At the June 5 freeholder meeting, the state Senate bill allowing for the change of the title “freeholder” to “county commissioner” was discussed. The bill allows, but does not require, freeholder boards to make the change.
The term “freeholder” was coined at a time when only those who owned land free and clear could be elected to county government. In those Colonial times, the only citizens able to own land were white men. No people of color nor women could be freeholders. New Jersey then legislated in 1807 that only “free, white male citizens” could vote or be elected officials.
The county website shows the definition of a “Freeholder” as:
“An old English term, a ‘freeholder’ originally denoted a person who owned an estate of land over which he had complete control. After the Norman Conquest of 1066 A.D., British kings found it necessary under pressure to call together an assemblage of higher clergy, earls and barons of the nobility and later Knights of the Realm, to sit as advisers and to grant taxes for defense of the kingdom. By the 13th century, … the British Parliament was enlarged to include these freemen who owned their land free and clear, who were called Freeholders.”
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I believe the time has come to leave this racist and misogynistic term behind and move into the 21st century, where we value the diversity of the population and are finally able to dismantle institutional prejudice at its core.
Institutional racism and misogyny are insidious infiltrators of established norms, causing societal blindness of otherwise thoughtful people toward minorities and women.
Using racist and misogynistic terms in government normalizes the thoughts behind them, regardless of how old these terms are. At that same freeholder meeting, the board voted unanimously and rightly to condemn the comments and actions of some high school students directed at an African-American student. This is hypocritical. If we celebrate the diversity of our board, boasting two people of color and four women for the first-time ever, then why can’t we make the recognition official and rid ourselves of the term that, in its definition, negates that diversity?
Additionally, moving toward the term county commissioner is good government. I knocked on thousands of doors when running for office, and at best only 10 percent of people knew what a freeholder was. The title county commissioner is much easier to understand and gives a stronger connotation of what these folks are charged with doing rather than an archaic and antiquated term like freeholder. Perhaps it will even entice citizens to attend more freeholder meetings and even get involved in public service themselves.
The argument of the cost of changing the letterheads, envelopes, signs and other printed materials was given as a reason not to pursue this change, and that state government should have better things to do than discuss the title of freeholder. I argue that ridding government of anachronistic titles that imply a hierarchy based on preferred sex and race is a most important thought for government, both state and county, to consider. Plus, the cost of printed materials can be absorbed over time, reordering with a new title. It doesn’t, and shouldn’t, have to be done all at once.
The signals we as a board send to the citizens of Atlantic County are heard loud and clear by all, and are especially significant to young people. Considering the polarization that is occurring in the country, Atlantic County government has a responsibility to take meaningful actions to bring people together, to rid government of institutional racism and misogyny wherever it exists, and to make government easier to understand.
It is my hope that the General Assembly will approve this legislation so that it can be sent to the governor, who will hopefully sign this bill into law. If and when that happens, I strongly urge my colleagues on the freeholder board to join me in making this important change.
Caren Fitzpatrick, of Linwood, is Atlantic County freeholder at large.
