Post by admin on Mar 14, 2007 18:39:16 GMT -5
Not to rehash the ugly incident last week, but Claire Celano did a very good job of compiling a cross section of comments that are worth reading.
newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2007/0314/Front_Page/058.html
Councilman apologizes for Internet comments
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD - Councilman Marc Le Vine is not stepping down from the Borough Council in Freehold Borough.
In the wake of comments Le Vine posted on an Internet message board in November, representatives of local and regional Latino organizations last week called for Le Vine to resign and they staged a demonstration outside Borough Hall on the evening of March 5.
Le Vine apologized for his Internet comments but said he would remain on the governing body.
His comments posted on a Web site that is operated by the borough group Pressing Elected Officials to Protect our Living Environment (PEOPLE) drew the ire of Latino representatives who called the councilman's message racist.
More than 250 members of the Latino community packed the area in front of borough hall on March 5. Many held signs and chanted for immigrants rights.
They came looking for Le Vine's apology and his resignation in response to his Internet comments that characterized some Latino communities, specifically Dominicans and Mexicans, as having promiscuous behavior.
Many of the people who came to the council's March 5 meeting were also on hand to protest a recommendation that had been made by the borough's Rental Property Advisory Committee. One specific recommendation asked the council to consider adopting a law that would require landlords to check the citizenship and permanent residency status of people seeking to rent living space.
Mayor Michael Wilson and Le Vine have both said that recommendation will not be enacted.
Some of the protesters came from as far as West Orange, Queens, N.Y., and New York City. Freehold Borough police officers were on hand to keep order. The police department's two highest-ranking officers, Chief Michael Beierschmitt and Capt. Mitch Roth, were on duty inside and outside borough hall. No arrests were made.
Many borough residents who wanted to attend the council meeting were furious when they were denied entry to the meeting room because it was already at capacity.
In comments during the meeting, Le Vine said he meant no harm when he posted his message on the PEOPLE Web site.
"I am deeply sorry for the impact those published words have had on others and I concede that my personal observations posted were narrow, baseless and ultimately unfair. They do not represent my true feelings or beliefs. I therefore apologize to all Mexicans, Dominicans and other Latinos, to Freehold Borough, to our mayor and council, to my family and anyone else who might be offended or hurt by my remarks. I ask for your understanding and your forgiveness. We are all only human and sometimes we make mistakes. I have learned from my unintentional mistake," Le Vine said.
He added that freedom of speech is not freedom from responsibility.
Many members of the public offered their comments during the meeting.
Latino advocate Rita Dentino, representing Casa Freehold, said, "All immigrants, whether documented or undocumented, pay taxes. They come here to work and they work hard. In regard to the school issue, most children are already citizens of this country. But it doesn't matter, a school has to educate the community's children."
Dentino said a dialogue must be established between municipal officials and members of the Latino community.
"There has been a tremendous attempt to shut out the immigrant community in a town where the Latino immigrant population numbers almost half of the town now," she said.
She called the Rental Property Advisory Committee's recommendations "nothing more than an attempt to gentrify this town and turn it back into the nice little Freehold beautiful you remember."
Borough resident Larry Creech told the audience, "you should have been here a long time ago. I have been coming to these meetings for about four years. The
Hispanic community needs to be represented here. You get to see what's going on. I think [the council] is struggling with problems. They are not the federal government. Come here and bring your input. I think the town does want you here."
Borough resident Mark Reingold said he listened carefully to what had been said during the meeting.
"There are too many residents who were denied access here tonight. This should be a local issue. These people [in the audience] don't live here and the people who do live here are waiting outside because they cannot get in. I think we should solve our problems in-house," he said.
He said the entire issue with Le Vine's Internet comment was "asinine."
"He was voted into office and those voters will decide whether he will remain serving in this town," Reingold said.
Frank Argote-Freyre, chairman of the Monmouth County chapter of the Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey, said if residents are ever going to live together in harmony they will have to learn to treat each other with respect in order to continue to make the borough a better place.
He said he will work to improve relations among people in order to make "one town, not many fragmented towns."
Council President Kevin Kane said the bottom line is economics.
"This town was built to support 11,000 people. When we have 14,000 or 15,000 people, it just cannot work. There are some things we can control and some things we cannot. This is a perfect situation that we cannot control," Kane said. "Illegal immigration must be handled by Washington, not by us. We can no longer afford to get caught up in these extreme sides of the issue."
Councilman Jaye Sims addressed the audience and noted that he is a member of a minority group.
"I've paid my debt, I got involved. I volunteered and I got my hands dirty," said Sims, who is black. "Now I'm a member of the governing body. I urge you to get involved, too. Don't just come out here with negative vibrations toward everyone."
Councilman Michael DiBenedetto said the governing body had "taken a little fire" that evening.
"No one has the right to judge a man until he has walked in his shoes," he said. "I don't agree with what Marc said. His comments opened wounds and I am giving him a chance to mend and heal those wounds and I know he will. If he doesn't, I'll be the first to ask him to step down, but I know he will not disappoint me."
Councilwoman Sharon Shutzer said it was not the various factions arguing the issues that scared her, but the "festering" that happens when issues are not addressed that causes her concern. She said she did not agree with Le Vine's comments, but said she would "defend to the death his right to say it."
"His personal feelings do not reflect those of this council," Shutzer said, "but he has a right to say what he wants to just as all of you have the right to say what you want, even if we don't agree with you. And I will protect your rights as well."
Councilman Robert Crawford said Le Vine could not take back his words, but noted that the councilman had apologized.
"We are willing to support him," Crawford said, advising that the community needs to "pull together now."
When the meeting ended, Le Vine went outside to apologize to community members who had not been able to gain entry to the building. He was seen shaking hands with Argote-Freyre and with Laz Cardenas, another representative of the Latino population.
newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2007/0314/Front_Page/058.html
Councilman apologizes for Internet comments
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD - Councilman Marc Le Vine is not stepping down from the Borough Council in Freehold Borough.
In the wake of comments Le Vine posted on an Internet message board in November, representatives of local and regional Latino organizations last week called for Le Vine to resign and they staged a demonstration outside Borough Hall on the evening of March 5.
Le Vine apologized for his Internet comments but said he would remain on the governing body.
His comments posted on a Web site that is operated by the borough group Pressing Elected Officials to Protect our Living Environment (PEOPLE) drew the ire of Latino representatives who called the councilman's message racist.
More than 250 members of the Latino community packed the area in front of borough hall on March 5. Many held signs and chanted for immigrants rights.
They came looking for Le Vine's apology and his resignation in response to his Internet comments that characterized some Latino communities, specifically Dominicans and Mexicans, as having promiscuous behavior.
Many of the people who came to the council's March 5 meeting were also on hand to protest a recommendation that had been made by the borough's Rental Property Advisory Committee. One specific recommendation asked the council to consider adopting a law that would require landlords to check the citizenship and permanent residency status of people seeking to rent living space.
Mayor Michael Wilson and Le Vine have both said that recommendation will not be enacted.
Some of the protesters came from as far as West Orange, Queens, N.Y., and New York City. Freehold Borough police officers were on hand to keep order. The police department's two highest-ranking officers, Chief Michael Beierschmitt and Capt. Mitch Roth, were on duty inside and outside borough hall. No arrests were made.
Many borough residents who wanted to attend the council meeting were furious when they were denied entry to the meeting room because it was already at capacity.
In comments during the meeting, Le Vine said he meant no harm when he posted his message on the PEOPLE Web site.
"I am deeply sorry for the impact those published words have had on others and I concede that my personal observations posted were narrow, baseless and ultimately unfair. They do not represent my true feelings or beliefs. I therefore apologize to all Mexicans, Dominicans and other Latinos, to Freehold Borough, to our mayor and council, to my family and anyone else who might be offended or hurt by my remarks. I ask for your understanding and your forgiveness. We are all only human and sometimes we make mistakes. I have learned from my unintentional mistake," Le Vine said.
He added that freedom of speech is not freedom from responsibility.
Many members of the public offered their comments during the meeting.
Latino advocate Rita Dentino, representing Casa Freehold, said, "All immigrants, whether documented or undocumented, pay taxes. They come here to work and they work hard. In regard to the school issue, most children are already citizens of this country. But it doesn't matter, a school has to educate the community's children."
Dentino said a dialogue must be established between municipal officials and members of the Latino community.
"There has been a tremendous attempt to shut out the immigrant community in a town where the Latino immigrant population numbers almost half of the town now," she said.
She called the Rental Property Advisory Committee's recommendations "nothing more than an attempt to gentrify this town and turn it back into the nice little Freehold beautiful you remember."
Borough resident Larry Creech told the audience, "you should have been here a long time ago. I have been coming to these meetings for about four years. The
Hispanic community needs to be represented here. You get to see what's going on. I think [the council] is struggling with problems. They are not the federal government. Come here and bring your input. I think the town does want you here."
Borough resident Mark Reingold said he listened carefully to what had been said during the meeting.
"There are too many residents who were denied access here tonight. This should be a local issue. These people [in the audience] don't live here and the people who do live here are waiting outside because they cannot get in. I think we should solve our problems in-house," he said.
He said the entire issue with Le Vine's Internet comment was "asinine."
"He was voted into office and those voters will decide whether he will remain serving in this town," Reingold said.
Frank Argote-Freyre, chairman of the Monmouth County chapter of the Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey, said if residents are ever going to live together in harmony they will have to learn to treat each other with respect in order to continue to make the borough a better place.
He said he will work to improve relations among people in order to make "one town, not many fragmented towns."
Council President Kevin Kane said the bottom line is economics.
"This town was built to support 11,000 people. When we have 14,000 or 15,000 people, it just cannot work. There are some things we can control and some things we cannot. This is a perfect situation that we cannot control," Kane said. "Illegal immigration must be handled by Washington, not by us. We can no longer afford to get caught up in these extreme sides of the issue."
Councilman Jaye Sims addressed the audience and noted that he is a member of a minority group.
"I've paid my debt, I got involved. I volunteered and I got my hands dirty," said Sims, who is black. "Now I'm a member of the governing body. I urge you to get involved, too. Don't just come out here with negative vibrations toward everyone."
Councilman Michael DiBenedetto said the governing body had "taken a little fire" that evening.
"No one has the right to judge a man until he has walked in his shoes," he said. "I don't agree with what Marc said. His comments opened wounds and I am giving him a chance to mend and heal those wounds and I know he will. If he doesn't, I'll be the first to ask him to step down, but I know he will not disappoint me."
Councilwoman Sharon Shutzer said it was not the various factions arguing the issues that scared her, but the "festering" that happens when issues are not addressed that causes her concern. She said she did not agree with Le Vine's comments, but said she would "defend to the death his right to say it."
"His personal feelings do not reflect those of this council," Shutzer said, "but he has a right to say what he wants to just as all of you have the right to say what you want, even if we don't agree with you. And I will protect your rights as well."
Councilman Robert Crawford said Le Vine could not take back his words, but noted that the councilman had apologized.
"We are willing to support him," Crawford said, advising that the community needs to "pull together now."
When the meeting ended, Le Vine went outside to apologize to community members who had not been able to gain entry to the building. He was seen shaking hands with Argote-Freyre and with Laz Cardenas, another representative of the Latino population.