Sunday, May 16, 2010

Stay active!

Another accident, media take notice
Predictably, the rate of accidents involving horse-drawn carriages in New York City is increasing. The drivers are displaying more recklessness and arrogance than ever before, now that the Tweeders in city government have rewarded this corrupt, cash-only industry. Already this month, we know of two crashes near the park (on May 1, and on May 10).

Gothamist covered these accidents--but only after the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages and Friends of Animals sent details and photographs of the crashes. It was only after the stories were published online by Gothamist that the ASPCA finally acknowledged the accidents, and reiterated the dangerous of mixing cars and horses on city streets. It's too bad that ASPCA has remained silent on this issue during the last few years, apparently because of its corporate stance not to make waves (that would hurt its fund-raising?) So, for now, the horses will continue to suffer.

The Gothamist news coverage reaches a large audience in NYC and beyond. It would not have happened without the efforts of activists. Let's keep the momentum going and watch as the story unfolds online. It is a global story. Indeed, Laura Eldridge got it right in her blog on Huffington Post.

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