Wednesday, December 31, 2008 WAR Closes Out 2008 In Defense of Carriage Horses and at HLS Customer Bristol-Myers Squibb In Defense of the Central Park Carriage Horses Activists bundled up against the arctic temperatures and headed to Central Park on the off chance that the carriage horses were made to work during the New Years Eve winter storm. Snow fell on the horses, most of whom were not covered by any blankets or weather slickers. Of course all of the carriages were equipped with blankets for the fat assed tourists that were too lazy to walk Central Park on their own. The sound of voices raised in chants attracted the attention of many passersby and tourists at the busy intersection of Fifth Avenue and Central Park South. “There’s no excuse, for animal abuse”….protesters chanted. To their credit, many tourists stopped to look at the posters and to ask questions about the treatment of the horses. Many ultimately decided to forego the tourist attraction, to withhold support for this cruel and abusive industry.  A woman and her daughter from Ireland told the protesters that they had planned to take a carriage ride until they looked closely at the faces and the bearing of the horses the previous day. They told us that they had changed their minds and decided against it because the horses looked so downtrodden and unhappy. They asked questions about where the horses lived and the conditions. Based on the answers they received, they went away feeling they had done the right thing to not contribute to the exploitation. They promised to call the Mayor’s office before leaving New York City. Another family from Brazil that was about to hire two carriages decided against it after speaking to activists and seeing the pictures of dead or injured horses on the streets of New York City. They promised that they would never participate in such cruelty. As usual the carriage drivers showed what low life scum they are by showing their asses regardless of whether they had customers in the carriages. They cursed and made crude sexual gestures. More than one made lewd sexual comments and one went so far as to threaten an activist with sexual stalking and assault. With callous disregard for the safety of their horses and their human customers (not to mention the many pedestrians and those riding in cars), carriage drivers stood in their cabs in order to shout insults at activists or to video tape the protest. On multiple occasions they were begged to look in front of them and to be careful about traffic. They clearly couldn’t care less. All of this was captured on videotape. WAR will never back down until these crude animal abusers are off the streets and no longer a threat to any animal, human or non-human. Lamberto Andreotti, President – Worldwide Pharmaceuticals - HLS Customer Bristol-Myers Squibb Despite the plummeting temperatures, the snow flurries and intense wind, activists walked to the Central Park West home of Lamberto Andreotti, President of Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Worldwide Pharmaceutical Division. Andreotti’s building is very exclusive and the residence of some very rich and important people including the aging pop icon Madonna. Activists keep hoping they run in to Madonna, so they can share their feelings about her full-length chinchilla coat. Graphic signs depicting the mutilated remains of puppies, bunnies, cats and mice were help high for all to see. “For the cat and for the mouse…..we are here outside your house”, protesting voices chanted. And “You can put our friends in jail, we will drive the final nail” was shouted out, no doubt with the recent unjust convictions of SHAC activists in England. Traffic was heavy (both pedestrians and vehicles) as this location is less than a mile from where the New Year’s Eve ball was going to be dropped at Times Square. This is a very popular and well-attended tradition in New York City and activists braved the cold in order to take advantage of the increased traffic. Many flyers were distributed and questions were answered. It was clear to anyone who stopped to chat that Bristol-Myers Squibb is responsible for the suffering of countless thousands of animals and the killing of 500 animals a day as a direct result of funding the animal butchers at Huntingdon Life Sciences. If Bristol-Myers Squibb stops paying Huntingdon Life Sciences, Huntingdon Life Sciences will stop killing animals. It is that simple. The blood is on their hands! Video Clips: |
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