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(February 26, 2008)
THE LATEST
The fate of the hundreds of feral cats at JFK Airport
still hangs in the balance, but the enormous public outcry has
caught the attention of the Port Authority of NY & NJ's governing
Board of Commissioners. Three demonstrations at Port Authority
headquarters, thousands of phone calls and emails, a deluge of
negative press, and protests from the nation's and city's leading
animal welfare organizations have led the Commissioners to
re-examine the proposed eradication plan.
 While
discussions continue between Port Authority officials and
representatives of the
Mayor's
Alliance for NYC's Animals and Neighborhood Cats, trapping of
the cats has been ordered suspended. We're hopeful an intelligent
and nonlethal plan to manage the cats that includes TNR will be
reached. However, we ask all of you - who have contributed so
greatly to this cause by making your voices very loud and clear - be
prepared to spring back into action if necessary. And it wouldn't
hurt if you sent another phone call or email just to remind them
we're still here and waiting!
To date, 24 cats have
been trapped by Port Authority and 24 have been saved by the NYC
Feral Cat Initiative, a program of the Mayor's
Alliance
for NYC's Animals. Help has come from
Animal Care and
Control of NYC, local rescue groups and rescuers, and a grant
from In Defense of
Animals. Tens of thousands of phone calls and emails from around
the country and the world have been sent protesting the cruel,
ineffectual campaign and urging Port Authority to allow a
Trap-Neuter-Return program to be implemented.
A snap poll run by NY1, a leading NYC cable TV station, ended
with 89% of respondents favoring Trap-Neuter-Return for the JFK
cats. Newsday, a leading local paper, has condemned the
extermination effort and NYC Council Member G. Oliver Koppell
has urged Port Authority to halt the cruel campaign and work with
animal welfare experts to come up with a
humane plan.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
The most important thing to do is keep fighting. The cats
need you to keep calling and sending faxes, letters and emails.
Phone calls are best. If an email bounces back or is automatically
deleted, re-send but leave out the words "JFK" or "cats" from
anywhere in the email. Keep the emails short and polite. Remember,
WE MUST NOT LET THEM GET AWAY WITH THIS!! Or others will follow
their example.
WHO TO CONTACT
Anthony R. Coscia, Chairman, Board of Commisioners
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Phone: 732.846.2120 (direct line)
732-846-7600 (this is the general number for Mr. Coscia’s law firm)
Fax: 732.846.8877
E-Mail:
acoscia@windelsmarx.com
Henry R. Silverman,
Vice-Chairman
Port Authority Board of Commissioners
Realogy Corporation, Chairman and CEO
General number: (973) 407-2000
Email:
henry.silverman@realogy.com
Bruce A. Blakeman, New York Commissioner
Port Authority Board of Commissioners
Abrams Fensterman, Partner
Phone: (516) 592-5858
Fax: (516) 328-6638
bblakeman@abramslaw.com
Virginia S. Bauer, New
Jersey Commissioner
Port Authority Board of Commissioners
Mack-Cali Realty Corporation, Vice President
General number: (732) 590-1000
General fax: (732) 205-8237
vbauer@mack-cali.com
Port Authority Corporate
Headquarters
(212) 435-7000
(212) 435-7777
Susan Baer, General
Manager JFK Airport
sbaer@panynj.gov
718-244-3501
718-244-3773
THE HISTORY
On October 26, 2007, the Port Authority of NY and NJ
launched its effort to eradicate all feral cats living on the 5000
acre grounds of JFK Airport in Queens, NY. The cat population,
estimated in the hundreds, has been present for decades. When local
feral cat organizations, Neighborhood Cats and the Mayor's Alliance
for NYC's Animals proposed a Trap-Neuter-Return program as a way to
humanely manage and reduce the cats (see
proposal), the Port Authority rejected the offer and hired
exterminators to remove all the felines and bring them to a local
animal control shelter. They also ordered all airport employees to
stop feeding the cats or lose their airport clearance (see
Baer memo).
PORT AUTHORITY KILLS CATS AND THE TRUTH
LIE #1:
"The cats will all be adopted into good homes."
THE TRUTH:
Feral cats are wild and unadoptable and usually are immediately
euthanized when brought to animal control shelters, which is what
Port Authority is doing. Port Authority ADMITTED LYING to the public
about this in the NY Post article, "Frequent Liars", published
Saturday, October 27, 2007. Port Authority still denies it is
killing cats, a classic case of wordsmithing - the truth is, they're
dumping the cats at a shelter which will have no choice but to
euthanize when the resources of the local rescue community are
exhausted.
LIE #2:
"Feeding the cats attracts seagulls and the birds are an
aviation threat."
THE TRUTH:
Seagulls are at the airport because JFK is near the ocean and
next to the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge!! And because there are tons
of trash strewn about the airport's grounds. There is not enough cat
food to attract large numbers of birds and there is no food left
anyway when the cats finish eating. Cats hunt birds, they don't
attract them. There is ZERO evidence proving a link between the
presence of cats at an airport and an aviation risk.
LIE #3
"A cat will go onto the runways and cause a plane to crash when
it hits the cat."
THE TRUTH:
The cats are not located anywhere near the runways. No cat has
ever been spotted on any runway. Runways could be easily fenced to
keep cats out if this actually was a legitimate concern, which it's
not. Ever seen or heard of a jet hitting a cat?
LIE #4:
"We can achieve a cat-free airport."
THE TRUTH:
You can't wipe out the presence of feral cats in a 5000 acre
area in which new, unneutered cats are constantly being abandoned or
lost and then reproducing, and where there are plentiful food
sources. Only Trap-Neuter-Return, through sterilization and colony
management, can reduce the numbers which is why it is supported by
every major humane organization in the country. The Port Authority's
extermination effort is futile and will only result in new furry
faces, not fewer. The killing is senseless.
LIE #5:
"We only recently learned about the presence of the cats at the
airport and of the risk they pose - that's why we're acting now."
THE TRUTH:
Email correspondence with then JFK Airport General Manager Al
Grazer proves they knew about the cats at least by 2004. The
"aviation" and "health" risk justifications now offered for
exterminating the cats are just cynical Public Relation scare
tactics designed to fool the public.
For more press coverage
of the fight to save the JFK cats, click
here.
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