PETA Vs NYC’s Carriage Horse Industry

PETA and a coalition of animal rights activists have long battled against New York City’s horse-drawn carriage industry. In a clip issued today, PETA passingly mentions the health of the animals to focus on homophobic and racist statements made by the drivers. Via the Observer:

Pop star Pink just tweeted PETA’s latest video out to her 26 million plus followers, a video that seems to show carriage drivers in moments of hate speech, racism and bigotry. In the video, which appears to have been stitched together from various encounters over the years, a filming passerby asks a coachman by Central Park why his horse is tied to a lamppost. The coachmen then flicks him off and replies with a series of homophobic slurs. “People who don’t live in New York and don’t come to new york don’t realize how much vitriol and hate is inherent in the carriage trade,” Vice President of Media Communications for PETA Dan Mathews told the Observer. “It loses a lot of its luster, and for people sitting on the fence about it, this behavior has no place on the streets of New York.” The city is no stranger to controversy surrounding the carriage industry—a tight union—and Mayor Bill de Blasio has been lobbying for a ban.