PLEAS MADE TO NYC OFFICIALS; UNANSWERED

TO:
Betsy Gotbaum; Ombudsman; City of New York
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Subj: STOP CITY WIDE (ILLEGAL) "NO FEED" POLICY
Date: 7/18/04 2:40:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: Fieldjo@aol.com
To: bgotbaum@pubadvocate.nyc.gov
CC: enforcement@aspca.org, mediainfo@peta.org, info@peta.org

ANIMAL ADVOCATES PROTEST NEW YORK CITY'S "NO-FEED" POLICY!

Police Departments CITYWIDE are now enforcing a "no feed policy." They have been instructed to intimidated and harass any person or persons found offering birdseed or food to urban animals.

In fact, there are no laws against feeding urban wildlife in New York City however, when precincts are called individually, they confirm they have been instructed to enforce a "no feed policy."

It is hard enough for pigeon/squirrel/sparrow/starling rescuers to help the injured wildlife they find on the streets of NYC, but to battle the city for feeding them in public parks (yes - public parks) is an outrage.

The NYC Parks Dept. says on its own website that feeding "unrestrained animals" is permitted unless there is a public posting "Do not Feed" -- which there are relatively few. Feeding birds in NYC parks is not illegal.

Please voice your protest by calling Betsy Gotbaum's office- she is the Ombudsman of NYC -- Her hotline number is: 212 669 7250

If anyone gets information that would benefit the cause, please email me directly

Johanna Clearfield, Director Urban Wildlife Coalition-NYC
fieldjo@aol.com
or log on to our website -- where you can post your information. Thank you!
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/urban_wildlife_coalition_NYC

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LETTER TO THE MAYOR'S OFFICE A YEAR AGO AS OF SEPT. 3RD.

Subject: STOP TICKETING BIRD FEEDERS
Date: Tue, 02 Sep 2003 13:22:35 -0400
From: Johanna Clearfield
To: bgotbaum@pubadvocate.nyc.

Ms. Gotbaum:

You will be receiving thousands of signatures on petitions which beg Mayor Bloomberg to stop sending NYC cops after bird feeders in NYC. The following petition will be coming to your office: Petition to stop the harassment, ticketing and arrest of pigeon, bird or wildlife feeders in New York City. The petition reads as follows:

We the undersigned oppose the ongoing
harassment, ticketing and arrest of any person who exercises their rights and
privileges to respond to the needs of wildlife in the New York City environment;
We oppose the placement of signs which read, "Do Not Feed the Pigeons," or "Do
Not Feed the Wildlife," on public property when no illegality has been
established or presented;

WE oppose the official and non-official harassment, ticketing or arrest or support of the same by the Office of the Mayor, the New York Police Department, the New York City Parks Department or any other government agency, which results in public intimidation and fear and ultimately suppresses a constitutional right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and deprives the birds and wildlife of their food supply within the city where natural habitat and food supplies do not exist; and

WE oppose any public policy that seeks to exterminate or obliterate populations of birds or wildlife within the city, creating unnecessary hardship on wildlife rehabilitates and rescuers, and deprives thousands of often isolated people -- especially the elderly -- from the "one pleasure they have in life," which is feeding the birds in the park or public place each day.

These petitions will be distributed to your office and to all other appropriate officials, first and foremost Mayor Bloomberg. Please get the message out that this policy of ticketing bird feeders is extremely unpopular, goes against the so called "spirit of New York" visa vies pitting New Yorkers against eachother -- including several cases where bird feeders have been attacked by non-bird feeders under the (mistaken) impression that bird feeding is not legal.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss this further,

Thanks very much,
Johanna Clearfield
(Home email: fieldjo@aol.com)


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CC:
eboks@nycacc.org, enforcement@aspca.org, development@aspca.org, government@aspca.org, legal@aspca.org, outreach@aspca.org, information@aspca.org, esayres@aspca.org, bprc@urbanmgt.com, meena@theworld.com, bgotbaum@pubadvocate.nyc.gov, quinn@council.nyc.ny.us, gottfrr@assembly.state.ny.us, lkrueger@senate.state.ny.us, office@farmsanctuary.org, rep.carolyn.maloney@mail.house.gov, http://schumer.senate.gov/webform.html, http://clinton.senate.gov/email_form.html, bp@manhattanbp.org, info@portableairconditioners.us, vmatranga@housewares

TO:
THE OFFICE OF THE MAYOR AND ALL APPROPRIATE OFFICIALS (PUBLIC AND PRIVATE) ENTRUSTED WITH THE WELL BEING AND WELFARE OF ITS CITIZENS

FROM:
ANIMAL ADVOCATES; UNITED FOR JUSTICE& CITIZENS OF NEW YORK

REGARDING:
UNFAIR AND CRUEL POLICIES AGAINST NYC & SURROUNDING AREA'S URBAN WILDLIFE; PIGEONS, SPARROWS, SQUIRRELS, STARLINGS ET AL

On May 27th, 2004, Daily News Staffer Ralph Ortega reported on "Public Enemy Number Two" e.g. Pigeons; the News ran a photograph of a pigeon on the front cover and Ortega reported that the Bryant Park Restoration Corporation will install ("humane") coiled wires in their trees to banish the pigeons from that PUBLIC space.

IF PIGEONS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE IN OUR PARKS, WHERE ARE THEY SUPPOSED TO GO?

On June 10th, 2004, New York Times staffer, Ian Urbina, reported that large numbers of pigeons were being illegally netted and allegedly transported out of state for "sport."

The title of his two-page article was, "Who's Kidnapping the Pigeons and Who Cares?" On Friday, June 11th, several members of the animal advocacy group Pigeon People PijnPeople@yahoogroups.com noticed the top of one of Manhattan's mid-town buildings -- THE HAIER BUILDING, located at 36th & Broadway, cluttered with pigeon traps (and trapped pigeons) on its roof. According to the building officials, these pigeons are going to be "safely" transported somewhere, to unknown destination, with unregulated handling.


WE URGE THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE MAYOR'S OFFICE, THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,
THE BUILDING COMMISSIONERS AND ALL OTHER APPROPRIATE AUTHORITIES -- TO INITIATE AND IMPLEMENT A HUMANE, COHERENT URBAN WILDLIFE POLICY.

IF YOU DO NOT WANT PIGEONS IN PUBLIC SPACES -- THEN WE URGE YOU TO CREATE AREAS WHERE THEY CAN FIND SAFE HAVEN.

WE, AS CITIZENS DO NOT SUPPORT THE QUIET, INSIDIOUS AND UBIQUITOUS EXTERMINATION OF URBAN WILDLIFE.WE, CITIZENS OF NEW YORK CITY AND SURROUNDING BURROUGHS, DO NOT ACCEPT THE NOMENCLATURE OF "NUISANCE ANIMAL" ARBITRARILY ASSIGNED TO PIGEONS, SQUIRRELS AND OTHER WILDLIFE - AS AN EXCUSE TO EXEMPT THEM FROM HUMANE TREATMENT.

SQUIRRELS HAVE TO BE RESCUED BY PRIVATE CITIZENS, FOUND BLOODY FROM RAT POISON; RAHAB WORKERS STRUGGLE TO DE-STRING THE THOUSANDS OF PIGEONS FOUND WITH THREAD WRAPPED AROUND THEIR FEET AND SUBSEQUENT INFECTIONS; ANIMAL ADVOCATES STRUGGLE TO ADMINISTER FIRST AID TO WOUNDED WILDLIFE BECAUSE THERE IS NO PUBLIC REHAB CENTER AND NO PUBLIC POLICY TO ADDRESS CONCERNS.

NEW YORK CITY POLICIES CREATE UNNECESSARY HARDSHIP ON SCORES OF CARING NEW YORKERS.WE URGE ED BOKS OF THE CENTER FOR ANIMAL CARE AND CONTROL AND ED SAYRES OF THE ASPCA TO WORK WITH THE MAYOR'S OFFICE, THE BUILDING COMMISSIONER, THE PARKS DEPARTMENT -- TO INITIATE AND MAP OUT A HUMANE URBAN WILDLIFE POLICY.CITIES LIKE SEATTLE, COLORADO AND PORTLAND HAVE SUCH POLICIES.

NEW YORK CITIZENS ARE OUTRAGED BY THE SECRET OBLITERATION OF ITS URBAN WILDLIFE. BECAUSE OF DEPT. OF HEALTH AND THE NEW YORK PARK'S DEPARTMENT HARASSMENT -- CITIZENS CANNOT EVEN GO TO THE PARK AND "FEED THE BIRDS" -- A TIME HONORED URBAN PASS-TIME -- ONE THAT PROVIDES A RESPITE FROM THE HUSTLE AND BUSTLE OF DAILY CITY LIVING.

WE PAY TAXES, THE PARKS ARE OUR ONLY NATURAL CONNECTION AND THE CITY HAS SYSTEMATICALLY RESTRICTED OR PROHIBITED INTERACTION WITH OUR NATURE.

PIGEONS, ALTHOUGH NOT NATIVE TO NORTH AMERICA, HAVE BEEN IN THIS CITY SINCE THE 1700S. BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT NATIVE, THEY ARE NOT INSECTIVORES (INSECT EATING), HENCE THEY ARE MORE DEPENDENT ON HUMAN OFFERING. SUDDENLY, THROUGH INCREASED FINES, POLICE CRACKDOWNS AND SUBSEQUENT "CHILLING EFFECT," THOUSANDS OF PIGEONS ARE SUFFERING, STARVING, DISORIENTED (THEY ARE NOT MIGRATORY BIRDS AND SO CANNOT JUST "FLY AWAY AND LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE")

AND WE AS CITIZENS ARE WITNESS TO THIS MISERY.

WE URGE YOU TO COORDINATE YOUR EFFORTS, TO CEASE AND DESIST CARELESS, CRUEL POLICIES (THE SPIKING OF ALL STATEN ISLAND TRAIN STATIONS OFFERING NO ALTERNATIVES OR SAFE PLACES); RECKLESS POISONING THAT KILLS NOT ONLY RATS BUT SQUIRRELS AND BIRDS AND THIS RELENTLESS DRIVING OUT OF BIRDS FROM THE ONLY GREEN AREAS THAT EXIST.

PLEASE CONTACT ANY OR ALL OF THE CURRENT URBAN WILDLIFE/PIGEON ORGANIZATIONS TO COORDINATE A COHERENT, THOUGHTFUL POLICY:


New York City Feral Pigeon Rescue Central
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NYCPRC/

contact: XXX128@yahoo.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pijnpeople/Contact: Al_Streit@yahoo.com

The Urban Wildlife Coalition; Johanna can be reached through:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/urban_wildlife_coalition_NYC

FPRC -- Feral Pigeon Rescue Central
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/fprc

WE URGE YOU TO CHOOSE COMPASSION OVER KILLING.

SINCERELY,

THE ANIMAL ADVOCATES OF NEW YORK CITY AND SURROUNDING BURROUGHS