So far, Mayor DeBlasio’ hasn’t delivered on his promise to rid New York of the horse and carriage “institution.”
In a New York Times op-ed from April, actor and NYC resident Liam Neeson defended the industry, arguing there has been no proof of animal cruelty, and to get rid of it would be a huge loss for an iconic part of the city. He voiced his opposition to the ban, and rambled about DeBlasio’s proposed solution of vintage jalopies: “We should ask whether this is the New York we want to live in: a sanitized metropolis, where local color and grit are thrown out in favor of sleek futuristic buildings and careening self-driving cars?”
Yesterday, PETA posted a video of outspoken satirist Bill Maher’s response to Neeson’s essay. “My life-long Liam Neeson fandom has ended. I can’t stand to look at him,” Maher told PETA, “and you know, if I was on a plane maybe I’d watch one of his movies, but why a guy would go out of his way to champion animal abuse, I have no idea.”
Maher, who serves on PETA’s board, also noted that he had specifically moved hotels in New York to be away from what he sees as blatant animal abuse. Watch the video above to see Maher’s full response.
