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The momentum of the past few weeks is astounding. A year ago, no one thought that we would be where we are today – with animal rights at the forefront of the Mayoral election, with candidates actively courting us for votes. This has never happened before in the history of the animal advocacy movement!
Let me be clear: to get the carriage horses off the streets of Manhattan, we MUST have a humane Mayor and City Council who will pass our legislation to retire the horses to sanctuary and replace them with electric cars.
Christine Quinn is the only Mayoral candidate who doesn’t support animal rights, while all the other candidates do. What’s worse, she’s actually blocked numerous pieces of legislation to help animals such as shelter pets, circus animals and of course, carriage horses. What kind of person blocks legislation to mandate fire sprinklers in pet stores?
That’s why our generous anonymous donor set us a challenge last month to raise $20,000 online before May 31st. If we succeed, they will MATCH that, meaning $40,000 for us to advocate for the horses and other animals of New York City.
It’s an exciting time to be a Horse Hero! Get political for animals and donate today.
They were speaking to YOU
And it was a HUGE success. With over 250 animal lovers packing the room, four Democratic hopefuls and one Republican spoke to the room to vie for your vote.
That's right, they were speaking to YOU.
Because for the first time in history, animal rights could sway the New York mayoral election. And we couldn't have pulled it off without the funding our supporters provide.
A generous donor has offered to match donations up to $20,000 to end the horse abuse in New York. But this offer is only good until Memorial Day so we have to act fast. Chip in $5 right now and your donation will be matched.
So successful was our mayoral forum, that it received ample coverage in all the major New York publications including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and NY Daily News.
The press is taking notice, the people of New York are taking notice, but one person who didn't think the concerns of 110,000 members of NYCLASS was worth addressing is animal-foe Christine Quinn.
Let's show her just how powerful our voices can be.
We're less than $5,000 from our goal! But with a deadline of Memorial Day, there's not much time left to get your donation matched! Donate $5 now so we can keep making animal rights a priority in this election.
You won't believe this
On Wednesday, Joe Lhota, the leading GOP candidate for NYC Mayor endorsed banning carriage horses in NYC.
So now it's clear. If we defeat Quinn, we also defeat the horse carriage industry. Chip in $5 right now and your donation will be matched 2-to-1.
You heard us right. The Republican candidate is more progressive on animal rights issues than the Democrat Christine Quinn.
In an interview with AM 970, Mr. Lhota said, "Quite honestly, there are ways to do this without horses. You can have carriages with motors if you want to see Central Park. The reality is we live in the 21st Century. Do we really need to have horses on the streets of New York?"
Mr. Lhota's endorsement comes just after our hugely successful mayoral forum where candidates Bill de Blasio, Bill Thompson and John Liu all publicly voiced serious concern for the horses and voiced their support for the Horseless Carriage Pilot Program.
We'll take Lhota's endorsement to end horse carriage abuse over animal-foe Christine Quinn any day. Now, we must defeat her. She's down 5-10 points in the latest polls -- help us keep her numbers going down!
A generous donor has offered to match donations up to $20,000 to end the horse abuse in New York. But this offer is only good until Memorial Day so we have to act fast!
We're more than half-way to our goal. Chip in $5 right now and your donation will be matched.
Remember, we have a one in 12 year opportunity to elect an animal friendly mayor. Chip in now to make sure we don’t lose this chance!
If we defeat Quinn, we also defeat the horse carriage industry
What a success!
Four Democratic hopefuls and one Republican spoke to the crowd on issues near and dear to our hearts--horse carriages, animal shelter reform and more.
And the forum received a ton of press too, receiving coverage in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and NY Daily News – all who commented that our time as a movement has finally come. But noticeably absent from the forum was Christine Quinn--who has continually said that she will not end the inhumane and outdated horse carriage industry.
The primary is September 10th and she's leading in the polls! We must stop her.
This mayoral race, we have made animal rights a top issue. And that was on full display as all five mayoral candidates tried to display their commitment to animals last night.
While each candidate varied on the issues including on ending the horse carriage industry, one thing became abundantly clear--whoever gets elected Mayor will certainly be a better voice for animal rights than Christine Quinn.
It's not too late to take advantage of a generous offer from a donor who will match donations up to $20,000 before Memorial Day. Already, we're more than half-way to our goal! Donate $5 now and your donation will be matched.
Look at all these Mayoral candidates who came out:
TODAY 4:30 PM MAYORAL FORUM ON ANIMAL RIGHTS
Today is a big day for NYCLASS — we’re hosting our very first Mayoral forum on Animal Rights and every candidate but one (AHEM, CHRISTINE QUINN) will be in attendance.
While Quinn hides — she’s terrified of having to defend her abysmal record on animal rights — we’re proud that so many candidates ARE coming today - like Bill Thompson, Bill de Blasio, John Liu, Sal Albanese and John Catsimatidis. This forum is a sign of the political power our organization has created. So come out today and join us!
RSVP's appreciated at www.nyclass.org/may6, or you can just show up.
You’ll have the opportunity to question these candidates about what they’ll do on a number of animal issues like ending carriage horse abuse and reforming the city's animal shelter system!
Don’t miss your chance to make your voice heard.
Hope to see you today at 4:30 PM!
Last Minute Change! Mayoral Forum Begins 4:30 PM
As you all know, we are hosting NYC's first ever Mayoral Forum on Animal Rights on May 6th -- that's this coming MONDAY! Due to scheduling conflicts, we've had to move our start time from 5:30pm to 4:30pm. We didn't want to move our time, but this is the only way that the major candidates can all be in one room to answer questions about how they will care for NYC's animals if elected.
All of the major mayoral candidates have accepted our invitation to participate -- except for Horse Hater Christine Quinn. That in itself is a statement, but perhaps just as important is the statement that ALL OF THE OTHER CANDIDATES will be in attendance. We need your help to keep animal rights as on of the issues that will decide this campaign. And we need to pack that hall on Monday.
PLEASE come and show support for animal rights on May 6th, 4:30-6PM.
We are really working towards getting a large crowd for the event, especially in light of the recent New York Times coverage of our issues in this year’s election. That means we need you to come! We are reaching out to our supporters and asking you to commit to attending – being there to show support is crucial.
Take a minute to RSVP here today and let us know we can count you in our crowd total.
Don't miss your chance to ask the Mayoral candidates in person where they stand on horse drawn carriages, AC&C animal shelter reform and other humane legislation. And animal lover Tom Allon, CEO of Manhattan Media, will be the moderator. The debate is quick, just 90 minutes, and having Horse Heroes out in force will reiterate that our issues are here to stay this election cycle.
And thanks for all of your support as a Horse Hero.
The Deets:
When: 4:30 pm – 6 pm, May 6th
Moderator: Tom Allon, CEO of Manhattan Media
CANDIDATES CONFIRMED:
Bill de Blasio
Bill Thompson
John Liu
Sal Albanese
John Catsimatidis
Mayoral Forum on Animal Protection
Can you be there to show support for animal rights on May 6th, 4:30-6PM?
We are expecting a large crowd for the event, especially in light of the recent New York Times coverage of our issues in this year’s election, so we are reaching out to our top supporters and asking you to commit to attending – even if you don’t get your question answered, being there to show support is crucial.
Take a minute to RSVP here today and let us know we can count you in our crowd total.
Don't miss your chance to ask the Mayoral candidates in person where they stand on horse drawn candidates, AC&C animal shelter reform and other humane legislation. And animal lover Tom Allon, CEO of Manhattan Media, will be the moderator. The debate is quick, just 90 minutes, and having Horse Heroes out in force will reiterate that our issues are here to stay this election cycle.
And thanks for all of your support as a Horse Hero.
The Deets:
When: 4:30 pm – 6 pm, May 6th
Moderator: Tom Allon, CEO of Manhattan Media
CANDIDATES CONFIRMED:
Bill de Blasio
New York Times FRONT PAGE!
We were just approached by a generous donor who saw the splash we are making and offered us a challenge:
Our new campaign to elect an animal-friendly mayor, aka our "Anybody But Quinn" coaliltion, is making a difference already this week. With just a week of a TV commecials under our belt, Christine Quinn's polling numbers have dropped FIVE POINTS. The momentum we've been building all year is not only growing, but starting to pay off.
Animal rights are now a major player in the NYC Mayor's race. Our time has come, Horse Heroes!
Big News! Are You In?
And we aren’t doing it alone – we are thrilled to announce the formation of a coalition of partners dedicated to defeating Quinn’s mayoral bid - New York is Not For Sale 2013.
Watch our coalition’s first TV ad here which aired on MSNBC, NY1 and CNN:
And then tell us that “I'm in! Say Neigh To Quinn!”
We can’t do this without you. Sign up to volunteer for our campaign between now and Election Day.
To end the carriage horse abuse once and for all, we need legislative change, and that means we need elected officials who are friends of the animals. That’s why we’re taking this campaign turn this year.And the reason we are targeting Christine Quinn is obvious. She has blocked all legislation on the horses. She’s blocked legislation requiring fire sprinklers in pet stores and on animal shelter reform. She’s not a friend of the horses – or any New York animals - two legged or four legged.
This coalition is historic. Never before have animal rights advocates come together with organized labor union to swing an election. This is how we make our elected officials stand up and take note.
Thanks for being a Horse Hero.
Christine Quinn Is A Bully To Animals
By Christopher Zara, International Business Times
NYCLASS, a group lobbying to do away with carriage horses in Central Park and elsewhere in the city, is using fictional bullies such as Biff Tannen of “Back to the Future” and Darth Vader of “Star Wars” to draw attention to what it says is Quinn’s abysmal record on animal protection.
Capitalizing on a widely circulated New York Times profile -- which characterized the City Council speaker as a temperamental, vengeful loose cannon -- the group launched “Bullies for Christine Quinn,” a meme-fueled Tumblr blog that features famous bullies proudly wielding Christine Quinn for Mayor signs. Lucy van Pelt, Gordon Gekko, Nelson Muntz and Godzilla are a few of the other bullies throwing their satirical support behind the mayoral frontrunner.
Quinn officially threw her hat into the race earlier this month and is so far considered the most likely candidate to take the reins from outgoing Mayor Michael Bloomberg in November.
The Times profile in question was published on Tuesday, and recounted Quinn’s alleged “hair-trigger eruptions” and “angry tirades” as told by officials who had worked with the speaker. Allie Feldman, lead organizer for NYCLASS, said the article serves as further proof that Quinn is unfit to lead the city and will not advance the cause of animal rights.
“We can’t have a mayor who is a bully like that,” she said in a phone interview. “If she talks like that to humans, imagine how she would treat non-human residents, who literally have no voice.”
Quinn’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
As speaker of the City Council, Quinn has had a contentious relationship with animal-rights groups including NYCLASS and PETA, both of which support phasing out horse-drawn carriages and replacing them with electric-powered replicas of early-20th-century automobiles. According to Feldman, Quinn prefers the status quo and has not supported legislation that would facilitate the transition.
In 2010, with Quinn’s support, the City Council passed a bill to increase the fare for horse-drawn carriage rides and provide more vacation time for horses. As the New York Times reported then, Quinn called the bill a “huge step forward,” but opponents of the horse-drawn carriage industry disagreed. The carriage rides routinely draw criticism and protest demonstrations from activists who say the horses are overworked, kept in cramped stalls and ill-adapted for a modern-day urban environment. Major cities such as Paris, London, Toronto and Beijing have already banned carriage horses.
Feldman said other mayoral candidates more closely align with NYCLASS’ objectives, but she declined to say whom the group will endorse in November.
The Times profile of Quinn has sparked accusations of sexism among Twitter users and others who said that tales of tantrums and aggressive behavior would not be an issue if Quinn were a male candidate. (Storify user Jacob Kornbluh curated some of those complaints here.) But Feldman said New Yorkers should be concerned about the article’s characterizations of vindictive behavior. The story recounts a highly publicized incident in which Quinn allegedly cut the budget of City Councilwoman Liz Crowley in retaliation for Crowley’s office having sent out a premature press release.
Feldman said the inspiration behind “Bullies for Quinn” blog was not just to draw attention to an important issue, but to do so using the universal language of satire. In that vein, she said supporters are welcome to visit the NYCLASS Facebook page and suggest bully memes or submit their own.
“We’re not your typical animal-rights organization,” Feldman said. “We’re new, we’re young. And we’re also very political.”
For what it’s worth: As of Friday afternoon, the blonde-headed guy from “The Karate Kid” still hadn’t made the cut.