin…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 11, 2026 at 6:35 PM

What comes next for the DeYoung chimpanzees

After a historic dissent from a Michigan Supreme Court Justice, we filed a motion asking the Court to take a second look at our chimpanzee clients' case. Dear John,  Last month, we shared news of Justice Elizabeth Welch’s remarkable dissent from the Michigan Supreme Court’s order denying our app…

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  Jake, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 6, 2026 at 9:41 PM

The Hawaiʻi Supreme Court will hear our case for Mari and Vaigai

Exciting news: a hearing date has been set. Aloha John, Today I write to you with an important update in our case on behalf of Mari and Vaigai, two wild-born, Asian elephants held captive at the Honolulu Zoo.  Mari is an approximately 51-year-old elephant from India. She was forcibly removed fr…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 5, 2026 at 10:02 PM

“We, too, are diminished.”

Every day Patty remains on display, we are all part of the same story.  Dear John, Right now, there is an elephant alone at the Bronx Zoo.  Her name is Patty. She is 57 years old. She was taken from her family in India as a three-year-old calf, shipped thousands of miles from everything she knew,…

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  Courtney, the NhRP · [email protected]

August 3, 2026 at 10:00 PM

Still time to join us Wednesday!

Jake and I go live Wednesday at 1PM ET. Grab your spot now!   Dear John,  You may have seen our email about Wednesday's live conversation on the NhRP's case for Angeline, Savanna, Tasha, Victoria, and Zuri—but in case you haven't RSVP'd yet, I wanted to reach out personally.  This is a critical m…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

August 1, 2026 at 7:15 PM

This World Elephant Month we honor Happy’s life and legacy

Happy inspired a growing movement for elephant rights, and this month we honor her legacy by continuing this critical fight.   Dear John,  August is World Elephant Month! This year we're honoring the life and legacy of Happy, the elephant whose groundbreaking legal case forever changed the conve…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

July 31, 2026 at 8:23 PM

Announcing Jessica Almy as the NhRP’s new Executive Director

Jessica brings decades of leadership experience in animal protection... Dear John,  On behalf of the Nonhuman Rights Project team and Board of Directors, we're excited to share that Jessica Almy has officially joined the Nonhuman Rights Project as our new Executive Director.   Jessica brings deca…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

July 30, 2026 at 11:01 PM

World Elephant Month: A future beyond captivity

Choose the updates, stories, and actions you want to receive throughout August. Dear John, This August is World Elephant Month, and this year we're inviting you to honor the extraordinary life and legacy of Happy. Born in the wild, Happy spent more than 50 years in captivity before she died at th…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

July 29, 2026 at 10:40 PM

Live webinar on our Pittsburgh elephant clients and lawsuit

Join the NhRP on Zoom next week to discuss our appeal and recent zoo transfers. Inside the NhRP’s Pittsburgh Elephant Case: Join us for a special, live webinar next week about our case for elephant rights in Pennsylvania.  Dear John,  On July 10, the NhRP took a crucial next step in our lawsuit …

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  Free to Be Elephants · [email protected]

July 24, 2026 at 9:01 PM

Linh Mai deserves to be free

Linh Mai was born into captivity in February at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo Dear John,  Linh Mai was born into captivity at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in February of this year. Her birth has been celebrated as a conservation success, but her story reveals the profound costs of captive bree…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

July 23, 2026 at 1:04 PM

A landmark dissent in Michigan: Building the future of animal rights

History has been made in Michigan. Dear John,  Last Friday, the Michigan Supreme Court declined to hear our appeal on behalf of our chimpanzee clients, the seven chimpanzees imprisoned in the DeYoung Family Zoo—a roadside zoo in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We are extremely disappointed by th…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

July 13, 2026 at 9:01 PM

Our Pittsburgh appeal moves forward. The elephants’ right to liberty cannot wait.

Today we filed our opening brief. Dear John, Today, our legal team took the next step in our fight for Angeline, Savanna, Tasha, Victoria, and Zuri—the five female African elephants held captive by the Pittsburgh Zoo—by filing our opening appellate brief with the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. …

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

July 3, 2026 at 5:47 PM

BREAKING: The Pittsburgh Zoo has moved our elephant clients again

Angeline and Savanna have been transferred to the ICC and the zoo announces two new elephants from Canada. Dear John,  An article published yesterday by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette confirmed what our team has suspected for weeks: our clients Angeline and Savanna are no longer at the Pittsburgh Zoo.…

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  Christopher, the NhRP · [email protected]

June 19, 2026 at 5:17 PM

Reflecting on Animal Rights Awareness Week

Animal Rights Awareness Week is a time to reflect on both how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go. Dear John,  Animal Rights Awareness Week is a time to reflect on both how far we've come and how far we still have to go. This year, those two realities feel especially present to me beca…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

June 15, 2026 at 8:51 PM

The NhRP and VFAR send a joint letter to free Patty from the Bronx Zoo.

Help us keep the public pressure on zoo leadership to do the right thing. Dear John,  Last week, the NhRP and Voters For Animal Rights sent a joint letter to the leadership of the Bronx Zoo and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), urging them to do the right thing and release Patty, the sole r…

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  Jake, the NhRP · [email protected]

June 12, 2026 at 5:31 PM

HISTORIC NEWS: The Hawaiʻi Supreme Court has agreed to hear our case for elephant liberty

Mari and Vaigai will have their day in the highest state court of Hawaiʻi, which has the power to grant them their freedom. Dear John, I am excited to share with you truly historic news.  The Hawaiʻi Supreme Court has agreed to hear oral arguments in our case on behalf of Mari and Vaigai, two wild…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

June 4, 2026 at 10:16 PM

Take action to help free Patty before it’s too late.

Sign our petition to free Patty from the Bronx Zoo Dear John, For decades, Happy's story helped expose the profound injustice of keeping elephants imprisoned in zoos. But Happy was not the only elephant confined at the Bronx Zoo.  Patty, a 57 year-old Asian elephant, has spent more than 50 years…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

June 2, 2026 at 10:16 PM

Honoring Happy’s legacy

Let’s make sure the world never forgets her story. Dear John,  Over the past week, the NhRP community has been grieving the loss of Happy the elephant. We've also witnessed an extraordinary outpouring of heartbreak and determination from supporters around the world—a testament to the profound impa…

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  Kelly, the NhRP · [email protected]

May 31, 2026 at 8:47 PM

A final update before midnight

Before midnight, there's still time to support the NhRP's fight for nonhuman rights. Dear John, There are only a few hours left in May.  This month, supporters from across the country stepped up to power the Nonhuman Rights Project’s work, and the response has been extraordinary. I’m deeply gratef…

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  Piper, the NhRP · [email protected]

May 30, 2026 at 4:02 PM

Why I’m excited about the future of our work

Years from now, when animal rights are standard law, it will be because we stood together today and refused to let old rules win. Dear John,  As we close out the month of May and our Spring Fundraiser comes to an end, I’m reflecting on the progress we’ve made at the NhRP over the past year, and th…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 29, 2026 at 7:51 PM

Re: 11 years ago today

The hearing that made history. Dear John,  Our last email about Hercules and Leo’s hearing anniversary included a powerful reflection from Justice Barbara Jaffe on why she chose to grant that historic oral argument, but the version included in our previous email inadvertently omitted several key se…

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  Christopher Berry, Executive Director of the NhRP · [email protected]

May 28, 2026 at 6:16 PM

Happy made history

We mourn Happy’s passing and recommit ourselves to the fight she helped make possible. Dear John, Happy made history.  She opened courtroom doors and brought the fight for legal rights for animals to people around the world. From 2018 to 2022, she was our client in a groundbreaking case that sough…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 27, 2026 at 11:11 PM

11 years ago today

The hearing that made history. Dear John,  Eleven years ago today, New York Supreme Court Justice Barbara Jaffe became the first judge in US history to hold a habeas corpus hearing to determine the lawfulness of a nonhuman animal’s imprisonment. That day, the NhRP’s late founder, Steven M. Wise,…

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  Free to Be Elephants · [email protected]

May 26, 2026 at 10:51 PM

Torn from her daughters at 6 and 15.

For Moja, captivity meant losing her children. Dear John, For female elephants in the wild, family is everything. They live in deeply bonded matriarchal herds, where daughters remain with their mothers for life—traveling together, raising calves together, protecting one another, and passing knowle…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 20, 2026 at 11:01 PM

Hawaiʻi could become the next state to make history for elephants

Four years after Happy’s hearing, will Hawaiʻi give elephants their day in court? Dear John,  Four years ago this week, our team walked into a packed courtroom for a day we will never forget. It was Happy’s hearing before the New York Court of Appeals—the first time a high court in the English-spe…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 19, 2026 at 8:15 PM

Emergency protection for the Ridglan beagles🚨

Last night we requested emergency protection for remaining Ridglan beagles and continued our appeal. Dear John, Last night, the NhRP, alongside our co-counsel at the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project, took two critical steps to protect the hundreds of dogs who remain confined at Ridglan Farms.…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 15, 2026 at 11:01 PM

"I have worked with elephants for three decades."

Brett Mitchell has helped successfully reintegrate more than 17 formerly captive elephants back into protected wild ecosystems. This Endangered Species Day, we're honored to share a powerful guest blog from elephant expert Brett Mitchell, the Founder and Chairman of the Elephant Reintegration Tr…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 12, 2026 at 11:36 PM

Some beagles were rescued. Others are still waiting.

Hundreds of beagles are still waiting for freedom. Help us continue the fight for every beagle who remains at Ridglan Farms. All gifts made to the NhRP now through midnight tonight will be doubled. Donate now to support our critical work for nonhuman animal rights in 2026. When we filed our case on…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 11, 2026 at 8:57 PM

All donations are doubled for 48 hours!

Right now, every gift you make to the NhRP will be doubled up to $10,000. Dear John, Right now, every gift you make to the NhRP will be doubled. Thanks to a generous supporter, all donations made over the next 48 hours will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $10,000. This match comes at an import…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 7, 2026 at 11:16 PM

Act now to free Happy and Patty

A bill to ban elephant captivity has been reintroduced in the New York City Council. For decades, elephants Happy and Patty have been deprived of their freedom and forced to live in a small, unnatural enclosure. Both are confined alone. This is undeniably wrong—but, today, we have the power to make…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 5, 2026 at 11:33 PM

By the numbers: what it takes to secure legal rights for nonhuman animals

In courtrooms across the country, judges are now engaging directly with questions that were once easy to dismiss. Dear John, For decades, the NhRP has advanced a simple but far-reaching idea: that nonhuman animals are entitled not just to our concern, but to actual, enforceable legal rights. The …

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 1, 2026 at 7:31 PM

For those at risk, justice cannot wait.

Choose the topics and frequency of emails you would like to receive this month as we honor Endangered Species Day and highlight the urgent need for nonhuman animals' rights. Dear John,  This May, in recognition of Endangered Species Day on May 15, we are amplifying the urgent needs of the world’s…

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  The NhRP · [email protected]

May 1, 2026 at 1:24 AM

BREAKING: Ridglan beagles case update

1,500 beagles will be freed from cruelty, but our work is not done. Dear John,  After years of relentless advocacy and a massive, collective effort from the animal protection movement, 1,500 beagles are being released from Ridglan Farms—the notorious Wisconsin breeding and research facility. Anima…

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  Jake, the NhRP · [email protected]

April 28, 2026 at 10:45 PM

Hawai‘i Supreme Court appeal filed; help speak out for Mari and Vaigai

As our litigation continues, there is one action you can take today to advocate for Mari and Vaigai’s freedom. Our litigation continues for Mari and Vaigai If you haven’t already, please take one minute to send a message to the Director of the Honolulu Zoo, urging the zoo to allow Mari and Vaigai…

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  Free to be Elephants · [email protected]

April 22, 2026 at 10:36 PM

50 years, 3 acres, and a life of profound loss.

In the wild, Alice would be the keeper of her family’s history. Dear John,  In the wild, a 52 year-old matriarch like Alice would be the keeper of her family’s history. She would be the one who knows exactly where the water flows during a drought and how to lead her sisters and daughters across h…

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