Author: Brandy W. Walt-Rose

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 origins, the daily rituals that center animal agency, the emotional weight of rescue work, and the communities that make their mission possible. From piglets teaching elders how to play to ponies who insist on freedom during their evening return, every story underscores the same truth: when animals are given safety, autonomy, and respect, they reveal who they have always been. This interview offers a rare, honest look at the joys and struggles of sanctuary life—and what compassion can build when a community chooses to care.

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, rainforest collapse is not a natural disaster but a policy choice. A humane future demands abolition of the industries fueling this crisis.

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 deeper crisis in California: the criminalization of compassion and the protection of corporate cruelty at any cost.

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, true conservation demands dismantling the industries and worldviews that treat animals as resources rather than beings with rights.

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 single dog; it is a mirror held up to America’s comfort with harm, hierarchy, and disposability.

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 legally defined and not subjective, and how powerful nations have begun eroding the very principles designed to protect civilians. As civilian casualties rise and accountability fades, the world is left with an unsettling question: if these are the rules of war, who is still following them?

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 silent in the face of suffering. From HIV prevention and civil rights protections to hunger, housing, and public health, compassion is receding from national leadership at a time when communities need it most. This month’s This Month in Compassion examines where empathy is thriving at the grassroots level, where it is disappearing at the federal level, and why ethical governance demands that compassion remain at the heart of every policy decision.

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 remains central to debates over governance, rights, and constitutional structure.

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 what’s coming—and teaches them the power of paying attention.

Black Friday Without Buying: The Rise of the Consumer Blackout Movement

A growing movement is calling for a full consumer blackout over Black Friday weekend—urging people to skip the sales and resist the hyper-capitalist pressure to buy. The blackout shines a light on exploitative labor, environmental damage, psychological manipulation, and the animal suffering embedded in the holiday retail spike. Through the Humane Party lens, it’s an act of ethical realism: choosing not to feed a system built on harm.

Why We Write: A Note on Timing, Purpose, and Our Commitment to the Record

As an all-volunteer publication, The Humane Herald isn’t always able to publish at the pace of the daily news cycle—but we remain committed to documenting the stories that matter. Our goal is to preserve truth, provide context, and give voice to the voiceless, even when the world has already moved on.

The Quiet Revolution or a Quiet Trap?

The FDA’s expanded approval of cultivated meat marks a major shift in U.S. food policy. But beneath the promise of slaughter-free protein lies a harder ethical question: Are we truly ending our exploitation of animals, or simply modernizing it? A technology that begins with the taking of another being’s cells cannot deliver liberation. It can only deliver a cleaner mirror for our existing beliefs.