Why this is a Landmark Win is Transforming the Animal Rights Movement & Saving Animal Lives
I am thrilled to witness this historic victory for horses in New York City (NYC) with the city council vote taking a step forward to finally close down the horse carriage industry. This has been a long awaited journey years in the making as animal advocates, activists, and horse caring citizens have spoken out on this horrific cruelty to horses for years. I applaud those humans that stood on the busy, crowded streets of NYC, protesting a 150-year-old tradition of systemic exploitation of horses. With this monumental victory, the horse-drawn carriage industry will be phased out entirely, guaranteeing that these majestic animals will be off the streets by June 2028.
As an animal advocate, this plight of horses is a cause close to my heart. In my book, A Voice for Animals: The Social Movement That Provides Dignity and Compassion for Animals, I dedicated a chapter to horses. Personally, I have seen these poor horses during trips to NYC on the bustling noisy streets and sad stories of these injured and tired horses being used for human entertainment. Horses are living, breathing, complex creatures with deep feelings and intuition; gentle giants that are trusting and kind; they are not disposable items to be used and discarded.
A heartwarming story that touched my heart was a horse used in this industry. His name was Ryder, and he was an elderly, emancipated horse that was used as a horse carriage whose collapse on a sweltering summer Manhattan pavement in 2022 garnered the public’s attention. He later died and it sparked public outcry to pass legislation to ban horse carriage industry in NYC. I wrote about Ryder in a blog, and later included his sad story in my book, A Voice for Animals: The Social Movement that Provides Dignity and Compassion for Animals. I wanted people to learn about an individual horse’s story and raise awareness of this horrific cruelty. Although Ryder’s Law did not initially pass, the tragic story shaped this new law.
The updated legislation is Romanch’s Law, named in honor of Romanch Mahajan, an 18-year-old tourist from India who tragically lost his life during a high school graduation trip. When his carriage horse, Sampson, bolted while the driver was away, Romanch bravely tried to save his mother but was fatally thrown. It is so sad that a young man lost his life. It touched our hearts.
The cruelty of this industry took human and equine lives. Just days before Romanch’s death, a 16-year-old carriage horse named Deniz dropped dead after collapsing in Central Park. What took years in the making with so many tragedies makes it a bittersweet victory for animal rights.
The essence of the passage of this new law is not only that it will cancel this cruel industry, it goes a step further to include a prohibition on working horses from being sold to slaughterhouses or transferred to other carriage operations. Instead, they must be humanely re-homed, guaranteeing they will spend the rest of their lives in safety in sanctuaries. It is a crucial step forward for the animal protection movement as the law recognizes horses as sentient beings that deserve dignity, and compassion (the essence of my book) and a second chance at life.
The simplest step we can take as citizens is to say no to city carriage rides in other places. By withholding our financial support from this industry and educating others to do the same, we stop this industry from profiting. We can write our city counselors to pass laws similar to NYC and are proving to the world that monumental change is entirely possible when we organize and speak up. I encourage you to reach out to your own local city council or representatives, using this historic moment as a precedent to urge them to introduce similar protections in your own town.
The momentum is here for horses and positive changes are happening globally. For instance, cities like Montreal and Rome banned horse-drawn carriages, while Vienna and Mumbai are replacing them with modern electric carriages. We can be inspired and take action by these places and apply New York’s vote as precedent to push for similar protections, especially in places like Charleston and Savannah where sadly the horse carriage industry still continues.
Lastly, it’s progress to be celebrated. There’s still work to be done to retire New York’s horses by 2028 will take a lot of work, and we can help right by volunteering to horse sanctuaries. Please share this article to help spread the word about this new law and motivate others to take action!
What are your thoughts on New York’s upcoming vote? Do you think other cities will follow? Let’s chat in the comments below! To dive deeper into heartwarming animal stories of compassion, please join my newsletter at suzanagartner.com