FREEHOLD – Ethnic heritage festivals have a history of bringing people from different backgrounds together in one venue to share and learn about each other’s cultures, and the upcoming Latino Festival in Freehold Borough is no different.
It appears as if this year’s festival – Freehold’s third annual Latino gathering – will take place under a more compassionate sky, rather than the cloud that hovered over it before. Advocates for the Latino community and municipal officials say an ongoing dialogue is helping to ease the tension that has existed between the two groups.
After two years at the Park Avenue Elementary School complex, the Latino festival is moving to the parking lot of St. Rose of Lima Church, McLean Street, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 6. All members of the community are invited to share the culture that has become a large part of the borough over the last decade.
The bigger news, however, is that the Latino festival will be held in downtown Freehold in 2008, something that Latino advocates have been working toward for some time, according to Frank Argote- Freyre, chairman of the Monmouth County chapter of the Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey.
Argote-Freyre called the upcoming festival “exciting” and said, “Freehold needs this exposure to Latin culture. It’s long overdue.” He said it might also be a good idea to have an African-American festival to celebrate the culture of the borough’s African-American residents.
“These cultures are something to celebrate in this town,” he said. “Freehold Borough is a very diverse and therefore, a somewhat unique community in western Monmouth County.”
Argote-Freyre said borough officials and Latino advocates have been meeting in small groups to work on issues affecting the immigrant community and longtime residents of Freehold Borough.
“After several years of turmoil we (borough officials and advocates) realized there was a need for an ongoing dialogue to talk about issues that affect both groups. One of the issues discussed was having the Latino festival outside in the downtown area,” he said.
Argote-Freyre said the meetings have been attended by Mayor Michael Wilson, Borough Council President Kevin Kane, Borough Attorney Kerry Higgins, Jayne Carr, the executive director of the Freehold Center Partnership, and Mike Page, a partnership member and owner of the Court Jester, to promote ongoing dialogues.
“As a result of these meetings, borough officials have cleared the way to make (the festival in town) happen easily for us,” Argote Freyre said, adding that although both sides are not in total agreement on all issues, the ongoing talks represent a “significant improvement in the relationship.”
He said the goal of the meetings is to look at ways to help the borough reach out to the immigrant community and form a more cooperative relationship among all residents.
Wilson said he decided to open a dialogue with the Latino advocates after a demonstration took place at Borough Hall by people who were opposed to certain Rental Advisory Committee recommendations, specifically one that would have required people to reveal their legal or illegal status in the United States when renting housing.
The Borough Council never enacted that recommendation.
“We needed to stop talking at each other and start talking to each other,” Wilson said, adding that the ongoing meetings have been a venue to discuss issues pertaining primarily to the safety, health and well being of all residents.
“The meetings deal with issues that the Latino community may have and issues that we have as well,” the mayor said. “We are opening the lines of communication. There has been a give and take on both ends to bring the community to an understanding of the differences in the culture of both groups.
“We still have our differences. For instance, Frank and I will disagree on the issue of illegal immigration until the cows come home, but there are two separate issues here. There is the illegality issue and that is a federal problem, but there is also the humanistic side of the issue. We are dealing with human beings here so we must talk to each other, not at each other,” he said.
Wilson has started writing a column for the Spanish language newspaper Nosotros in which he discusses issues pertaining to safety and quality of life.
Cecilia Reynolds, the editor and publisher of Nosotros, said she tried for many years to have a Latino festival.
“I wanted to put on a Latino festival, not just for the Latino residents, but for our American neighbors. I pursued the idea but I failed. Thanks to St. Rose of Lima Church we are hoping that this festival will draw even more people due to its access closer to town.”
Reynolds said the Latino Leadership Alliance has been instrumental in “moderating the tension that has been a noticeable part of the fabric of the borough over the last few years … There is progress being made.”
Reynolds said exposing and sharing the Latino culture has always been a part of her mission as an advocate for the recent immigrant population.
“When the population starts to share our culture, it is our hope that they will be able to put aside the perspective that some have about the Latino people. We are more than just those standing on street corners to wait for work. We have a lot to offer and share in the community. We want to take this opportunity to share to invite the public to the festival. We want people to bring their children and have a wonderful time. After all, the children share the same classrooms,” she said.
In addition to food, the Oct. 6 Latino festival will feature flamenco dancers, Caribbean and Mexican dance troupes, a Mariachi band and Cuban rap artist Alvare. Area organizations will have booths set up at the event to provide information about what they offer to the community.
Although the festival is primarily sponsored by the Latino Leadership Alliance, many organizations have contributed to make the festival a reality. Notable is Nestle USA, Freehold, with a donation of more than $2,500, and the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders, Prudential and Verizon, all with donations ranging from $1,000 to $2,400.
In addition to Reynolds and Argote- Freyre, members of the Latino Festival Committee are Laz Cardenas, Suzanne Crandall, Ann Bagchi, Yeni M. Cardenas, Anna “Cuqui” Rivera, Juan Reyes, Janet Morales, Lidia Daniels, Gabriella Garnier, Diane Tennis, Virginia Taverna, Rose Ann McCrohan and Donna Buhl.