New Jersey Institute for Social Justice

#BlackHistoryMonth is about Black people winning. Black people winning is at the heart of reparations. That’s what inspired the creation of the first-of-its-kind New Jersey Reparations Council. Co-chaired by Taja-Nia Henderson and Khalil Gibran Muhammad, and convened by the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice’s Jean-Pierre Brutus, in partnership with RWJF’s Rich Besser, Maisha Simmons and Amber Randolph, the Council’s ultimate goal is not only to repair the enduring harm to Black people from slavery and its enduring impact, but also to answer this foundational question: What kind of reparative system does New Jersey need to build and invest in for Black people here to finally be free? To thrive? To win? Register to join us Wednesday, February 12, 2025 at 6:30 for the Council’s final public session with member and editor Jennifer Taylor and members Timothy K. Eatman, Dreisen H., Dionne Ford, Kenya Tyson and Mark Krasovic here: http://bit.ly/NJRCsession9 The Council’s report will be released on Juneteenth, 2025.

We must tell the truth about who we are in New Jersey and beyond so that we can become who we must be. Laurie Gindin Beacham, New Jersey Institute for Social Justice’s stellar Chief Communications & Marketing Officer, does that best! “The only way forward is through,” she says. Join me in congratulating her on her 6th Institute anniversary!

At the top of Black History Month, here is what we know: democracy is not coming from “adults” in Washington, DC. So young people are expanding it #fromthegroundup in our communities here in NJ. Today, 7,000+ 16- & 17-year-olds, 90% of whom are Black & Brown were empowered to register to vote in Newark’s April 15, 2025 school board election! In Newark’s school board election last year, just 3 percent of registered voters voted. Think about that: 3 percent. As Gem Project fellow Nathaniel Esubonteng said, “It is clear that we cannot rely on other people to speak for us. We have to speak for ourselves.” Voter registration, which runs through March 25, 2025, is available online here: voter.svrs.nj.gov/register. Newark is the second largest city in America to expand voting to young people since 1971, when the 26th Amendment lowered the age to 18 nationwide. This is what democracy looks like, from the ground up! I am grateful for the incredible work of my New Jersey Institute for Social Justice colleagues, Henal Patel, Micauri Vargas, Assatta Mann, Nuzhat Chowdhury, Lloyd Nelson, Jake Girard, Nadia Rush and Jeanette Steer-Tindel on this issue, along with Amanda Ebokosia and her Gem Project fellows, Nate and Breanna Quist, our #Vote16 and many other partners. #Vote16 #WeChooseCommunityOverChaos #AdvocacyIsPower #FromTheGroundUp

My New Jersey Institute for Social Justice team and I joined Newark Mayor Ras Baraka’s press conference addressing the cruel and unconstitutional raid of a local business by ICE agents. Mayor Baraka shared that undocumented residents as well as citizens, including a military veteran, were detained without warrant. That this is happening so quickly and aggressively, while not surprising, is a shock to the senses. We stand in solidarity with our immigrant brothers and sisters who are being subject to this terror—and with our partners who are supporting them.   This raid was in Newark, my beloved city.     Tomorrow, it could be Paterson, Jersey City, Elizabeth, Trenton, Atlantic City or any other city in New Jersey—and across the country.   Almost one in four New Jerseyans is an immigrant, making our state a prime target for the new administration and ICE.  Our rich diversity is one of our great strengths; it has also become a target by shameful forces that seek to tear us apart.    No matter what they bring, we will choose community over chaos. That is who we are.    If you are seeking support for yourself or your family, or want to support an immigrant justice group, please visit our friends at the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice (https://lnkd.in/eZu7UE-y) who, under Amy Torres’ courageous leadership, are doing tremendous work in defense of our communities. Please also see their Know Your Rights resource, and find more information on their website or through the ACLU of New Jersey. Onward.

We. Are. Ready. Now more than ever, change will come from the ground up in our communities—not from Washington, DC down. In his final book, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote about the unfinished journey that America faced and was morally bound to pursue. “We are confronted with the urgency of now,” he wrote, “…This may well be mankind’s last chance to choose between chaos or community.” Get ready to choose community, he urged. Today, as we acknowledge Dr. King’s legacy while simultaneously ushering in a period of unprecedented threats to our democracy, we again confront those same two choices. With you by our side, We. Are. Ready. to choose community, as we double down on building power from the ground up – boldly, affirmatively and without fear. We cannot rely on change to come from Washington, DC. We are ready to welcome the next frontier of expanded voting rights: 16- and 17-year-olds who will vote in Newark’s school board election on April 15. We are ready to create a New Jersey Voting Rights Act, since Congress has failed to step up after the Supreme Court tore out the heart of the Voting Rights Act more than 10 years ago. We are ready to end police brutality in New Jersey and close our failed youth prisons. We are ready to release the findings of the first-of-its-kind New Jersey Reparations Council to finally build a New Jersey in which Black people and all of us can flourish, thrive and win. We are ready to tend to the unfinished business of Dr. King’s Poor People’s Campaign by ensuring that all of us have access to the vast prosperity of the Garden State. We are ready to build a new New Jersey, from the ground up, that stands as a beacon for racial justice – and an exemplar of the beloved community Dr. King gave his life for. We know you are, too. Onward!

We. Are. Ready. Now more than ever, change will come from the ground up in our communities—not from Washington, DC down. In his final book, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote about the unfinished journey that America faced and was morally bound to pursue. “We are confronted with the urgency of now,” he wrote, “…This may well be mankind’s last chance to choose between chaos or community.” Get ready to choose community, he urged. Today, as we acknowledge Dr. King’s legacy while simultaneously ushering in a period of unprecedented threats to our democracy, we again confront those same two choices. With you by our side, We. Are. Ready. to choose community, as we double down on building power from the ground up – boldly, affirmatively and without fear. We cannot rely on change to come from Washington, DC. We are ready to welcome the next frontier of expanded voting rights: 16- and 17-year-olds who will vote in Newark’s school board election on April 15. We are ready to create a New Jersey Voting Rights Act, since Congress has failed to step up after the Supreme Court tore out the heart of the Voting Rights Act more than 10 years ago. We are ready to end police brutality in New Jersey and close our failed youth prisons. We are ready to release the findings of the first-of-its-kind New Jersey Reparations Council to finally build a New Jersey in which Black people and all of us can flourish, thrive and win. We are ready to tend to the unfinished business of Dr. King’s Poor People’s Campaign by ensuring that all of us have access to the vast prosperity of the Garden State. We are ready to build a new New Jersey, from the ground up, that stands as a beacon for racial justice – and an exemplar of the beloved community Dr. King gave his life for. We know you are, too. Onward!