Muster zone ‘test’ irks Freehold officials
Immigrants rights group
wanted a way to gauge
response from officials
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer

JERRY WOLKOWITZ staff A group of men heads toward the site on Throckmorton Street, Freehold Borough, where an immigrants rights group sought to re-establish a hiring area for day laborers.

At first glance it appeared the old muster zone on Throckmorton Street in Freehold Borough was once again open for business — then again, first glances can be deceiving.

About 15 day laborers did, in fact, line up on Throckmorton Street at the site of the borough’s original muster zone on Saturday morning. They appeared ready to seek employment.

Members of the media as well as Freehold Borough police officers, municipal officials and representatives of the civic group PEOPLE (Pressing Elected Officials to Protect our Living Environment) were all present to see what would happen.

The observers were reacting to an e-mail message that had been sent out by a representative of the Monmouth County Residents for Immigrant Rights on Friday which stated that the muster zone — which was closed by borough officials in December — would reopen the following day.

As it turned out, all of the observers could have stayed home.

Stan Organek, a representative of the Monmouth County Residents for Immi-grant Rights, confirmed during the event that the group was testing the response of borough officials to the day laborers’ return to the outdoor hiring area.

He said that a member of the group who was seen speaking to the day laborers was hiring them.

However, after taking several men in a truck, that group member let them off several hundred feet down the street.

A white string stretched along the length of the area, dividing public property from a Conrail easement. Those seeking employment remained on the public property.

Organek later referred to the event as a "process in the continuing struggle to achieve citizens rights."

Borough officials closed the muster zone in December, forcing day laborers to seek employment through a hiring hall set up at the Second Baptist Church, Throckmorton Street.

Across from the muster zone on Saturday, in plain view, were two Freehold Borough police patrol cars. Officers watched the men get into a truck driven by Monmouth County Residents for Immi-grant Rights member Gabrielle Gemma after having "negotiated" a hiring deal. Gemma drove about 200 feet down the street, let the workers out of the truck and circled around to repeat the process.

Neither officers nor borough officials made any attempt to halt the proceedings.

Another "prospective employer," Bob Corey of Freehold Borough, followed the same pattern, picking up two workers after speaking with them, driving a few hundred feet and then dropping them off at the site again.

When asked if Gemma was hiring the workers, Organek replied "yes."

According to Organek, the event was not planned to mislead people, but as "a continuing struggle for one’s civil rights."

"The muster zone is reopened today," Organek declared. "Until the town lifts this notice [closing it], I consider today a success. We have workers standing on Throckmorton Street without fear of harassment or arrest, but ultimately we want the town to rescind the notice to close the muster zone."

No day laborers were at the muster zone at 7:45 a.m. Monday when a News Transcript staff writer drove past the area.

A press release prepared by Organek on behalf of the immigrants rights group referred to the gathering of the day laborers at the site as a "pivotal occasion that will restore federally guaranteed civil rights to Freehold Borough residents."

Mayor Michael Wilson called Saturday’s event at the muster zone "a dog and pony show."

"They are in essence thumbing their noses at the residents of the borough and the laws as well," he said, adding that, "the muster zone was closed for a variety of reason and it remains closed."

He said the public property along Throckmorton Street is too small and too narrow for day laborers to consider using it to wait for work. He said that would present safety issues for everyone.

"It’s a main thoroughfare," Wilson said. "And if they go off that area then we’d have to take matters into our own hands. We have to do what we have to do to protect the residents of our town."

Wilson said the borough engineer will examine tax maps and surveys for that area of Throckmorton Street in an effort to decide the actual delineation of private from public property.

"You know, when all the dust settles, what we are really still dealing with is illegal immigration," Wilson said.

He said attorneys representing the town in a lawsuit brought against the borough by the Monmouth County Residents for Immigrants Rights and the Committee of Workers for Progress and Social Welfare would make certain that the judge who hears the case will be made aware of "the games being played here." Another hearing in that case is scheduled for federal court in Trenton today.

Police Chief Michael Beierschmitt said, "I can’t see that doing this will be a benefit to them when the case is already in court. It is disappointing to me, as a po­lice chief who has tried to main­tain the peace in the town, that they have blatantly pushed the limits of the law, especially with the lawsuit in progress."

Councilman Kevin Coyne said, "No one has a constitutional right to work for cash in this county. I don’t have that right, you don’t have that right, undocumented immigrants don’t have it. No citizen has it."

Coyne said borough representa­tives have been working on solu­tions to the issue of the day labor­ers’ employment needs. He said that reopening the muster zone on Throckmorton Street is not one of those options.

"They are asking us to do some­thing illegal. The sooner they un­derstand this and get on board with everyone else, the better things will be for everyone. The muster zone is not coming back. It was a failure and a terrible idea," he said. "We are not who they think we are. They think we want to arrest and box everyone up. That is not our in­tention. What we want is to make sure that [the day laborers] have legal housing and legal work."