As reported by nj.com, about 200 public employees marched across the Delaware River this morning in protest of cuts to their benefits. Later, protesters attempting to get into the Statehouse were pushed back by State Police troopers.

Led by Revolutionary War re-enactors, the workers carried signs and chanted as they crossed the Calhoun Street bridge from Morrisville, Pennsylvania to Trenton. The protest, organized by the New Jersey Education Association teachers union, was designed to replicate Washington’s crossing before the Battle of Trenton. The group marched to the Statehouse where they met up with another group that began at the War Memorial. Much smaller than a similar rally last week at the capitol, the protesters waved American flags and “Don’t Tread on Me” flags.

About 11:00 a.m., the crowd turned toward the Statehouse Annex, looked up to the fourth floor where the bill is being debated, and began chanting “We’ll be back, we’ll be back.” Nine state troopers blocked the main entrance to the complex and were no longer admitting the public.

Minutes later, with speakers booming, whistles singing, and noise-makers clapping, the crowd danced to ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It,” a popular 1984 hit by Twisted Sister. The rally then marched toward the doors of the Statehouse.

At the rally, New Jersey Education Association President Barbara Keshishian equated state workers’ opposition to the pension and health benefit bill rapidly moving through the Legislature today with the Battle of Trenton during the American Revolution, which gave a much-needed morale boost to the Continental Army against the British.

Keshishian called today’s protests near the Statehouse, which were attended by about 1,000 union members, “The Second Battle of Trenton.” “We are here today to do the very same thing, ladies and gentlemen. We have taken some blows in recent months. We look at Trenton and see it occupied by hostile forces. By people who put the interests of the wealthy ahead of the needs of the people,” she said. “I will not sugarcoat this, the situation looks bleak. Once again, the odds look long. But like Washington’s soldiers in 1776, we are determined to fight, and we are determined to win,” said Keshishian.

Tags: Articles, health care reform, march, NJEA, pension reform, protest, reform bill, revolutionary war
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Photo of Donald C. Barbati Donald C. Barbati

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues…

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues litigated before the courts and administrative tribunals throughout the State of New Jersey. In addition, Mr. Barbati also routinely represents individuals in various types of public pension appeals, real estate transactions, and general litigation matters. He is a frequent contributor to the New Jersey Public Safety Officers Law Blog, a free legal publication designed to keep New Jersey public safety officers up-to-date and informed about legal issues pertinent to their profession. During his years of practice, Mr. Barbati has established a reputation for achieving favorable results for his clients in a cost-efficient manner.

Mr. Barbati has also handled numerous novel legal issues while representing New Jersey Public Safety Officers. Most notably, he served as lead counsel for the Appellants in the published case In re Rodriguez, 423 N.J. Super. 440 (App. Div. 2011). In that case, Mr. Barbati successfully argued on behalf of the Appellants, thereby overturning the Attorney General’s denial of counsel to two prison guards in a civil rights suit arising from an inmate assault. In the process, the Court clarified the standard to be utilized by the Attorney General in assessing whether a public employee is entitled to legal representation and mandated that reliance must be placed on up-to-date information.

Prior to becoming a practicing attorney, Mr. Barbati served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Linda R. Feinberg, Assignment Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Mercer Vicinage. During his clerkship Mr. Barbati handled numerous complex and novel substantive and procedural issues arising from complaints in lieu of prerogative writs, orders to show cause, and motion practice. These include appeals from decisions by planning and zoning boards and local government bodies, bidding challenges under the Local Public Contract Law, Open Public Records Act requests, the taking of private property under the eminent domain statute, and election law disputes. In addition, Mr. Barbati, as a certified mediator, mediated many small claims disputes in the Special Civil Part.

Mr. Barbati received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, magna cum laude, from Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Upon graduating, Mr. Barbati attended Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware. In 2007, he received his juris doctorate, magna cum laude, graduating in the top five percent of his class. During law school, Mr. Barbati interned for the Honorable Joseph E. Irenas, Senior United States District Court Judge for the District of New Jersey in Camden, New Jersey, assisting on various constitutional, employment, and Third Circuit Court of Appeals litigation, including numerous civil rights, social security, and immigration cases.

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