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Rally goers gathered at Flag Plaza to support the LSP Protection Act. Photo by Mark Koosau.
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Friends of Liberty State Park President Sam Pesin speaks at the rally. Photo by Mark Koosau.
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Rally goers gathered at Flag Plaza to support the LSP Protection Act. Photo by Mark Koosau.
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Friends of Liberty State Park President Sam Pesin speaks at the rally. Photo by Mark Koosau.
Demonstrators held a rally at Liberty State Park on Saturday to demand protection for the state park from privatization. Behind the rally was a counter-protest organized by a group called Liberty State Park For All, to voice support for recreation in the park and “to increase awareness about the broken promises of Liberty State Park and amplify Jersey City’s community voices,” according to the group.
Against the backdrop of the Statue of Liberty, the Manhattan skyline, and counter-protesters nearby, the rally, organized by the Friends of Liberty State Park, had multiple of officials and organizers speaking to a crowd at Flag Plaza.
“This is a major crossroads, as tens of thousands of people before you have, and many of you yourselves have done for many years,” said Sam Pesin, the president of the Friends of Liberty State Park, at the rally. “We’re putting democracy into action to protect the sacred and scarce urban open space and urban nature from privatizers.”
The rally urged Gov. Phil Murphy and the New Jersey Legislature to pass the Liberty State Park Protection Act, which would protect the park from privatization if passed. A previous version of the bill failed to pass in the previous legislative session, and a new version of it is currently in limbo as the legislature is out of session.
“We’re at a point today where we’re saying collectively, that we do not want to be here every single year, every single six months, fighting for what we know is the right thing to do,” said Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop at the rally. “I am 100 percent sure that at the end of the day, we will prevail because our track record is undefeated, and we’re not going to change it now.”
The counter-protestors are backed by Paul Fireman, a billionaire and owner of the nearby Liberty National Golf Course. Fireman attempted to acquire the park’s Caven Point for a golf course expansion last year, but backed out of it for the time being.
Liberty State Park For All Executive Director Arnold Stovell denied in a phone interview with the Hudson Reporter that the group was tied to Fireman, although he admitted in an interview with the Jersey Journal last year that the group was financially backed by the Fireman’s charity, the Paul and Phyllis Fireman Charitable Foundation.
For updates on this and other stories, check www.hudsonreporter.com and follow us on Twitter @hudson_reporter. Mark Koosau can be reached at mkoosau@hudsonreporter.com or his Twitter @snivyTsutarja.
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September 27, 2021 at 06:24AM
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Rally goers gather to urge protection of Liberty State Park - The Hudson Reporter
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