September 15, 2003
Address to Flower Mound, Texas City Council

I am Mary Nash. I live in Kaufman, Texas at 104 S. Houston Street, and I own property next to the Dallas Crown horse slaughter plant in Kaufman.

Please let me express my deep appreciation to you for this proclamation. I hope your action here tonight will set a precedent for other cities and raise public awareness in your community about Texas live horse slaughter for human consumption in Europe.

There are two people here with me tonight who I want to recognize. Paula Bacon, mayor of Kaufman is here, and Jay Sabatucci is here representing The Humane Society of the United States. Two more people who wanted to be here but could not are Cile Holloway and Skip Trimble with the Texas Humane Legislation Network. They asked me to convey to you their appreciation for this proclamation.

Three comments I'd like to make about live horse slaughter for human consumption.

1. The Belgian and French slaughterers at Beltex and Dallas Crown want us to believe the horses they kill are all old, sick, crippled, or crazy. I've seen the horses, and I know it's not true. Anyway, no wealthy French diner is going to pay up to $15 a pound to eat an American delicacy of old sick horse.

2. An opinion poll conducted May 4-6, 2003 by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research for Blue Horse Charities revealed that an overwhelming majority of Texas voters (72%) are opposed to the slaughtering of horses for human consumption, and

3. According to statistics from the California Bureau of Livestock Identification, after voters outlawed horse slaughter for human consumption in 1998, reports of horse theft dropped in California by 34%.

Thank you again for this proclamation. I am anxious to spread the word about the great city of Flower Mound.

Mary S. Nash
104 S. Houston St.
Kaufman, Tx 75142
972-962-7706
NashHulme@msn.com
www.kaufmanzoning.net/horsemeat