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By Jenni Fink
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A carriage horse named Deniz suddenly died in Central Park on Tuesday after collapsing while still attached to the carriage, sparking calls for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to ban carriage horses in the city.
Horse-drawn carriages have been a staple of Central Park for decades, but the treatment of the horses has sparked fierce scrutiny. Accusations of abuse have been lobbed at the drivers and a piece of legislation called Ryder's Law that would ban horse carriages and replace them with electric ones was put forward after a horse collapsed and later died in 2022. It was defeated by the City Council.
Mamdani has previously said he supports getting rid of the carriages, but has said his ability to do anything about it is limited.
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What Happened to Deniz the Horse
A video posted on Instagram that was taken by Lenny Bruce showed Deniz laying on his side still attached to the carriage. The video showed bystanders trying to get the horse free of the carriage, attempting to take his harness off as he kicked and groaned. The incident occurred around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
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"In two seconds, horse died. Just shake and I feel like he's going to pee. He just died," Nurettin Kirbiyik, the carriage driver, told CBS News. "I lose like somebody from my family."
A heat advisory had been issued for New York City on Tuesday afternoon and is in place through Thursday evening. It's unclear what the cause of death was for Deniz, but a necroscopy will be performed to determine what happened.
"Deniz, 16, was a beautiful, good horse and beloved by his caretakers. Deniz was last seen by the NYPD [New York City Police Department] Mounted Unit’s veterinarian in March and found to be fit. Sadly, horses, just like other domesticated animals, have catastrophic and sudden health incidents," Eric Loegel with TWU Local 100 told Newsweek.
Bruce, who regularly speaks out about animal rights on Instagram, said Deniz was pulling a carriage and tourists up an incline in Central Park before his death.
"Deniz is the second carriage horse slave to collapse on NYC streets so far this year, and one of thousands of horse slaves killed on New York streets since this extremely evil torment of these noble animals began in the 1800s," Bruce said.
Deniz the Horse's Death Puts Pressure on Mayor Zohran Mamdani
People commenting on the video on social media called for Mamdani to ban carriage rides in New York City. They tagged him in the video and pushed for an investigation.
"Look at this horse's face. Not only died ... it died being abused and suffering. This is not what NYC is," Corinne Fisher, who ran for mayor, commented. "[Mamdani] please end this once and for all. The people of NYC will work with you to make this happen."
Mamdani has said that he supports removing the horse-drawn carriages from Central Park and that he plans to "deliver" on the promise to get rid of them. However, he has also said that it's up to the City Council to pass legislation banning the carriages.
Newsweek reached out to Mamdani's office via email for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
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What Is Ryder's Law?
Ryder's Law was proposed in 2022 after a horse collapsed in Chelsea because of extreme heat. The horse died a few days later and sparked outrage from animal rights activists. The proposal, if enacted, would ban horse-drawn carriages and replace them with electric carriages.
“Horses have collapsed, even dropped dead on the streets recently. Multiple horses have had violent runaway spooking incidents, crashing into vehicles, sending New Yorkers to the hospital, and nearly trampling others,” New Yorkers for Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets, or NYCLASS, said in a statement in November.
The same month, the City Council's Committee on Health voted against sending it to the full council for consideration. Then-Mayor Eric Adams criticized the council's vote, saying it ignored the will of the "vast majority" of people in New York who want the carriages banned. He said in a statement that the horse-drawn carriages not only endanger the animals but also pedestrians and drivers.
However, the smackdown of the proposal was praised by the union representing the carriage drivers. “They are hardworking immigrants who take good care of their horses, and have consistently been attacked and slandered by monied interests who care nothing about animal welfare,” John Samuelsen, TWU president, said in a statement after the vote.
Carriage Horse Incidents
A few weeks before Deniz's death, two horses collided in Central Park. In May, a horse carriage overturned after the horse, Otis, collided with another horse, named Troy.
Christina Hansen, a shop steward for TWU Local 100, told CBS News that Troy had dropped off his riders after stopping at the back of a line of carriages. But he "went to pull out in a hurry" and collided with the carriage in front of him.
"He's new, and the two back wheels of the carriages collided, and Troy pulled the other carriage in front of him over ... Unfortunately, the driver of the carriage was on the carriage when it fell over, and he's been injured. He's been taken to the hospital," Hansen said at the time.
In August, a carriage horse collapsed in the street and died while pulling a carriage in Hell's Kitchen. The horse, named Lady, was 15 years old and had only been in New York City for a few months before she died.
In light of Deniz's death, Hansen said critics that feel horses are overworked think that "any work is overwork." She said the job of pulling a carriage is "easy" for horses.
"It's not true. You know, these horses are literally strolling in the park," she said.
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