PROTEST INFO: Breakthrough?

The pressure that we are exerting on the co-op board is working! According to the announcement by Audubon Society officials last night, and also the news reports I've read and the news reports I've heard on National Public Radio, the hawks will be allowed to return to their original nesting site by the end of this week! The building architect designed a railing that will prevent sticks from falling from the nest onto passersby below and this railing, along with the anti-pigeon spikes that held the original nest in place, will be installed immediately. This solution apparently addresses the safety concerns satisfactorily through the end of this breeding season. According to Richard D. Cohen, other measures may be considered to make the nest less of a nuisance, but without removing it or moving it elsewhere.

Rest assured, Mr. Cohen, that We The People will be watching and protecting Pale Male and Lola's nest from all predatory actions.

In related news, you might have noticed that Pale Male's website was not updated last night. This is because Lincoln Karim, the webmaster for Pale Male's website and also the Central Park telescope man and keeper of the on-site television monitor and video equipment, was arrested at last night's protest. Errrr, gathering. He was charged with several counts of aggravated harassment, and also stalking and endangerment of a child because he approached Paula Zahn and her family four times, once telling one of Paula Zahn's sons "your parents are going to pay for this" while he was walking the family dog. Paula Zahn interpreted his behavior as threatening, filed a complaint and the police acted accordingly. Lincoln Karim spent last night in jail and will be arraigned in court some time this morning.

Interestingly, Mary Tyler Moore, another resident of the same building and an animal rights activist herself, hired a lawyer to represent Lincoln Karim. Because Lincoln Karim works as a video engineer for Associated Press television news, his employer is also investigating his arrest. This development does not sound like good news for Lincoln's future employment opportunities. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to read Lincoln's thoughts about his adventures as a captive of NYC's legal system (if he chooses to share).

[I am also wondering if NBC's Law and Order or any of its spin offs will film a special episode of this event, even though no one was the victim of a violent crime? But I digress ... ]

But Paula Zahn is not the only one feeling pressured. Other co-op board members and building residents are also feeling the heat from our collective wrath. It was reported in the news this morning that, according to a friend of his who wishes to remain anonymous, Bruce Wasserstein has been asking Richard D. Cohen to allow the hawks to return. According to my sources, even Wasserstein's own kids have been pressuring him; one protester photographed his kids in their 11th floor apartment window holding a sign that said "Bring Back the Hawks!"


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We The People are waiting for installation of spikes and railing at the nest site. We The People hope the hawks will return to their original nest site (they do fly over the area often, so they have not yet adandoned the area). We The People will celebrate Victory for the Hawks only after they are rebuilding their nest.

Some source material for this update;

Morning 15 December NY Times article

Morning 15 December NY Daily News article

Evening 14 December Seattle Post-Intelligencer article


tags: NYC Life, Pale Male