Richard Cooper, Chair of the Libertarian Party of Nassau County, was outraged to learn of the church's plight from a story in The Westbury Times by Jessica DeStefano reporting that a Town Zoning Board official said "We have enough churches here in New Cassel. I would like to see done with the property what it was earmarked for...business." Rallying the Libertarians to aid St. Luke's, Cooper noted that the Libertarians reject eminent domain and "urban renewal" programs as violations of rights and unwise.
Rev. Jenkins bought the vacant church previously occupied by Jeremiah Baptist Church with the intent of renovating it for his St. Luke's Pentecostal Church, which had gone 21 years without a building of their own. He planned to add an elevator for handicapped access. But the Town of North Hempstead Zoning Board blocked his permits. The CDA offered him $80,000, $50,000 less than he paid for it. Although his church enjoys tax-exempt status with the IRS, the Town decided the property was not tax-exempt because the building did not open its doors. They claimed to have informed him, which he denies. And he has gotten $22,000 in property tax bills. To Richard Cooper, a Westbury businessman, these actions smell of trickery to deprive the poor congregation of its property on the cheap. "Town bureaucrats have replaced Martin Luther King's dream with a scheme."
The Libertarians will circulate a petition calling on officials to abandon their plan to take the church's property, to restore its tax exemption and to stop bureaucratic harassment. Moreover, the Libertarians will rally with the members of St. Luke's Pentecostal Church to hold protests and services at the 822 Prospect Avenue, New Cassel site and elsewhere. The Libertarians urge concerned people to protest to Supervisor May W. Newburger, Town of North Hempstead, 222 Plandome Road, Manhasset, NY 11030 phone 516-627-0590, www.northhempstead.com, and the Town Council members. Donations to help the church's building fund and legal defense can be sent to St. Luke's Pentecostal Church, 493 Maple Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590.
Richard Cooper frequently quotes the nineteenth-century French journalist Frederic Bastiat, whose book The Law has influenced many libertarians. Bastiat believed that government and law properly exist to defend life, liberty and property. But unfortunately, Bastiat noted with dismay that law is often perverted to violate life, liberty and property. His American examples were slavery and tariffs. "The law has placed the collective force at the disposal of the unscrupulous who wish, without risk, to exploit the person, liberty and property of others. It has converted plunder into a right, in order to protect plunder." Only the Libertarian Party, observes Cooper, opposes legalized theft.
The Libertarian Party stands for individual liberty, free markets and personal responsibility in order to promote a society that enjoys justice, abundance and peace. Recognizing the importance of property rights, the Libertarian Party of New York (LPNY) State Convention (April 29th at the Royal Regency Hotel in Yonkers) will present as a speaker Carol LaGrasse, President of the Property Rights Foundation of America in Stony Creek, New York.
Information about the Libertarian Party can be obtained by calling the national hotline 1-800-ELECT US or viewing the Libertarian Party of New York website at http://ny.lp.org.
