Monday, September 19, 2011

DOES THE PENNS GROVE COMMUNITY HAVE SAY SO?

In the urban community of Penns Grove, NJ, there are many challenges. To name a few; lack of jobs, limited recreation for the children, police accountability & community responsibility, a underperforming school district where the leader(s) of the school board has yet to address the illiteracy problem. When you look at these issues, some may ask a question, who are responsible for addressing the issues so there will be a climate for change? I would go as far to say that the local government of Penns Grove Council and school board are responsible to address these issues, along with the moral responsibility of residents of the community, speaking up about these particular matters.

The Penns Grove community has a new issue. The issue is you have two disgruntled politicians in Councilmen Joe Venello and Councilwoman Carol Mincey, who are spear-heading, a shared service agreement with the Penns Grove Police Department and Carneys Point Police. Now I have not been a "fan favorite" of the Penns Grove Police, due to their lack of respect of the minorities in the community. However, I do support them on this particular issue. Quite some time there has been a personal vendetta with Councilmen Joe Venello against Chief Double Dee. Every council meeting that I have attend, Councilmen Joe Venello has disrespected the Mayor, Chief of Police and the residents. In Joint effort with other politicians on council, Joe Venello along with Carol Mincey has pursued to force the Chief of Police into retirement. They have run into a stumbling block in their effort. The Chief of Police is protected under New Jersey State Statutes. In a way Joe Venello & Cronies Inc., cannot pursue Chief Double Dee individually. In order to force Chief Double Dee to retire, Councilmen Joe Venello and Councilwoman Carol Mincey, trying to dismantle the Penns Grove Police Officers, by making "back yard" negotiations with Carneys Point public administrators.


What is not surprising, Councilwoman Carol Mincey has always been subservient to people or politicians that don’t represent people like herself or the community. I thought this local government or any government; being state, local or federal, is a government of democracy. Democracy governments where the people (residents) have equal say in decisions that affect our lives. What Councilman Joe Venello and Councilwoman Carol Mincey are imploring is an unjust system of dictatorship. What the residents of the Penns Grove community must know, is that we have to unite and stand up and fight against this bureaucracy government of dictatorship. I believe that the majority of the residents will agree, if the shared service of police are given to Carneys Point Police; a police department that do not practice diversity, that have no respect for the minority community, that has been sued by two minorities for racial discrimination, will create a whole new set of challenges for the community of Penns Grove. Police, dispatchers and other public administrators will lose their job. Perhaps, this is the "last hurray" before Councilman Joe Venello and Carol Mincey leave office in January.

I believe this democracy of a local government should give us the right to have a say in how and who govern the community. If these politicians want this shared service to happen, let the people decide. I believe that the community should push for the shared service of police to be put on referendum at the voting polls. The community should not let politicians dictate what “good business” is or what is "best" for us. We need to show up in mass and let these public officials know how we feel and what we want in our community; whether it is council meeting or school board meeting. If we think the courts are overcrowded on Wednesdays or Thursdays now, with African-American and Latino-American people, let the Carneys Point Police take control of shared service of police. "If we don't stand for something, we will fall for anything"- Malcolm X


                                                                                                   Community Activist, Penns Grove
                                                                                                     Walter L. Hudson Sr.


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