Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages

Ardele M.. - January 30, 2009        

My name is Ardele M. and I am a volunteer with the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages and worked with the Carriage Horse Action Committee in the early 1990s.  I support Intro 658  - the bill to ban horse-drawn carriages.  Our city can no longer sustain such an inhumane, inappropriate  and out-of-place business.   

Today I would like to address the Irish issue.  Yes it is true that many in the industry are Irish.  But so am I – and so is the head of the Coalition.  Many of our members are Irish American  - some are even from Ireland.  We have also worked on this issue with two Irish animal rights groups – the Alliance for Animal Rights in Dublin and Animal Rights Action Network in Limerick.    

The industry has always tried to deflect attention away from the horses and make people think that we are opposed to the industry because of their ethnic background.  Anti-Irish sentiment may have been prevalent in the 1800s but it is simply not a reality now.  It is so absurd that we generally ignore these charges  – but I am taking that opportunity now to set the record straight.    

We are not anti-Irish – never have been.  But we are anti – carriage horse industry regardless to what race, color, gender, or ethic group the drivers and owners belong. 

NYC needs to join the other ranks of Paris, London, Toronto Beijing – world class cities that have barred the carriage trade from setting up operations in their city.