Mayor Fulop is Anti-MLK
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”
Those are the immortal words of Martin Luther King, Jr.
On January 20, 2014, America will once again honor his legacy. Parades, marches, moments of silence, trips to museums, and other activities will be just a few ways Americans celebrate one of our most revered figures.
Politicians will also be out giving speeches and releasing statements on how their working to honor Dr. King’s record. Sadly, the majority of politicians aren’t living up to Dr. King’s dream, and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop is a prime example of that.
It recently came to my attention that Mayor Fulop attempted to mislead a Pakistani Muslim imam when asked about his ethnic origin. Not only did he judge the imam based on the way he appeared, but he lied about his faith in order to avoid possibly losing political support. To me, that speaks volumes about the content of his character.
“We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality”
While often forgotten, those were also the words of MLK, Jr. during the “I have a dream speech.”
Sadly, they still ring true today, which is why I truly feel Mayor Fulop betrayed Jersey City. He lied when he said he opposed NYC’s racist stop-and-frisk policing program at the Lincoln High School mayoral debate.
If Mayor Fulop didn’t support stop-and-frisk he wouldn’t have hired former NYPD Deputy Chief James Shea as public safety director, the developer of the stop-and-frisk training program. He also appointed a powerful right-wing leader that aggressively promotes stop-and-frisk to his public safety transition committee.
What upsets me the most is not his actions, it’s actually his silence. As Dr. King once said:
It may well be that we will have to repent in this generation. Not merely for the vitriolic words and the violent actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence and indifference of the good people who sit around and say, “Wait on time.”
When state Sen. Sandra Cunningham was pushing bills in Trenton to fight the appallingracial imbalance of nonviolent offenders in New Jersey prisons, then-Councilman Fulop never said a word.
For example, he abstained from voting on a resolution supporting a bill Sen. Cunningham sponsored dealing with the racial injustice caused by drug-free school zones. That’s what Dr. King was talking about when he said appalling silence.
He stood for nothing then, and stands for nothing now. I’m asking for everyone in Jersey City to wake up and realize he’s just another politician using our city to advance his political career.
Gilbert Moore
Jersey City
Mayor FULOP DOING A Great Job’
Ditto, ditto, ditto.
& Who is this Gil Moore…
& cud he really write BS like this well on his own???
Gary Pollack, I do believe I am very well capable of structuring a couple of paragraph together.
Aneesah, you already know!
Let’s see ure resume!
WELL IF ALL THAT’S TRUE – I GUESS THERE’S NO HELP FOR GREENVILLE-LAFFAYETTE/WARD F RESIDENTS ON ANY FRONT!
Does any one know what the contents of his speech were at the recent NAACP mtg?
Gilbert Moore are you for real do you believe that allowing people to sell drugs in School zones is against to what Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr was struggling against.
Shame on you and State Senador Sandra Cunningham for trying to take away laws that protect the children of Jersey City.
‘Stop and frisk’ is not standard police operating procedure in Jersey City. A quick look at his cabinet shows an African-American Corporation Counsel, Director of Recreation and Chief of Staff. The Chief Municipal Prosecutor is Puerto Rican with deep roots in Jersey City and he was able to recruit an accomplished Afro/Puerto Rican female as Deputy Mayor to focus on social services for the City. He supports programs to help the formerly incarcerated through job training and mentorship. These initiatives should ease the pathways to the work-force once they’re firmly established. He’s also kickstarted new development in two neglected areas outside the waterfront as he’s encouraged the expansion of the Arts scene in Jersey City. He’s accomplished all of this in little more than 7 months since taking office. Hardly the stuff anyone would call anti-MLK.
Just because Stop-and-Frisk isn’t standard operating procedure in Jersey City doesn’t mean civil rights aren’t being violated. Stop-and-frisk is just one tactic of many that are part of the enforcement of the broken windows theory, something Mayor Fulop campaigned on heavily.
If appointing a person of Puerto Rican heritage to municipal prosecutor is pro-MLK, then I guess stopping people of Puerto Rican and Filipino heritage from becoming municipal judges because of politics is definitely anti-MLK? Also, Pres. George W. Bush had a pretty diverse looking cabinet when he took office, do you think he’s pro-MLK? Pres. Obama has a rather male & pale inner-circle, does that make him anti-MLK? Anyhow, I thought we should be judging people on the content of their character, not the color of their skin, right?
As for supporting programs to help the formerly incarcerated, that might mean something if he didn’t support incarcerating people for mostly non-violent drug offenses in the first place. We both know this is about politics anyway, otherwise he wouldn’t have hired a disgraced former governor with a corruption record more criminal than most in the second chance program he administers.
As for kick-starting development, are you talking about the KRE project in JSQ which includes no new affordable housing? I guess McGreevey’s pals at KRE weren’t thrilled about poor people from Jersey City living in their buildings. (By the way, spare me the puff-piece stories before you try on that one)
Or are you talking about all the low-income housing being built in low-income areas that Mayor Fulop campaigned against because it was exasperating the tale of two cities?
Your Friend,
Hudson Hawk
PS When will he or anyone respond about him misleading a Pakistani Muslim imam when asked about his ethnic origin?
Juan, on paper it looks good in actuality, I haven’t seen jobs as of yet.
You must be a firm believe and advocate for affirmative action.
I am Still waiting for change in ward A and F, if you think adding a 2nd chance program in ward F is change. You are truly delusion.
Where is the Unity in this city, we have elected officials who are rubber stamp’s.
Steven Fulop still needs to square off his campaign donation deals that will cost this city MILLIONS.
Will the current administration blame Healy again for the next tax increase?
Gilbert, I’ve known you since the day you were born and am proud of the man you have become. Keep up the good work and fight for what you feel is right. We here in Hoboken have a fight on our hands too.
Stupid article and grossly mistitled!
The KRE deal is a joke. A thirty year abatement in the heart of Journal Square and selling it like the best thing since sliced bread. What’s even more of a joke are the ones that buy into the line a baloney.
Folks in Wards A&F will be priced out of their neighborhood and they don’t see it coming but don’t worry, low income housing will be squeezed in somewhere for the safety net. Nice guy.
A good marketing campaign is the best thing this guys got. Bond now and you’ll be paying the bill later when he’s gone. There isn’t anything in JC that he really cares about except what’s in it for him.
Tell it like it is Gil
MLK has NOTHING to do with this post…I guess you guys rather have Healy’s drunken politics back…Gil you sound like you need to run for office…let’s see you do better…sidelines don’t count…go get out there and stop typing…this city has real issues that our Mayor is cleaning up…your 10mins is up! Pretty funny article.
Mrs. Dub,
MLK has a lot to do with the city in Jersey City , especially when ward A & F are not seeing the progressive approach that the city has taken in ward E.
The tale of 2 city is very much a reality and the new spin on segregation in Public school education is here.
If you only knew. Your assumption, that I enjoy or agree with The Former HEALY administration is comical at best.
You view on this city probably goes as fare as the waterfront. STOP READING THE E MAILING LIST BY FULOP AND INDEPENDENT ARTICLES AND TRULY VENTURE OUT OF DOWNTOWN TO WARD A&F. I am willing to walk with you throughout the 2 wards whenever you need a reality check.
What is needed in this city is UNITY and adding diverse police officer does bring Unity, consolidating jobs in city with 6 figure salaries does not bring Unity.
Funny you bring up Healy, sense Fulop is doing the same political practices of Healy with patronage of Campaign Donors.
I don’t need to run for office I can still do the job, from the sideline.
Mayor Fulop like all politicians do exactly what is required of him within each district to win the election. As a resident of the MLK community, as well as a person w/ a close familiarity to the illicit activity that occurs, for those of u who read this post as written by “One of them”. While I do not agree w/ many of the tactics of the task force, I agree the Mayor is doing just as he promised. The problem is most of the ppl living in the MLK district, not lack the knowledge of how politics work, they know even less about the influential role they have in it. when are ppl going to stoop standing around waiting & blaming those in office for what is or isn’t being done w/their double standards when it hits home. the predominately black residents of MLK, for which I am one, are afforded the rights as any other American citizen. The problem is those w/ leadership potential choose not to involve themselves in anything beyond the beneficial needs of self or do whatever it takes to educate the ignorant so they are willing to unite b/c they to have reason. to complaining, blaming & do.