Last weekend in Hunterdon County*, African-American high students from Hunterdon Central High School helped to organize a peaceful protest rally that included a march to “The Blue Line”, located by the old historical courthouse on Main Street in Flemington, N.J. The cause was to speak out against the social injustice for the murder of George Floyd.   On the forefront of America media, his last words were “I can’t breathe” in a weaken state. But behind a dark curtain in the background, American Citizens cried as multiple bystanders shouted for help, but powerless to intervene.  George Floyd continued to be unresponsive for minutes with a knee to the throat, with no interval checks for vitals or monitoring for physical distress. A crowd formed around the scene trying to communicate concern to the officers with shouts of desperation and terror, while continuously being blocked from mobile device recording at a correct angle that would depict a full view of the incident. When medical arrived, former officer Derek Chauvin needed prompting to get up. With no pulse and no heartbeat in a dead lifeless body, George Floyd’s dead body was then mishandled in a disrespectful manner in order to reposition him for EMT response. In our contemporary modern-day society with all of America’s so-called advancements in civil rights, this incident is the most graphic and violent demonstration of police brutality in the history of my generation: non-accidental, intentional murder. 

“The Blue Line” that runs down the middle of our Main Street county community, which happens to be the center-point of Hunterdon County, N.J.  
“The Blue Line” can be found in the center of Main Street between the two yellow divider lines that separates the left and right side of the road (Hidden Symbolism for the division and annexing of Main Street), as the painted line was originally a “back-lash” response to a Black Lives Matter poster in 2016 hung on public display on a local shop window. But last Saturday on June 6 2020, there were over 1500 voices that day in Hunterdon County, crying out for peace and justice. Our local minority students and our minority neighbors mustered up enough strength and courage to share their powerful testimonies on how racism affected their life in Hunterdon County. Main Street was filled with Hunterdon County residents who dropped to their knees on “The Blue Line” with fists in the air to demonstrate power to all people. Main Street was no longer the center-point of the county, but now demonstrated as The New Heart of Hunterdon. It was a historical and cultural event for the record book. The silent majority finally found it’s voice and declared a stand, to speak up for racial equality, with the purpose of providing a safe haven for all minorities. It was a spiritual victory for our county and for people from of all walks of life that were actually relating, connecting, and bonding.

To commemorate the Hunterdon March for Social Justice, “The Blue Line” was painted over, as blue paint should only be designated for our handicap/disabled citizens (as per federal guidelines via Department of Transportation). Again, The Human Spirit had spoken with a strong presence of community togetherness and neighborly love for all who participated. MLK’s Dream was real and palpable that day!!!

Unfortunately, the aftermath was abhorrent. A Call-To-Action statement was released and published on social media by the President of our local Clinton Township Fraternal Order of Police (Lodge #182), Mr. John Tiger. The rhetoric was thought provoking with discriminatory undertones. It absolutely provided no alternative solutions or protective measures to ensure minority residents a safe haven. The end result was hundreds of agitated residents that equated The Hunterdon March for Social Justice to an anti-police perception. Although the The Hunterdon March for Social Justice was recorded on video as a peaceful rally with no acts of violence or agitation-provocation to our local police department; hundreds of residents were deceived into believing that The Hunterdon March for Social Justice was an anti-police movement. Reacting out of fear and resentment, dozens of residents resorted to slander and discriminatory rhetoric on social media, unaware or uninterested that minorities were being singled out as the unspoken threat to the American way of life. To make matters worse, rouge citizens were encouraged to engage in civil disobedience by re-painting “The Blue Line”, which they have unlawfully done so several times since the Hunterdon March. To this day, Mr. John Tiger has not addressed the hateful statements in his Facebook thread that has objectified minorities as perceived community invaders. He has not acknowledged the voice of his minority community in Hunterdon County. He has offered no viable answers on helping to address this social issue on safeguarding strategies to extinguish Institutional Racism on the local level.

My name is Gregory Koenitzer, Sr. and I am a minority in a minority family in Hunterdon County. I support our local police department with heart and civilian duty, as a protective father and an honest law-abiding citizen. It is my personal opinion that our local police are the best in the state. It is my personal testimony that all my encounters with Hunterdon County Law Enforcement have been professional and courteous. It is my testimony and perception that our Hunterdon County officers in blue are exemplary and exceptional humans. They deserve to be saluted and honored!!! I implore all Americans to realize that organized protest rallies and peace marches are not Anti-Police!  This movement for Racial Justice is not Anti-Police. It is simply to raise awareness of a broken system and to make a better tomorrow for our children. Unfortunately today, there are over one thousand County Citizens who truly do perceive “The Blue Line” as a dark and hidden symbol of Institutional Racism, much like the Confederate Flag.  If “The Blue Line” has a shared perception of being a sharp symbol that elicits hurt to the friends and family of our minority community, then that is something in itself that we can no longer ignore or keep silent. Together, we can work together to build a safe and thriving community where our law enforcement is empowered not by the potential to inflict hurt and stigma, but a true empowerment of enhanced skills, increased social awareness, and the ability of appropriately practicing Racial Responsibility by community standards and not individual discretion. I would like to close by stating that all lives should matter, but the truth behind my life story is that this was not my reality growing up.  I moved to Hunterdon County to raise a family, so my children will not have to face the unnecessary adversities that challenged me.  Hunterdon County has a golden opportunity to make a lasting systemic difference by enriching lives and manifesting full human potential. We can shine the light of liberty, truth and justice by having total inclusion of all American Citizens.  Please sign the petition to halt and reverse “The Blue Line”.  Thank-you for your time and patience.

God Bless America,
Gregory Koenitzer, Sr.
Human Rights Advocate 

*Hunterdon County, NJ
18.9 child deaths before age 18 per 100,000
1.6 teen pregnancies per 1,000 girls
9.4 percent child hunger with the last year
3.6 percent high school dropout rate

Rated “Safest Place To Raise a Child in America” by Save The Children

#SilenceIsDiscrimination #PowerToAllPeople #OneLove #JusticeForFloyd #BlackLivesMatterToMe #NJ