12 August 2007 - Vol. # 44
Volunteer **
Nellie McKay **
A Day at the Hack Line **
Accident
Report **
Other Cities **
What You Can Do
VOLUNTEER TO HELP THE HORSES
next Saturday - August 18th
The Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages needs volunteers to help
get signatures on petitions to the Mayor and City Council -- and to
hold posters. We are also asking passersby to participate in
our
post card campaign to Mayor Bloomberg. This is not a demonstration
but an educational event. It is an excellent opportunity to help the
horses and to see how supportive both tourists and New Yorkers are.
You can volunteer for one hour or four. We need to know when you
will be there so we are sure to have coverage. Please contact Teresa
at verush@aol.com if you can volunteer. WHEN: Saturday,
August 18, 2007 WHERE: midtown - information will be given to
volunteers. TIME: 1-5 PM.
If you would like to participate in our postcard campaign, please
contact us. Tell us how many you want and provide your mailing
address. The card is addressed to Mayor Bloomberg and asks him to
ban the horse-drawn carriage industry. We ask that you have your
friends, family and coworkers sign the card and mail it in. To date,
we have sent thousands of post cards to Mayor Bloomberg from New
Yorkers and tourists alike. You may read more about it in a previous
newsletter by clicking on the link above.
NOTICE: we are looking for a place nearby (Central Park South) to
store our materials from week to week. We have a portfolio with
posters and a pull suitcase. If anyone can offer a space, please
contact us at coalitionbanhdc@gmail.com. We would pick up the
material on Saturday about 1:00 and bring it back between 4:00 and
5:30.
NELLIE MCKAY - ACTIVIST FOR CARRIAGE HORSES
Debuts New Album at Joe's pub - August 22nd.
If
you should happen to come by our table one Saturday on 5th Avenue
near Central Park, you might see a young blond woman asking people
to sign a petition, handing out literature or holding one of our
posters. That would be Nellie McKay - singer, song writer, Broadway
actress and animal activist. Nellie is a big supporter of our
campaign to ban horse-drawn carriages in NYC and comes out to join
us any chance she gets. She has worked hard to get many signatures
on our petitions to Mayor Bloomberg and her participation is always
welcome. Nellie is performing at Joe's Pub on Wednesday, August 22nd
- see below for more information.
BroadwayWorld.com -
August 6, 2007 - Joe's Pub presents Nellie McKay in two concerts on
Wednesday, August 8 and Wednesday, August 22 at 11:30PM. "Performer,
songwriter and activist Nellie McKay is set to release her new album
'Obligatory Villagers,' the follow up to 'Pretty Little Head,' one
of the best-reviewed records of 2006," state press notes, "Like its
predecessor, this 9-song odyssey was produced, written and arranged
by McKay - only this time, an ensemble of jazz greats including Phil
Woods, David Liebman and Bob Dorough were enlisted to a studio deep
in the Pocono Mountains. "In addition to scoring the movie-musical
The Amazing True Story of a Teenage Single Mom, McKay has been
active in supporting get-out-the-vote efforts, the campaign to close
Columbia University's primate laboratories, and working to ban
carriage horses throughout the country. She is a contributor to
The Onion and The New York Times Book Review and recently won a
Theatre World Award for her portrayal of Polly Peachum in the
Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera."
Tickets ($20) for either of the Wednesday concerts at 11:30PM can
be purchased by phone at 212-967-7555, online at
www.joespub.com or in person at
The Public Theater Box Office from 1-6PM and at Joe's Pub from
6-10PM. Joe's Pub is located at 425 Lafayette Street (between East
4th and Astor Place) NYC; adjacent to The Public.
WEATHER IN NEW YORK
Horses + Drivers + HLE Officers
We
had crazy weather last week in NYC -- ranging from unbearably hot
and humid to flooding and tornados to chilly. Several days last week
were very hot with high humidity - unbearable for horses and people
alike. The drivers, of course, were out on the hack line -
sq-u-e-e-z-ing out that last fare or two before being sent back
to the stables. The drivers always claim to love their horses - but
we maintain that anyone who really loves their horse would not have
forced him or her to pull a cart full of lazy ignorant tourists in
such hot and humid weather. It is clearly inhumane. But it is all
about money to them.
On Thursday, one of our colleagues went to the hack line on Central
Park South to monitor the situation. She took the temperature at the
asphalt - it was 100 degrees, while the temperature was 90 degrees
at the level of the horse's head. The law requires that horses be
sent back to their stable when it is 90 degrees according to the
ASPCA's super duper, special state-of-the-art modern thermometer,
which of course did not hit 90 degrees when our friend's did.
The
ASPCA's Humane Law Enforcement Officers come to the hack line to
enforce the laws dealing with the carriage horse industry. We have
observed that they often joke with the drivers and appear to have
quiet a cordial relationship. The following is a typical scenario
and is what happened on Thursday. The temperature finally read 90 on
the "special" ASPCA thermometer. There were many carriages out that
day. Sometimes there can be as many as 68 - the maximum. The officer
ordered some of the drivers back to the stables. He allowed those
who already had passengers to complete their rides. This is legal.
And it is the game the drivers play with the HLE officers - If
you can catch me - I will be forced to go back - but just try.
Our colleague went on: "It appeared that the HLE officer had
issued an order to return to the stable and some of the drivers
left. Some continued to return from their last fares, but they did
not leave and waited to pick up new passengers. I told them that
they had to go back, but they insisted that they could stay and
noted that the ASPCA car had gone" The license numbers of these
carriages are 1085, 1101 and 1063 - all associated with West Side
Livery - and 1008 - origins not known. West Side Livery is the
stable that housed Spotty - victim of the January 2, 2006 accident
in which he was later euthanized - owned by one of the Riccobono
brothers. Lorenzo Riccobono, owner of the carriage, has a record of
animal cruelty convictions in Pennsylvania. It was also the home
of Juliet, the elderly, sick horse who collapsed and was beaten by
her driver last September only to die in her stall some time later.
Nice bunch of folks. When it appeared that the carriages had gone,
our friend asked the HLE officer it he had really ordered them back
to the stable this time. He sarcastically responded "they're all
gone, we have the park to ourselves".
WATER FOR THE HORSES
other cities do better
There
are two separately located water troughs in Central Park from which
the horses can drink - the cleanliness and purity of the water is
questionable. As the drivers enter the park, they pass the trough
and may allow the horse to drink - or they may not. I once saw a
driver let his horse drink but only for a second. He pulled her head
back and turned to his passengers saying "See - I show her who's
boss." We never see the drivers with any water for their horses. It
has been rumored that the reason they do this is to prevent the
horse from urinating - and contributing to the bad smell in the
area.
In
St. Louis the "Drivers carry 10 gallons of water in their
carriages to give to and splash on their horses. That supply is
replenished throughout the night. After a three-hour shift, the
horses are hosed down and returned to their fan-cooled stalls."
CARRIAGE CRASH IN OLD
MONTREAL
Horse spooked by jack-hammer
Cal?he crashes in Old Montreal - Sue Montgomery - The Gazette -
Tuesday, August 07, 2007 A spooked horse pulling a caleche raced
down Notre Dame St. W. in crowded Old Montreal today, tore through a
red light and smashed into a transport truck, sending the cart's
driver hurtling through the air and onto the sidewalk. Tour bus
driver Jacques Belisle had just unloaded his Italian passengers onto
the sidewalk when the horse went racing by. "It was just like in a
movie," he said. The truck driver, a shaken Abderrahim Rabii, said
he was driving south on St. Pierre St. and stopped at the red light
at the corner of Notre Dame. When the light turned green, he turned
left onto St. Pierre and the caleche ran the red light, slamming
into the front corner of his eight-wheel Kenmore truck. "The driver,
a woman, was very young and she just flew through the air," he said.
"It happened so quickly." There were no passengers in the caleche,
which are very popular with tourists in Old Montreal. The caleche
driver was taken away by ambulance, but didn't suffer any serious
injuries. The horse, which continued east on Notre Dame St. before
coming to a stop, wasn't injured. But the caleche was ruined - all
four wheels were broken and the horse's harness snapped. A woman
working at a nearby shop said the horse was spooked by the sound of
a jack-hammer at a construction site on Notre Dame St.
OLD
WETHERSFIELD, CT. PLANS CARRIAGE RIDES
town's plan challenged by FoA
Courant.com
Animal Activists Protest Buggy Rides By ANN MARIE SOMMA Courant
Staff Writer August 10, 2007 WETHERSFIELDAn animal rights advocacy
group is challenging the town's plan to offer horse-drawn carriage
rides in historic Old Wethersfield. The Darien-based Friends of
Animals has publicly urged the Wethersfield tourism commission and
local and state officials to stop what it considers an "
exploitative and archaic practice." "People generally think of
horse-and-buggy rides as romantic and beautiful, but the bottom line
is it is exploiting animals. It's forcing horses to pull people on
the street. The horses wouldn't be doing it if they had the choice,"
said Nancy Rice, the group's outreach coordinator. The town plans to
use a $25,000 state grant to offer horse-and-buggy rides in the
historic district beginning in the fall. The hope is that the
carriage rides will attract more tourists and promote downtown
commerce. State Sen. John Fonfara, D-Wethersfield, pushed for state
money to offer the rides. Rice said the group plans to urge its
members to write to the town council and state lawmakers to voice
their opposition. Rice said she wrote Gov. M. Jodi Rell a letter
this week asking her to revisit the state grant. The group is
considering demonstrating in the historic district. Town Manager
Bonnie Therrien said the request for proposals prepared for the job
asks horse and carriage operators how they intend to care for the
horses. The proposals will be passed to the state Department of
Agriculture's animal control division for review. The bids are due
Aug. 20. "We are very conscious that the animals are treated
correctly and humanely," Therrien said. Contact Ann Marie Somma at
asomma@courant.com.
KEEP THIS ISSUE IN THE
PUBLIC EYE
what you can do
More
pressure and more exposure is needed. Please continue to write a
Letter to the Editor to the following media. Remember to always
include your contact information - name, address, telephone and to
keep the letter between 100 to 150 words. You can discuss the issue
in general; the heat; lack of water; how other cities have banned
the industry.
NYPost - letters@nypost.com;
NYDaily News -voicers@edit.nydailynews.com; Metro -
letters@metro.us. AM-NY - letters@am-ny.com NY Times -
letters@nytimes.com, NY Newsday letters@nynewsday.com.
And don't forget to contact
Mayor Bloomberg and your
City Council member - even if you already have.
The
New York Times blog on
Humane Law Enforcement is no longer available for posting but
may still be viewed. The NYTimes blog on
carriage horses is still available for posting. You are also
welcome to post on our
carriage horse blog . If you have not signed our
online petition - please do so now and forward it to everyone
you know. The petition is directed to NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg
and the NYC Council and asks them to support a ban of the
horse-drawn carriage industry.
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed
citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that
ever has." - Margaret Mead
| Thank you for caring about the horses, Elizabeth
Forel - Coalition for NYC Animals, Inc. for the
Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages |
