Center on Human Exceptionalism

The mission of Discovery Institute’s Center on Human Exceptionalism is to affirm and uphold the intrinsic nature of human dignity, liberty, and equality. In resistance to a growing movement against unique human personhood, we aim to revitalize a commitment to the traditional Western view of human rights and human responsibilities — summed up by the term “human exceptionalism.” Read more

Humanize

Michigan Courts: Chimpanzees Not “Persons,” but One Justice Dissents

Wesley J. Smith
July 27, 2026
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Animal Welfare
Over the past decade or so, the Nonhuman Rights Project has sought to obtain legal personhood for chimpanzees and elephants. The method to their madness is to seek writs of habeas corpus to release the animals from various means of confinement. The group has failed so far. But it keeps gaining ground that should never have been lost. One high court judge in New York would have granted personhood and rights to chimps, and later, two judges in that court would have done so for elephants. Meanwhile, this fall the Hawaiian Supreme Court will review yet another elephant writ of habeas corpus case brought by the organization. Frankly, I fear the worst. Michigan has seen similar habeas litigation involving chimps where the NhRP lost in the trial and appeals courts. The case involved seven …

Mainstream Bioethics Does Not Represent Mainstream Beliefs

Wesley J. Smith
July 24, 2026
4
Bioethics

Nuns Sue New York Over Forced Complicity in Assisted Suicide

Wesley J. Smith
July 23, 2026
3
Euthanasia

Journal Article Urges MDs to Impede Immigration Law Enforcement “Oppression”

Wesley J. Smith
July 18, 2026
4
Uncategorized

France Legalizes Euthanasia

Wesley J. Smith
July 16, 2026
2
Euthanasia

Bipartisan Call for Federal Oversight over Hospice Assisted Suicides

Wesley J. Smith
July 15, 2026
4
Euthanasia

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Podcast

Stephen C. Meyer on “The Story of Everything”

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Stephen C. Meyer
June 15, 2026
In 50 BC, the great Roman statesman Cicero expressed a thought that has been echoed by thinkers down the generations: “The celestial order and beauty of the universe compel me to admit that there is some excellent and eternal Being who deserves the respect and homage of men.” But in our own day, the evolutionary biologist and atheism proselytizer Richard Dawkins has claimed, “The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference.” Dawkins believes that complex life and the cosmos arose through gradual, evolutionary mechanisms, not through any influence of a creator or purposeful creation. But which worldview does the scientific evidence …

Timothy S. Goeglein on Restoring a Legacy of Faith, Freedom, and Family

Timothy S. Goeglein
May 18, 2026
The United States is in a cultural crisis. Our young are experiencing unprecedented levels of mental illness. Family structures are crumbling with out-of-wedlock births increasing while, at the same time, the number of children being born is decreasing. Some worry about masculinity under attack while others believe that “toxic masculinity” is the cause of most problems. Many are even worried that democracy itself is in real and present danger. It’s all a big mess. How do we restore societal equilibrium? In a new compendium of his many columns on cultural issues, What Really Matters, Timothy S. Goeglein offers readers what he calls a “blueprint” to encourage us “to reevaluate the road we currently travel” and get back to the basics of …

Dr. Benjamin S. Carson Sr. on His Life and the Importance of America’s Founding Principles

Dr. Benjamin S. Carson Sr.
April 27, 2026
In our badly fractured society, can public servants and politicians act with decency and argue about policy with restraint and dignity? We believe the answer is yes, and so Wesley invited a man on the show who epitomizes such virtues to talk about his varied career and the importance of the nation’s founding principles. Dr. Benjamin S. Carson Sr., MD, was born in Detroit to a single mother with a third-grade education, who raised her son to love reading and learning. He graduated from Yale University and earned his MD from the University of Michigan Medical School. For nearly 30 years, Dr. Carson served as Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, a position he assumed when he was just 33 years old, becoming the youngest major division …

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