Burlington County To Consider Ending Use Of Term 'Freeholder'

BURLINGTON COUNTY, NJ — Burlington County officials will soon be asked to end the use of the term "freeholder," something that was recently supported by Gov. Phil Murphy and Senate President Stephen Sweeney at the state level.

Citing the urgency to remove symbols of injustice and inequality, Burlington County Freeholder Director Felicia Hopson announced plans for the county to immediately begin phasing out the term “freeholder” from county materials and communications on Tuesday.

“Continuing our work to end systemic racism must be everyone’s objective and eliminating an antiquated title from an era when slavery and racism was tolerated is one step we can take right away,” Hopson said. “Burlington County was a cradle of the abolitionist movement and home to several stops along the Underground Railroad, and we will once again lead the way by proactively eliminating this vestige of discrimination.”

She announced her intention to introduce a resolution at the Aug. 12 meeting to replace the term “chosen freeholders” with the term “county commissioners” on the county’s website, social media, letterhead, stationary, signage and other materials.

The board will immediately cease to use the term freeholder in communications, but materials and signs will be updated over time under the county’s normal replacement schedule. It is not expected to cost the county anything to make these changes, officials said.

The word “freeholder” has come under fire recently because it is an Old English term that dates back to the American Revolution that means “land owner who is free of debt.” It was a requirement to hold public office at a time when only white men could own land and serve.

It is now only used in New Jersey for anyone who is elected to county governing bodies. Hopson, a Black woman, said the title is rooted in an era of discrimination and inequality and must be replaced.

She applauded bipartisan legislation from Senate President Stephen Sweeney and Senator Joseph Pennacchio to require counties to do away with the term, but said Burlington County should not wait for the legislature and governor to act.

Pennacchio lead the drive for the legislation in 2018, but it stalled in the General Assembly after being passed in the State Senate, according to northjersey.com. It will now be considered by the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee later this week.

“As our nation tears down symbols of injustice, we must also tear down words we use in New Jersey that were born from racism,” Murphy, Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin said in a joint statement last week. “It’s past time for New Jersey to phase out the term ‘freeholder’ from our public discourse — a term coined when only white male landowners could hold public office. This is not a matter of political correctness; it is a corrective action to replace an outdated designation that is rooted in institutional prejudice.”

“Governor Murphy and legislative leaders have endorsed the change, but Burlington County will not stand idly by and wait for change to be forced on us,” Hopson said. “Retiring this relic title from a period of slavery is the right thing to do and our county will lead the way in the implementation of this historic change.”