? Workers at the Red Hook Container Port are fearful the city is about to ship them out along with the cargo industry in favor of cruise ships.

The Port Authority plans to close the port next April when the lease with the port?s operator, American Stevedoring, expires. American Stevedoring says hundreds of employees will lose their jobs. The Port Authority plans to turn the site over to the new $52 million Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, which is next door, so it can expand.

Critics argue that closing the container port would be a threat to national security. They cite recent accidents, including an oil spill, which shut down the nearby Kill Van Kull passage. Workers say without their port, future accidents would indefinitely delay the delivery of valuable cargo and leave the city vulnerable.