Fulop Plans City Hall Rally for National Night Out
By Jon Whiten • Jul 27th, 2009 • Category: Blog, News, Politics
To celebrate National Night Out, the annual “night out against crime,” Jersey City usually plans individual get-togethers in each ward of the city. This year is no exception — there are a number of Night Out events around the city slated for Aug. 4. The most recently announced event, however, is being organized not by the city or a neighborhood association, but by Ward E councilman Steven Fulop. In the wake of last week’s federal corruption sting, he is calling for a citywide rally outside of City Hall to celebrate National Night Out.
“In light of recent events that have shaken our city to the core, I invite you to save the date of Tuesday, Aug. 4 for a citywide rally on the steps of City Hall itself,” he wrote in an email to supporters today.
“Let your leaders hear your voice and know how you feel about their deception, their lies, their stealing,” the message reads. “We must send a strong message of one city, united in the belief that crime must be stopped wherever it happens.”
When reached this afternoon, Mayor Jerramiah Healy was unsurprisingly cool to Fulop’s proposal.
“The first order of business for any government — whether local, county, state or federal — is the safety of its citizens,” he said. “National Night Out is an annual event that joins law enforcement with the community in an effort to make our streets safer. While no one condones the alleged actions of some officials, the focus of National Night Out should not change.”
But Fulop, who has leveled almost-daily criticism of the mayor and his allies since the arrests on Thursday, says that crime is crime, no matter what kind it is or where it occurs. “That includes the streets and gun violence, as well as City Hall,” he says. “Clearly crime is an issue in City Hall.”
He says he’ll be there on Aug. 4, and hopes the mayor will be as well.
“I’d like to extend an invitation to Mayor Healy,” Fulop says. “He can [come to the event] and talk about corruption in City Hall the same way everybody else can.”
Shane Smith contributed to this report.
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Jon Whiten is the founding editor of the Jersey City Independent; he now works for a public-policy nonprofit in Trenton.
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