Official says he's sorry for remarks about Hispanics
NICK PETRUNCIO
FREEHOLD BUREAU
Mar 6, 2007
FREEHOLD — A borough councilman who made controversial remarks about Hispanics apologized Monday to a capacity crowd in council chambers — many people were denied access because of lack of space — as protesters demonstrated outside.
Councilman Marc LeVine said he is sorry for the online remarks he made in November that segments of the Hispanic community are promiscuous. LeVine later reiterated his apology to the crowd outside.
"Freedom of speech is not freedom from responsibility," LeVine said.
Mayor Michael Wilson said LeVine's observations were his own and do not reflect the views of the borough leadership. Wilson also called the illegal-immigration problem one for the federal government to solve, but the borough will continue to address quality-of-life issues.
"In short, we will continue to do what we can to improve the quality of life of all our residents," Wilson said.
The demonstration outside the meeting was called by three Latino civil-rights groups: the Monmouth County chapter of the Latino Leadership Alliance, Casa Freehold and the United Day Laborers of Freehold. They demanded the resignation of LeVine, who previously said he would not resign, and protested ad hoc committee recommendations to the Borough Council that they believe are discriminatory.
The protesters were Hispanics from the borough, but also included people from other parts of New Jersey and New York City.
When the demonstration began, police estimated the crowd outside at 75, but the number grew as the meeting progressed. Frank Argote-Freyre, the director of the alliance, said the number grew to about 300, but police were unable to confirm that. The capacity of council chambers is 150, and it appeared that at least that many were outside during the course of the meeting.
The protest was loud but peaceful with demonstrators holding signs, waiving Mexican and American flags, and chanting slogans in Spanish and English. Police said at about 9 p.m. no citations were issued and no arrests were made.
Inside, members of the audience, approximately half of whom were Freehold residents and half were from outside the borough, were given a maximum of two minutes to comment publicly.
Opinions varied and were both positive and negative about immigrants. They included remarks about how immigrants, regardless of legal status, contribute to the economy, but also how illegal immigrants are the reason why the borough schools are overcrowded.
While admitting his comments may have reflected poor judgment, some said they do not reflect that he is a racist or a bigot.
Moreover, one person supported LeVine's comments by saying they were based on birth rates and other statistical data and instead of being outraged people should come together to find a solution to the problem.
In a Nov. 14, 2006, posting online, LeVine wrote, "There is definitely a very promiscuous flavor in — at least — parts of Hispanic culture. All of this is highly problematic in a society in which these people often expect to subsidize their mistakes in growing large families that they cannot afford to support on their own."
Argote-Freyre has said he believes borough leaders are scapegoating Hispanics and characterized in a newspaper column LeVine's comments as racial theories quite advanced for the 17th century.
However, some in the borough believe Argote-Freyre of orchestrating the attack on LeVine to ruin the councilman's reputation.
Argote-Freyre, who lives in Freehold, has said the borough is no longer Bruce Springsteen's Freehold, and council will have to get used to the diversity.
