Trenton, NJ – The state legislature is rapidly approaching its summer recess, and in the wings are two key pieces of legislation surrounding local food purchasing for schools and expanding land access for urban agriculture. The time for action is now, and here is an overview of two critical food systems bills and how to contact policymakers to make your voice heard. 

Newark, NJ - The U.S. Department of Justice still has its sights set on U.S. Representative LaMonica McIver. Over a week after Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka was arrested for allegedly trespassing at Delaney Hall, the DOJ dropped their charges against Baraka, only to charge McIver for reportedly assaulting two federal agents as the Newark Mayor was arrested on May 9th.

Philadelphia, PA - When our circle of collaborators first began this work together, we didn’t know that we would be creating our own form of journalism. We had convened a cohort of brilliant, principled media workers to manifest these goals, and found ourselves lucky that more than 20 journalists, media ethicists, mutual aid organizers and other subject-matter experts joined us for the journey. Making space for Black and Brown storytellers in news, looking at new models for coverage on crime and public safety, planting seeds for the news projects we wanted to see— this was all on our to-do list. Co-creating what we now call safer journalism happened along the way. 

Newark, NJ - The rights of Green Card holders are clearly outlined in writing, by the U.S. government. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services government website, permanent residents have the right to be “protected by all laws of the United States, your state of residence and local jurisdiction.” Further there is decades of precedent confirming the legal rights to free speech and political protest held by permanent residents.

Tip of the Spear—Black Radicalism, Prison Repression, and the Long Attica Revolt, by Dr. Orisanmi Burton, draws on direct interviews, archival research, and state sources associated with Attica and other prisons to deconstruct state repression tactics that form the foundation of the prison system. 

When trainee doctor Moumita Debnath’s half-naked, mutilated body was found last August at a medical college in Kolkata, shock reverberated across India. But the outrage didn’t stop there, with news of her death sparking protests in major cities across the globe and in the tristate area.

On Sunday, June 9, at about 7 a.m., dozens of Rutgers police raided and then evicted a peaceable assembly – an encampment – of Newark residents and Rutgers University students at the institution’s Newark campus. The raid occurred without warning.

As a young Jewish woman, I try to hold on to hope for a future in which my people aren’t marked forever by Israel’s actions, for the blood on the hands of the once-oppressed-now-oppressors. But in a world where the Holocaust’s existence is questioned, I hope that the plight of the Palestinians is remembered, and remembered well.