By Kiley Blackman
Near the end of March 2024, we received an email from an anonymous source, urgently requesting our assistance in Irvington, NY, because their local government was giving serious consideration to hiring a bow hunter. The reason given was that deer were ‘eating the plants,’ and they wanted to do this as soon as possible. The email read, “We cannot think of a more inhumane way of destroying deer. If residents are complaining about deer eating their landscaping, then perhaps the Village Board Members need to curb the construction of buildings that tear down wooded areas. The encroachment of more buildings and more people shrink the areas where wildlife live. What has happened to conservation of nature?” This person was very upset, especially over the barbaric solution the government chose to use. The mayor told residents birth control “doesn’t work.” The mayor also later stated that the NYS Humane Association never contacted him – which was shown to be untrue.
A link was provided from local press coverage, providing chilling quotes from residents such as one who ‘deliberately ran over the deer and laughed about it.’
“In Irvington, Citizens Rise Up Against a Burgeoning Deer Population”
ADOW immediately reached out to Irvington officials and politely requested a meeting to discuss their wildlife management plans. We received a nasty note from the mayor in reply.
Westchester Village Urged to Use Humane, Non-Lethal Deer and Wildlife Management
See a video of the public hearing here.
A Notice of Dangerous Condition was then served on Irvington. This Legal Notice states in part, “THE VILLAGE OF IRVINGTON is about to permit, or is currently permitting, a BOW AND/OR FIREARM HUNTING event, targeting (including but not limited to) deer, within the municipality. This may cause serious injuries to the general public as a result of “accidental” impaling, goring, shooting, or death to humans, along with emotional and psychological distress to the public and others who are traumatized by such violence, and additional risks exist including but not limited to the possibility of motor vehicle collisions with deer resulting from frightened or injured deer running into roadways.” To learn more about the legal group, visit: Legal Action Network for Animals
The effort to stop future plans for this bow hunt continues. In 2024 we know that animals are sentient and intelligent. Irvington needs to do better: Irvington attempts to call itself a welcoming, environmental community run ethically – but it needs to try much harder to be welcoming and ethical, when its actions in fact reflect a blatant hatred of its wildlife neighbors. The days of just kill the wildlife as a solution are over: Please politely contact Irvington officials.
You can contact the board by visiting this website: irvingtonny.gov/Directory.aspx?did=3
Kiley Blackman is the founder of Animal Defenders of Westchester. She can be contacted via their website: ADOW.org