J. Howard Moore

John Howard Moore (1862–1916) was an American zoologist, philosopher, educator, and social reformer who wrote on animal ethics, ethical vegetarianism, humane education, socialism, temperance, and evolutionary biology. His most famous book, *The Universal Kinship* (1906), proposed a secular ethic based on the Golden Rule applied to all sentient beings, supported by Darwinian evolutionary concepts. Born near Rockville, Indiana, Moore studied at Oskaloosa College, Drake University, and the University of Chicago, where he earned a degree in zoology in 1896. During his university years, he renounced Christianity, embraced vegetarianism and socialism, and won a national oratory contest. He taught ethics and zoology at Crane Technical High School in Chicago for the rest of his career. Moore was associated with the Chicago Vegetarian Society and the British Humanitarian League. His writings, including *Better-World Philosophy* (1899) and *The New Ethics* (1907), influenced various social and animal protection movements. After suffering from chronic pain and depression, Moore died by suicide in Chicago in 1916.