Lea Michele: PETA Activist Threatens to Move Because of Horse Controversy

Posted on Dec 29th 2011 10:10AM by Sarah Chazan

Michael Buckner | Getty

Taking a romantic horse and carriage ride around Central Park isn't on the "to do" list for Lea Michele this New Year's Eve. For the past year, the famous vegetarian has voiced her outrage over the treatment of NYC carriage horses -- even starring in a PETA ad campaign calling out what she believes are the horrific conditions the animals must work in.

At the launch of the campaign, Lea was quoted as saying: "Imagine for a moment that you're forced to do hard physical labor all day, seven days a week -- whether it's sweltering hot or freezing cold outside. At the end of the day, instead of relaxing on [an] easy chair or sleeping in a comfortable bed, you are locked in a tiny closet all night long." According to PETA, "This tortured life is a sad reality for the horses who are used to pull carriages."

While Lea's message reached many fans and garnered tons publicity for the issue, the 'Glee' star never saw any action from the city's government. Now, Lea is threatening to move away from her beloved hometown if a change for the horses is not made.

In a post on her Twitter page, Lea writes: "New York, u know how much I love you. But if I see another horse & carriage struggling in this winter weather I may not be able 2 be here."

The actress goes on to ask her fans for their support of this animal rights issue. "Please tweet to Mike Bloomberg if you agree that horse and carriages should no longer be on the busy streets of Nyc," tweeted Lea. "And let's end this. Mike Bloomberg, please listen to the thousands of people who are saying that they no longer want horse & carriage rides in this city."

Do you agree with Lea's assessment of the horse's living conditions in New York City? Comment below with your thoughts.

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Around The Web:

Lea Michele Exposes Horse-Drawn Carriage Cruelty | PETA.org

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Central Park Patrons React to Lea Michele's PETA Ad | PopEater.com

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NYCcarriages

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CARRIAGE ASSOCIATION EXTENDS INVITE TO HORSE-FOE LEA MICHELE TO TOUR STABLES AFTER GLEE STAR DEMANDS BAN
Industry says it would hate for Michele to leave NYC based on false information about carriage horses

NEW YORK, NY. (January 4, 2012) – The Horse and Carriage Association of New York City has extended an open invitation to Lea Michele to tour the stables after the actress threatened to leave NYC for good if Mayor Michael Bloomberg does not ban the iconic horse-drawn carriages in Central Park.

“Lea Michele has been actively campaigning for NY-CLASS against our horses, and what she’s been led to believe about them – and us – simply isn’t true,” said HCANYC Vice President Eva Hughes, who issued the invitation in response to a tweet by Ms. Michele. “Our horses lead exceedingly reasonable, regulated lives that bear no resemblance to the way they have been portrayed by NY-CLASS and PETA. We believe that Ms. Michele would want to fully research her position about carriage horses before making such a dramatic step as moving out of her beloved New York, and we’re confident that once she sees the conditions our horses live in, she’ll be happy to tell the Mayor that she wants to stay – and that our horses should stay, too.”

Ms. Hughes added that Ms. Michele would be more than welcome to bring the equine expert of her choice to independently evaluate the horses and their homes, and that she could tour the stables at her convenience – before Ms. Michele starts calling around looking for moving trucks and a one-way ticket out of town. “If, after touring our stables and meeting our horses and their drivers, Lea Michele still wants to act as an anti-carriage-horse spokesperson for NY-CLASS, that’s her right. But we just want her to see for herself that our horses live in clean, comfortable stalls with ample bedding, constant access to water, and high-quality hay, in stables with state of the art cooling, ventilation and fire-protection systems. She’s been terribly misled by NY-CLASS, and is unknowingly repeating their politically-motivated misinformation.”

NY-CLASS (New Yorkers for Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets) and its parent organization, the ASPCA, have come under intense fire this fall. The ASPCA was blasted for unfairly and unethically targeting the carriage industry by former ASPCA cop, Henry Ruiz. It has also been subject to complaints to the New York Attorney General by its own equine vet, Dr. Pamela Corey, who claims that the ASPCA pressured her to issue misleading statements about the health of carriage horses. The HCANYC filed complaints against both the ASPCA and NY-CLASS in November, alleging that the two organizations had improperly conducted a coordinated campaign of malicious defamation against the carriage industry through fraudulent smear tactics, including a video featuring Ms. Michele that was co-produced by PETA and NY-CLASS.

January 04 2012 at 6:04 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

1 reply to NYCcarriages's comment

NYCcarriages

“The video Ms. Michele did last January on behalf of NY-CLASS against the carriage horses was full of outright untruths that we’re sure she never would have said, had she known the truth,” said Hughes. “We know she wouldn’t want to be caught in outright lies, so that’s why we’re extending this invitation.”

Lea Michele’s most recent screen role was in Garry Marshall’s New Year’s Eve, a celebration of New York City that features the famous NYC carriage horses at both the beginning and end of the film.

January 04 2012 at 6:05 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

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