Animal Welfare United States Project #45514

Help end horseracing in the United States

by Horseracing Wrongs Inc.

Project Report | Mar 10, 2023
Fighting for horses at the New York State Capitol

By Nicole Arciello | Executive Director

Nicole presenting "Trophy" to Governor's office

Did you know that roughly 75% of horseracing in the U.S. is propped up by taxpayer subsidies?

This means that even if we win the war for hearts and minds - and we are well on our way to doing just that - as long as these subsidies remain on the books, the exploiters and killers will continue to laugh all the way to the bank.

Horseracing Wrongs is fighting this head on in New York State.

Last month, Governor Kathy Hochul released her 2023 budget, which included a state-backed loan of $455 million to the New York Racing Association (NYRA) to rebuild Belmont Park. This loan would be repaid through the millions of dollars - $130M annually, that is - that NYRA already receives in subsidies - the same subsidies Horseracing Wrongs and the Coalition to End Horseracing Subsides is working to end with a bill in the NYS Legislature.

This proposal would not only perpetuate the cycle of taxpayer-funded subsidies for horseracing but also exacerbate an already deadly situation.

Belmont Park is currently the deadliest track in New York State, and if this proposal is approved, the "New" Belmont would become the deadliest track in the U.S.!

Hundreds more intelligent and beautiful horses will die for $2 bets.

Wednesday, I, Patrick, and a host of smart, dedicated, and passionate HW volunteers went to the NYS Capitol in Albany for a press conference and lobby day on Governor Hochul’s proposed $455M loan to the New York Racing Association to rebuild Belmont Park.

Immediately following the press conference, we led our activists over to the governor’s office to present a mock trophy (photo below) to Ms. Hochul for intending to build what would become the deadliest racetrack in America. Then it was off to 72 key legislative offices for an intense, productive afternoon of lobbying during which our team distributed more than 100 booklets detailing the deaths of almost 1,000 horses killed on NYS tracks since 2014.

We are a small, but hardworking organization fighting an industry with deep pockets. We are grateful for the unwavering support of our donors who share our mission and our passion for saving the lives of horses.

Together, we can create a ripple effect that will save the lives of thousands of horses across the country, starting with New York.

The horses need us now more than ever.

Sincerely,

Nicole Arciello

Executive Director

Horseracing Wrongs

HW at the Governor's Office

Press Conference at the Capitol Patrick speaking

Links:

THE "NEW BELMONT" WOULD BECOME THE DEADLIEST TRACK IN U.S.

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Nov 16, 2022
Fighting every day for the horses!

By Nicole Arciello | Executive Director

Every day, we at Horseracing Wrongs are working to be a voice for the horses and end their suffering.

As the only organization in the United States solely focused on ending the cruel horseracing industry, Horseracing Wrongs is building momentum and our campaigns are mobilizing thousands to become advocates for the horses.

As we near the end of another year and still recovering from the effects, the loss of momentum because of Covid, 2022 has proven to be a great year in the fight to end horseracing!

I'm happy to share an update on the last few months!

In September, Horseracing Wrongs held the first Nationwide #Vigil4Horses. The live-stream event took place outside the gates of Saratoga Race Course in New York, while advocates across the country joined from home to light a candle to remember the thousands of horses that are killed for gambling and entertainment.

We are making plans now for the next #Vigil4Horses for 2023, which we will hold annually until the last track is shut down!

On October 27, almost a year to the day of the defeat of a racetrack proposal in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, another similar proposal was up for vote. This time in Hardwick, Massachusetts. Horseracing Wrongs sent out Action Alerts and a Petition to target Hardwick's Board of Selectmen to ask them to say no to animal cruelty and vote no to the racetrack. Victory was declared as the board voted 3-0 against the proposal.

In an unexpected turn of events, just last week, Hardwick's Board of Selectmen voted to overturn the decision and vote yes in support of the track. Horseracing Wrongs and the smart and organized people in Hardwick are determined to fight this decision by collecting enough signatures to push a referendum vote. We will update as things progress, but we are confident that this proposal will be shot down, for good, in the first part of next year!

On November 8th, Election Day, California voters overwhelmingly defeated Prop 26, which would give the horseracing industry in CA a massive subsidy in the form of retail sports betting at the state's four major horseracing tracks. Horseracing Wrongs was part of a coalition to campaign against Prop 26 and educate the public of the built-in horseracing bailout - what the ads and commercials left out.

What we know for sure is the horseracing industry in the U.S. can no longer support itself and it has to rely on taxpayer subsidies to survive. This is why we are seeing proposal after proposal in Massachusetts.

We celebrate the defeat of Prop 26 and we are working with groups other states to introduce legislation to redirect the subsidies from horseracing to education, where the money should be going - for public benefit.

The bill to redirect horseracing subsidies in New York State will be re-introduced in January and we will do all in our power to assist the people in NYS to educate and pressure their lawmakers to support and co-sponsor this bill. If you live in New York State be sure to sign up for our Action Alerts and we will send you an easy tool to contact your representatives.

Every opportunity we can take to educate the public about the inherent cruelty and killing of innocent horses for gambling and entertainment is one step closer to shutting this industry down for good!

Thank you for partnering with us and for your dedication to the horses!

For the horses,

Nicole Arciello

Executive Director, Horseracing Wrongs

nicole@horseracingwrongs.com

Links:

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Jul 19, 2022
Billboards, Media, Legislative Programs!

By Nicole Arciello | Executive Director

Dear friends of the horses,

We are pleased to bring you a celebratory update of the last couple months!

Triple Crown Billboard Campaign

As with last year, Horseracing Wrongs was well-represented at all three Triple Crown races, with two mobile billboards at each – the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, The Preakness Stakes in Baltimore, the Belmont Stakes in New York. Running (in tandem) for eight straight hours, the trucks circled the tracks and traversed the cities. This exposure is priceless, as attested by feedback from media and the public alike!

Triple Crown Protests

In May, Patrick and I joined our wonderful Maryland team – 60 activists strong – for a protest at the Preakness Stakes. Highlights included an interview with ABC Baltimore and countless educational leaflets distributed! A few weeks later, we were back in action at the Belmont Stakes. There, in addition to two television interviews (NBC NY, CBS NY) and one print, we had a documentary crew filming (more on that to come!)!

Campaign to End Horseracing Subsidies in New York

We continue hard at work on ending the $230 million in corporate welfare doled out to the cruel, deadly NYS horseracing industry. As part of this campaign, and in support of a legislative bill that we were instrumental in getting introduced, we hand-delivered to every NYS legislator a copy of our “NY’s Dead Racehorses Since 2014” booklet accompanied by a letter written by Patrick. In addition, with the simple goal of educating, Patrick wrote a personal letter to Governor Hochul. Horseracing Wrongs also gave a live webinar to teach and empower New York State residents lobbying skills to be an effective voice for the horses! Participants learned how to find their legislators contact information, write personalized and professional handwritten letters and practice scripts for follow up phone calls.

Horseracing Wrongs also launched an online tool to make it fast and easy for NYS Residents to send an email to legislators asking them to co-sponsor the bill to end horseracing subsidies. This tool will also allow us to connect citizens in every state with their lawmakers to be an effective voice for the horses!

FOIA Reporting Continues

Our FOIA reports are the very best way to expose horseracing for what it is, and only we have ever done it. Patrick has just recently filed half-year FOIA requests, so look for those reports soon.

Cruelty Investigations

Our team is watching the racing industry closely and we have been able to obtain footage of horses confined in stalls, suffering abuse from whips, tongue ties and bits and video footage of horses suffering catastrophic injuries in races. This footage helps us work with media to help expose the cruelty and the killing in an effort to get mainstream media to report the truth.

The Pledge to Boycott Horseracing

We recently released an online Pledge to Boycott Horseracing, for advocates can sign and share and promise to never watch, bet on, or attend a horserace. The pledge has over 1,000 signers and counting. If this is the first time you have heard about the pledge, please take a moment at the likn above and sign and share with everyone you know!

We can't do any of this without YOU!

We are a small, hardworking organization! We all know that a small group of people can make a difference. We couldn't have gotten this far without the financial support of our donors - fierce advocates - who believe in our work, and share our mission and our passion!

Please consider joining us as a monthly donor here on GlobalGiving and get your first month's donation matched!

Thank you all for loving the horses!

Links:

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