Thread: Freehold Mayor says immigration protesters show "no res

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Mayor says immigration protesters show "no respect"

Some in Freehold agree, but others say bias shameful
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 05/11/06
BY ALESHA WILLIAMS
STAFF WRITER
FREEHOLD — Freehold officials and residents did some rallying of their own at the Borough Council meeting that followed the May 1 immigration protests nationwide and outside borough hall.

Mayor Michael Wilson issued a public statement claiming the nationwide protest was led by "those who have shown no respect for this sovereign nation by crossing our borders illegally."

He said illegal immigrants "place a severe burden on our economy by overcrowding the schools and housing stock," that they "get jobs because they undermine the American worker by undercutting wages and benefits," and that they take advantage of "medical care at hospitals that are reimbursed from the public pocket for this uncovered care."

"Until we can care for our own poor and homeless, people who are willing to work for a decent and legal wage, until we can provide affordable housing for Americans who work full time, we should not entertain any thoughts of legitimizing illegal immigrants," Wilson said.

Other council members and some residents in the audience supported his comments. Freehold is home to one of the largest concentrations of illegal immigrants in the Shore area.

"I think we all fundamentally agree with the mayor," Councilman Kevin Coyne said. "We've been paying the cost (of illegal immigration) for a long time."

"I agree with everything he (the mayor) said, because it's true," said Dorothy Wright, 62, a resident at the meeting.

But Frank Argote-Freyre, a resident who is director of the statewide Latino Leadership Alliance of Monmouth County, said he wasn't surprised by the mayor's comments.

"We've had a long series of run-ins with Mayor Wilson and of all the public officials and mayors in the state of New Jersey. His administration is the most morally deficient of any administration I've dealt with from New Jersey," he said.

Argote-Freyre referred to the federal class-action suit that day-laborer advocates filed two years ago against the borough for shutting down the Throckmorton Street muster zone. The suit alleged the borough embarked on a "deliberate and coordinated campaign to harass Latino day workers" at the open-air labor market.

Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, the borough rescinded an ordinance, which banned loitering on public property, to comply with a state Supreme Court ruling. The suit still is in mediation.

"Mayor Wilson wouldn't know a constitutional right if he tripped over it," Argote-Freyre said. "(Immigration reform) is a federal matter that has to be dealt with on a federal level, not by just someone trying to drive people he doesn't like out of his town."

Steve Richter, 46, a 15-year resident, said the mayor's comments won't deter people from continuing to challenge immigration reform. Richter, a Latino Leadership Alliance member, coordinates a winter sanctuary program that gives day laborers a place to rest and have coffee while they look for work.

"The renaissance in Freehold is in large part due to the immigrant population, not in spite of it," Richter said. "Fifteen years ago, when I moved here, there were empty storefronts all over downtown. Now there's almost none. Many of these businesses are owned, operated and supported by the immigrant community.

"And even most of the undocumented people in Freehold have taxes taken out of their wages," Richter said.

Richter guessed about 3,500 undocumented workers and 200 day laborers are in the borough. That means the rest of the Latino workers likely have taxes withheld from their paychecks.

Many don't file for a return, though, because they don't want to draw attention, he added.

"By and large, the immigrant population pays way more into taxes than they ever get out of services," Richter said. "He (the mayor) is adopting a xenophobic attitude, scapegoating immigrants for the problems of the state of New Jersey."

He said he was pleased with the May 1 rally that drew about 300 workers outside borough hall.

"It was great to see people having a sense of empowerment," Richter said.

Well, Finally a few people in New Jersey are standing up for AMERICANS!

Go Freehold!!!

These stories are not isolated, they will become the norm. The tip of the proverbial iceberg....

This is an earlier article about the same mayor. You would be surprised to learn that numerous websites have been set up demanding he 'stop the war on immigrants'.

http://newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2 ... e/114.html

Freehold mayor takes illegal aliens to task
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer

FREEHOLD - Mayor Michael Wilson told anyone who attended the Borough Council's May 1 meeting exactly what he thought of a rally that brought more than 200 immigrants to the borough earlier that day.

The immigrants - those who are in the United States legally and those who are here without the permission of the government - rallied in an attempt to prove their economic value to the nation and to decry federal legislation that would make being in the United States illegally a felony. The House of Representatives has passed such a bill, but the Senate has not.

In a statement he read near the end of the May 1 council meeting, Wilson said, "There is a beautiful irony in today's protest by illegal immigrants. Those who have shown no respect for the laws of this sovereign nation by crossing our borders illegally, and once here, by working here illegally, demand greater rights than those who have worked and toiled to be a part of this country through legal means.

"These protesters are doing here what they cannot do in their own country - enjoy the right of free speech. Imagine these protests occurring in front of (Mexican president) Vincente Fox's home.

"And while it is the very essence of who we are as Americans to allow everyone to speak freely, it is a bitter pill to swallow when that right is being used to taunt law-abiding citizens and legal immigrants by demanding that they should be exempt from the laws and regulations that govern immigrants from every other nation or part of the world who seek a better life here in America. While workers from Eastern Europe, Africa and all other reaches of the globe spend years of waiting and filling out forms and requests to immigrate to this country, today's protesters feel that they should not be subject to these same requirements. They believe that they, above everyone else, have the right to cross our borders and avail themselves of all the benefits that our nation has to offer without being subject to our rules and laws," the mayor said.

"They come without vaccinations or medical clearance, without criminal background checks, and without legal documentation.

"The alleged message today is that these millions who cross our borders illegally are vital to our economy. They claim they do jobs Americans will not do. The truth is that they get jobs because they undermine the American worker by undercutting wages and benefits. In truth, they place a severe burden on our economy by overcrowding the schools and housing stock, by availing themselves of medical care at hospitals that is reimbursed from the public pocket for this uncovered care. And all this is happening at the same time that the working poor of America cannot find affordable housing and are denied medical care - when the displaced poor of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast are still homeless and jobless after Hurricane Katrina," Wilson said.

"Until we can care for our own poor and homeless, people who are willing to work for a decent and legal wage, until we can provide affordable housing for Americans who work full time, we should not entertain any thoughts of legitimizing illegal immigrants. We cannot lose sight of the ideals upon which this nation was founded - E Pluribis Unum - From Many, One."

Asked to respond to Wilson's comments, Frank Argote-Freyre, director of the Monmouth County Chapter of the Latino Leadership Alliance, said, "For the last three years Mayor Wilson has treated us to one disgraceful display of divisiveness after another. His speech before the council on May 1 was more of the same. Lacking ideas and a constructive program for Freehold Borough, Mayor Wilson chose to scapegoat immigrants.

"Immigration is a complex issue, presenting both opportunities and challenges. Mayor Wilson only chooses to emphasize what he perceives as the negatives. He does this for his political advantage, so he can divide people against each other. Who profits from this? Mayor Wilson and his tired, old, good-old-boy network that has run the borough for more than 20 years," Argote-Freyre said.

"The mayor, since it does not fit his political agenda, fails to acknowledge the economic revival taking place across the borough as a result of the immigrant community. From Broad Street to South Street to Main Street - the borough is thriving. Latino businesses are fueling the renaissance.

"The immigration rallies on May 1 were aimed at promoting comprehensive and fair immigration reform. The system is broken and needs to be fixed. You cannot use immigrant labor to provide child care for our children, mow our lawns, serve us our food and do our dirty work and then discard them. They are part of the solution and must be considered in any immigration reform legislation.

"As the debate continues, Mayor Wilson needs to be reminded that he is supposed to serve all the residents of his community - not just those that look like him," Argote-Freyre said.

New Jersey is INVADED.

So is Texas. I enjoyed the day with out an Illegal. I want more of them, a heck of a lot more. I go to a Wal-M, which is close to the hispanic side of town. I noticed their numbers were down tonight. I guess they decided to stay out of sight and they are taking down their Mexican flags too. Those are vanishing. Wooo Hooo.

INDIANA JONES
thanx! Are you also in NJ?

News Flash..........NJ was invaded years ago! Not only do we have to deal with Latinos who are Illegal, we have a high concentration of MUSLIM EXTREMISTS. Why it's not being talked about on a wider scale is insane.

We have 2 of the most dangerous mosques right here in NJ.

Corzine loves those illegal votes. Well, most of them do.

2ndamendsis As a former NewYorker I am well-acquainted with big city immigration and conflagration. It is really amazing isn't it...we invite foreigners so that they become Americans. But because many of them don't want to become Americans, they don't want us to be Americans either. Who told them this is acceptable? America is NOT, I repeat NOT up for grabs, NOT for the loudest screamers, NOT for whoever has the most money, NOT for everyone. It IS ONLY for law-abiding citizens who follow the Constitutional Laws that are our nation. Our Constitution - written once and accepted for all time.

INDIANA, my friend..........we need to tell that to our so-called ELECTED POLITICIANS!!!

So, NY, you know what I'm talking about. It's truly a mess but the crazy thing I've found is that most of our NY/NJ residents are in another world. For the most part, they're brain dead and just drive right by the problems.
"nothin I can do"

"By and large, the immigrant population pays way more into taxes than they ever get out of services," Richter said. "He (the mayor) is adopting a xenophobic attitude, scapegoating immigrants for the problems of the state of New Jersey."

Yea, right. Making $10 an hour they pay at most $2000 in taxes. What was the cost of delivering a baby at the local hospital, Richter???? Been there lately????
As soon as the mayor states some facts, call him a racist. That's their sad, sorry tactic.
We need to fight this with everything we have!