National Pigeon Day in New York -- a Celebration of New York Pigeons
The New York Bird Club and United Poultry Concerns will hold National Pigeon Day in New York City to take place on Saturday, June 13th from Noon to 4 pm at Pilgrim Hill in Central Park. The free event will include speakers, political activism, entertainment and materials distribution. The National Pigeon Day Mistress of Ceremonies will be Christine L. Mott, Esq., member of the New York City Bar Association's Committee on Legal Issues Pertaining to Animals.
New York, NY (PRWEB) May 4, 2009
The New York Bird Club and United Poultry Concerns will hold National Pigeon Day in New York City to take place on Saturday, June 13th from Noon to 4 pm at Pilgrim Hill in Central Park. The free event will include speakers, political activism, entertainment and materials distribution. The National Pigeon Day Mistress of Ceremonies will be Christine L. Mott, Esq., member of the New York City Bar Association's Committee on Legal Issues Pertaining to Animals.
Ongoing issues revolving around New York pigeons are potential feeding bans, unlawful poaching and pigeon trafficking into Pennsylvania state for the purpose of holding pigeon shoots (http://www. hsus. org/wildlife_abuse/campaigns/contests/pennsylvania_pigeon_shoots. html (http://www. hsus. org/wildlife_abuse/campaigns/contests/pennsylvania_pigeon_shoots. html)), unecessary, cruel pigeon control methods, pending pigeon birth contraceptive -- Ovo Control P, and the harassing of citizens in their own homes for feeding pigeons, all with the goal of eradicating and reducing pigeons populations as their population steadily declines.
Information presented by pest control business indicate that pigeons pose a health risk, while the New York City Health Department and avian exotic veterinarians do not consider pigeons to be a major health risk at all. (http://peopleforpigeons. blogspot. com/2007/11/understanding-zoonotic-diseases-of. html (http://peopleforpigeons. blogspot. com/2007/11/understanding-zoonotic-diseases-of. html)). Pigeons are highly intelligence as indicated by their use by the military in wartimes as messengers as reliable communication. Pigeons had a 95 percent success rate in WWI delivering their messages and proved to be a lifeline for the troops on the front line. WWI was the height of homing pigeons used for military purposes. There were many pigeon heroes and several war birds received medals such as Cher Ami who is on display at the Smithsonian Institute. White pigeons are routinely released during celebrations and ceremonies, and street pigeons clean up litter left behind by humans.
Participants for National Pigeon Day are as follows:
Patrick Kwan is New York state director for The Humane Society of the United States (www. humanesociety. org) and spearheads the organization's humane policy & campaigns in the Empire State. Backed by 11 million Americans, or one of every 28, including over 800,000 New Yorkers, The HSUS is the nation's largest animal protection organization. Prior to joining The HSUS, he was a field organizer for Amnesty International and an advisory board member of the Center for Environmental Citizenship (now the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund), and managed media relations & communications efforts for corporate, nonprofit, and government organizations including the Mayor's Alliance's for NYC's Animals, The September 11th Fund, and NYC & Company.
Amos Latteier - a Toronto-based artist whose recent public art projects include a location-specific haiku by sms project, a pigeon condo, cell phone-operated nature tour, a 500lb potato battery, and a chainsaw-powered walking machine.
Karen Davis, Ph. D. of United Poultry Concerns, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the compassionate and respectful treatment of domestic fowl.
Norene Leddy - an award winning video, installation and new media artis. She holds a class about pigeons at the New School for Design.
Charles Patterson, author of Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust. Patterson will talk about the memory of his neighbor, the writer Isaac Bashevis Singer, who loved pigeons (and loved to feed them). Singer was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978.
Fiona Walsh, writer and performer.
The Vivian Girls Experience band performing "Pigeons on Parade," and "Pigeon Goes to a Party" .
Mark Caponigro of Montclair State University, NJ: How a Pigeon Saved the Human Race: Doves in Ancient Religious Traditions (the role pigeons played in biblical and classic literature).
Jenny Bower will talk about the role of pigeons in America, from cultural to environmental: their influence in the arts as well as the environmental niches they fill.
Raghav Goyal, Oberlin '12.
Sam Hack will donate 100 copies of her book "Pigeon Woman and the Snagged Bag", a children's picture book. Ms. Sam is the art teacher at PS 11 in Chelsea.
Johanna Clearfield, Director of the Urban Wildlife Coalition - NYC, a New York State licensed wildlife rehabilitator.
Don Jenner, New York State licensed rehabilitator and founding trustee of Wildlife in Tribeca.
Rachel Hirschfeld, Esq., nationally recognized pet trust attorney and advocate for people with pets will speak about "Feeding Laws in New York".
Author-illustrator Ted Enik has worked with a variety of contemporary and classic children's book characters and titles, including Magic Schoolbus, Harry Potter, and Eloise. He is currently an artist for the popular Fancy Nancy series where pigeons can be spotted.
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