Ban continues on animal slaughter, for now

The issue of animal slaughtering at home will likely return.

By Charles Sercombe
The question over whether to allow animal slaughtering at homes and in backyards, in observance of a religious belief, is not entirely over.
Recently, in a close vote, the city council agreed to continue the city’s ban on the practice.
There had been a proposal to allow the practice as an update to the city’s animal ordinance.
A number of residents, mostly of the Muslim faith, insisted that they should be allowed to slaughter animals, such as goats and lambs, at home.
They said this practice happens only once a year, during Eid.
But lifting the ban on home animal slaughtering would open the door for those of other religious faiths to perform slaughtering numerous times of the year.
But others in the community objected vigorously, saying slaughtering animals in yards and in homes poses serious health and sanitation risks for the community.
While the vote to reject animal slaughtering is done for the moment, discussion on the matter is far from being over.
Mayor Amer Ghalib earlier told The Review that the vote was “invalid,” and that it would have to come back for a revote. That’s because he was not called on, nor did he insist on being called on, to vote on the matter since it had to do with an ordinance.
The city charter allows the mayor to vote on ordinances.
But Interim City Manager Max Garbarino said that he has a legal opinion that says the vote is indeed valid – but added that the mayor can call for a reconsideration.
The Review reached out to Ghalib on whether he would do just that.
He replied, saying:
“City attorneys say that in this case I can make a motion to bring it back, but I may not do so because we are very close from reaching an agreement with the subcommittee; a compromise that everyone seems to be OK with. A new version of the ordinance will come back and everyone will vote for and we will be done with it soon.”
As for how he would have voted when the matter came up, he said:
“My vote could have made a difference!”
The vote was 3-2 in favor of the ban.
Councilmembers voting in favor of banning the practice were Amanda Jaczkowski, Mohammed Alsomiri and Khalil Refai.
Councilmembers Mohammed Hassan and Nayeem Choudhury disagreed, and voted to allow the practice.
If there is another vote, there will be a new councilmember on board who is filling the seat vacated by Adam Albarmaki.
The next city council meeting is Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. in city hall. You can see it on a YouTube link. Council meetings are also broadcasted by the Hamtramck Public Library.
It was not immediately known whether the issue will be on Tuesday’s council meeting agenda.
Posted Dec. 9, 2022