All we wanted to do was drive our horses in Central Park, as we have since 1858. The carriage drivers are proud members of Teamsters Local 553, and while the Teamsters are no stranger to politics, the union hoped the mayoral election would be about jobs, workers' rights, working families, and building a better New York City for all.
Yet, animal rights activists have hijacked the 2013 mayor's race in the Big Apple. Attempting to win the votes and donations of animal rights special interest groups, NYC public advocate and mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio has pledged to ban horse-drawn carriages on his first day in office.
De Blasio's opposition to the iconic and famous carriage horses has baffled his opponents and outraged supporters of the industry. De Blasio's "strange" animal-rights turn seems to have been supported by NYCLASS, founded by real estate developer Steve Nislick, and by major Peta donor, Wendy Neu. NYCLASS and de Blasio propose replacing the carriage horses with electric cars.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/apr/22/imagine-central-park-horsedrawn-carriag
Exellent article by a great woman. Christina Hansen is a carriage driver who infiltrated NYCLASS. She is also the co-founder of Blue Star Equiculture, a santuary for homeless and retired draft horses in Mass.