The march and rally will take place on Juneteenth, June 19, 2021, at noon in Newark.

We are working to get legislation passed this year at the state level that will create a New Jersey Reparations Task Force. You can read it here.

This historic legislation will lead New Jersey to study and take responsibility for its role in American slavery and to make policy and other recommendations to repair its enduring effects.

There is a direct connection between the racial disparities that Black people in New Jersey confront today — some of which are the worst in America — and the lasting legacy of slavery in our state and in America.

I am continually haunted, for example, by our Economic Justice Director Laura Sullivan’s research showing that the individual net wealth for New Jersey’s Black and Brown people is just $179 compared to $106,210 for New Jersey’s white people.

The bill, which has unanimous support from the Legislative Black Caucus, would be a crucial step in repairing that harm.

The Juneteenth rally will generate additional support for the legislation.

Last year, California became the only state in the country to ever pass this kind of legislation.

New Jersey will be the second.

But it will require a tremendous push. Together, I believe we can make it happen.