On Saturday, October 25th, about 100 labor union members and community activists rallied outside Newark’s Delaney Hall immigration detention facility. They called for an end to the mistreatment of detainees and greater action against ICE.
The rally follows months of protests outside Delaney Hall, a privately operated immigration detention center that has faced extreme backlash due to allegations of poor medical care and living conditions.
After a prolonged period of dormancy, the Chambers Family Carousel at Newark’s Military Park reopened on Oct. 23rd at $450,000, bringing back an attraction that has been absent from the downtown park for years.
The small carousel claims a 26-foot diameter on the 6-acre park in the heart of the business district. With very few children-centered playgrounds in the city, the carousel presents an opportunity for families and children to make the heart of Newark a family-friendly space.
Feature image: Newark’s Military Park carousel at night. (Photo credit, Ryan Novosielski for Public Square Amplified)
Chants of “Stop police brutality” and “No justice, no peace” rang through downtown Newark as gatherers rallied before the march, where Lawrence Hamm, chairman of POP, reflected on the organization’s decades-long campaign against police violence. Though current data shows that police killings are down, the mappingpoliceviolence.org project caveats this data, as law enforcement agencies across the country have been resistant to providing information about police killings.
The homes were built as Newark continues to face affordability challenges. Research conducted by Rutgers Law School’s Center on Law, Inequality, and Metropolitan Equity (CLiME) found that rents in Newark have risen faster than incomes, increasing concerns about housing stability and homelessness. The report highlights differences among Newark’s five central wards, with the East and Central Wards experiencing new construction, which is driving rapidly rising rents.
The protests aim to signal government leaders that climate policy is an urgent matter. For Dr. Sheats, New Jersey’s Bill S232— which requires the NJDEP to consult environmental justice communities when evaluating pollution-related permits, among other protections— has been a significant policy endeavor. S232 was passed on September 18th, 2020 and supported by over 165 organizations including the New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance, which Dr. Sheats co-founded.
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