A bullied boy finds companionship in his animal friends, but as he grows up and finds himself trapped in a soulless career, he discovers a new purpose: freeing animals from captivity and facing the dire consequences.

Today’s episode featured Wayne Hsiung. You can reach out to Wayne at [email protected] or on Instagram, YouTube and Substack @waynehhsiung. 

Wayne Hsiung is an animal cruelty investigator, former faculty member at Northwestern School of Law, and co-founder and Executive Director of The Simple Heart Initiative. He has led teams that have investigated and rescued animals from factory farms and slaughterhouses across the nation – challenging unconstitutional “ag-gag” laws in the process – and has organized successful campaigns to ban fur in San Francisco and California. He served as lead counsel (and, sometimes, defendant) in four “right to rescue” trials in which activists were prosecuted after being charged for giving aid to sick and dying animals in factory farms, garnering media attention from The New York Times. He is also a co-founder and former lead organizer of the grassroots animal rights network Direct Action Everywhere. 

Wayne’s work has been covered by WIRED, ABC’s Nightline, and on The Ezra Klein Show. 

He has published on the right to rescue in Harvard Law Review and climate change’s impact on animals in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review. Prior to his work as an animal advocate, Wayne practiced law at two national firms and studied law and economics at the University of Chicago, where he was an Olin Law and Economics Fellow, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship. He is the proud parent of Oliver, who was rescued from the dog meat trade. 

LINK TO OUR LISTENER SURVEY! 

We’ve come up with a short audience survey, which you can find linked in our show notes and in the bio of our Instagram page @actuallyhappening. We’d love to hear your opinions and feedback, and we’d really appreciate your point of view. Link below:

LISTENER SURVEY

Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Jason Blalock

Content/Trigger Warnings: bullying, animal cruelty/abuse/torture/killing, domestic animals as food, breaking and entering, arrest/jail/interrogation, explicit language

Social Media:

Instagram: @actuallyhappening

Twitter: @TIAHPodcast

Website: thisisactuallyhappening.com

Website for Andrew Waits: andrdewwaits.com

Website for Jason Blalock: jasonblalock.com

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Intro Music: "Illabye" – Tipper

Music Bed: Cylinder Four

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