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Post by admin on Aug 3, 2006 13:56:41 GMT -5
Dear Senator, I recently read that you may have second thoughts about the proposed muster zone in Lakewood. Although I do not live in your district, I have been following this issue in your town very closely. As a resident of Freehold Borough, I can assure you that the muster zone will not solve any problems. It will have just the opposite effect. I hope you can look north to Freehold and learn from our experience. There are many tough questions,often without clear answers. I have sat in on some of your town council meetings. The Mayor of Lakewood is a puzzle to me. What I have seen and read shows a great lack of thought on behalf of Lakewood. Feel free to go to www.peoplefb.com There is a message board on the front page. Click on that board and you can read the views of many Freehold residents. We even have a section dedicated to Lakewood. It would be in the best interest of your town to think a little more about having that muster zone. Ours has only hurt us. |
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Post by Marc LeVine on Aug 3, 2006 16:16:58 GMT -5
Brian:
Are you sending Bob Singer that letter? It is good that you appealed to him to consider Freehold Borough's situation. I am sure he is well aware of it. Perhaps, he just feels that Lakewood has a few more miles (out to the industrial park) to push the problem out to and away from their downtown and neighborhoods. Freehold never had that luxury.
Singer's position is particularly confusing to me. When I was the GM at Brickforce Staffing (99-03), he threatened to call in INS to raid all the companies in the Lakewood Industrial Park using illegal labor. Then, he is seemed willing to go along with a muster zone near the Industrial Park. Now, you say he is having change of heart. Interesting.
I was in Lakewood at 8:30 am last Tuesday. I have to say that Clifton Avenue was the worst I have ever seen it. Brickforce used to have an office on Clifton Avenue and I often visited there at 6 am in and stayed until 8 or 9 am, but rarely saw as many day laborers gathered on the street as I observed last week.
Lakewood's political environment and its toleration threshhold regarding illegal immigration is far different from that of Freehold Borough. The Hasidim don't seem to complain much about the Mexicans, because they either do business with them and/or just realize they can't vote to upset their control over the town.
I don't know where the rest of the population is - the African Americans have been mostly driven out of town by the situation and the non Hasidic white population doesn't seem to want to take a strong public stand.
The current muster zone issue seems be mainly driven by the shopkeepers, who fear a loss of business. Aside from Diane Reaves, how many other vocal residents are making some noise?
I wish the town well and hope it joins a coalition of other towns like Freehold, Long Branch, Asbury Park, Manasquan, Hightstown and the many others struggling with the same problem.
Marc
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Post by admin on Aug 3, 2006 19:54:42 GMT -5
Brian: . I don't know where the rest of the population is - the African Americans have been mostly driven out of town by the situation and the non Hasidic white population doesn't seem to want to take a strong public stand. The current muster zone issue seems be mainly driven by the shopkeepers, who fear a loss of business. Aside from Diane Reaves, how many other vocal residents are making some noise? Marc Funny you should mention the African American population. In other parts of the country where illegal immigrants have had a longer impact, it is well documented that African Americans wind up leaving that area (Black Flight). Correct me if I am wrong, but hasn't Freehold seen the African American population diminish? I have wondered where the NAACP is as this is going on. In Lakewood we know of Pat and Diane. In the Lakewood town council meetings that I have attended, I have watched as others addressed the problem of illegal immigration, as well as protest over the proposed muster zone. Pat and Diane are just more visible and vocal than most others. |
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Post by Marc LeVine on Aug 4, 2006 10:54:35 GMT -5
Yes, our local African American population has declined, according to some numbers I've read. This is somewhat attributed to our slum landlords raising their rents to create more available living space in which to overcrowd with those here illegally.
Nationally, there has been some animosity - especially towards illegal immigrants - from the A/A community, since losing their position as the leading minority group in the United States to Latinos (a statistic that might be bloated by illegal immigrants). Obviously, this has created more competition for some jobs (and lower wages), housing (shortages and increased rents) and other social benefits. And let's not forget, A/A's are taxpaying citizens and are as enraged, as the rest of us, to hear that many illegal immigrants are working off the books.
Advocacy groups have tried to mend fences to gain support from the A/A community w/ regard to the illegal immigration issue. They have tried to tie illegal immigration to the civil rights issue and have shown some success in doing so - but have not gotten universal buy-in. After all, what our A/A population went through to gain their freedom and equal standing in the US, is no way similar to what people, who illegally entered our country and violated our laws experience nor should it allow them to claim any benefits they do not deserve as law breakers.
Of course, the advocates never call the people they are supporting "illegal aliens" (maybe, undocumented), preferring to just lump them together with our legitimate population of Latino residents. That latter group (of American Citizens and Permanent Residents) isn't always pleased about this either.
What the NAACP thinks about all this? I'm not sure and can't really comment on their behalf. I'm sure they want to see good relations among all peoples, but - as taxpayers - they must be concerned with illegal immigration to some degree.
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