Last week’s Belleville Town Council Meeting was nothing short of a circus, but can anyone guess who was the starring act yet again? You guessed it.
Already under intense fire for allegedly shouting a highly offensive racial remark that was captured on audio, Belleville Councilwoman and Democratic Committee Chair Marie Strumolo Burke continued to win hearts and minds at last Tuesday’s meeting.
If you haven’t already heard the infamous phone call, take a quick look at this link before moving ahead:
http://essexwatch.com/blog/462/marie-burke-and-her-colorful-phone-message/
We were waiting on a transcript of this meeting to come in, but a member of the NutleyWatch community generously helped us obtain a full audio recording of the entire meeting.
First, I never want to be accused of quoting anything out of context, therefore I’m posting the entire meeting audio so that you can hear the whole thing for yourself before I say anything further.
It’s an hour long, but it’s not that long before the fur starts flying.
In case you don’t feel like listening to the whole thing, you can probably skip ahead to about this point first. This is where an issue is raised that ends up with Mrs. Burke unbelievably calling the town’s D.P.W. workers “stooges”.
But it gets better.
A little while later, Mary Short (I apologize if I get any names wrong) gives Councilwoman Burke a piece of her mind.
And you might as well roll on through to hear Ms. Winslow make an excellent point in asking why Burke had not yet pursued a defamation suit, considering how she repeatedly denies the allegations.
If I were at the meeting that night, I would have given both of these women a standing ovation.
But wait, there’s more!
Now, keep in mind that Mrs. Burke has been denying left and right that it was in fact her voice on that racially offensive voicemail. Listen here as she reflexively jumps in to correct someone on the timing of the voicemail, thereby confirming that the phone call actually took place! You can’t make this stuff up.
This gentleman (sorry, couldn’t catch his name) admirably doesn’t beat around the bush and calls a spade a spade. Predictably, Burke lashes back at him, saying among other things, “The people of Silver Lake have no use for you whatsoever!”. Stay classy, Marie.
Councilwoman Burke, by definition, being a racist does not mean you hate everyone. It simply means you believe another race is inferior to your own.
Lastly, if someone has to keep saying, “I’m not a racist” to everyone, it’s often because they’re a racist.
It’s time for you to resign yourself, Mrs. Burke – immediately.
Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.
~ Griff
Update: NorthJersey.com published an article about the meeting:
http://www.northjersey.com/news/belleville-councilwoman-comes-under-fire-again-1.898558
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