Professional Opportunities
Program Manager - Labor Innovations for the 21st Century Fund (LIFT) (remote)
Deputy Civic Engagement Director - One PA (Philadelphia, PA)
Social Work Case Manager - Legal Services of New Jersey (hybrid: Edison, NJ)
Mental Health Program Specialist 2 - NYS Office of Mental Health (hybrid: New York, NY)
Program Associate, Progressive Talent Pipeline - Demand Progress Education Fund (remote)
Program Manager, Trenton Neighborhood Initiative - Trenton Health Team (hybrid: Trenton, NJ)
Advocacy Manager - Unchained At Last (hybrid: Northern NJ)
NJ Primary Voter Registration Countdown!
Click here to register to vote!
Upcoming Events
Hate – Undone: Conversations that Ignite Change with Daryl Davis
Presented by RU Equity and Inclusion: Navigating Tensions, Affirming Community Speaker Series
Tuesday, April 9, 2024, 6:00 - 7:00pm
Rutgers-Newark, Express Newark Lecture Hall
54 Halsey Street, Newark, NJ 07102
"Dr. Daryl Davis is an international recording artist who has performed and toured all 50 States and around the world. He has performed extensively with Chuck Berry, The Legendary Blues Band (formerly The Muddy Waters Blues Band), Elvis Presley’s Jordanaires, and many others. As an actor Daryl received rave reviews for his stage role in The Time Of Your Life, and has done film and television roles including HBO’s acclaimed series The Wire.
As a race relations expert Daryl has received numerous awards and high acclaim for his book Klan-Destine Relationships and his award-winning film documentary Accidental Courtesy. He is the first Black author to write a book on the Ku Klux Klan based upon in-person interviews and personal encounters. His ability to get racists to renounce their ideology has sent Daryl to travel all over the United States and the world to share his methodology."
Click here to register!
Hostile School Environments and Book Bans: Ensuring Social, Racial, and LGBTQ+ Justice for Youth and their Families
Presented by the RU School of Social Work
Wednesday, April 10, 2024, 12:00 - 1:00pm
**virtual**
Join the School of Social Work for a free, virtual presentation to raise awareness and increase mobilization efforts about book bans and learn methods to promote advocacy to deal with them.
Speakers include:
Michael LaSala (Professor, Rutgers School of Social Work)
Edward Alessi (Associate Professor & MSW Program Director, Rutgers School of Social Work)
Kate Salerna and Heather Diane (Sparta School District)
Barbara Simon (Senior Director of News at GLAAD)
Joseph Wade (MSW Student, Rutgers School of Social Work)
Antoinette Y. Farmer (Professor and Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Rutgers School of Social Work)
Click here to register and review the bios of the speakers
Demand Rutgers Social Work Students are Paid for their Labor!!
Sign the Petition!!
To learn more, follow the Rutgers Payment4Placements chapter and the Payment4Placements movement on Instagram: @rutgersp4p @p4pnational
National Updates
ACA Plans Are Being Switched Without Enrollees’ OK
KFF Health News
“Unauthorized enrollment or plan-switching is emerging as a serious challenge for the ACA, also known as Obamacare. Brokers say the ease with which rogue agents can get into policyholder accounts in the 32 states served by the federal marketplace plays a major role in the problem, according to an investigation by KFF Health News.”
Key Findings From AP’s Investigation Into Police Force That Isn’t Supposed To Be Lethal
Frontline
“Every day, police in the U.S. rely on common use-of-force tactics that, unlike guns, are meant to stop people without killing them. But when misused, these tactics can still end in death…This story is part of an ongoing investigation led by The Associated Press in collaboration with the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism programs and FRONTLINE (PBS). The investigation includes the Lethal Restraint interactive story, database and the documentary, Documenting Police Use Of Force, premiering April 30 on PBS.”
He’s on Death Row for Murders. Prison Workers Say He Should Be Spared.
The New York Times
“Among those asking Missouri’s governor to spare the life of Brian Dorsey, who was convicted of two murders and is set to be executed on Tuesday, were Roman Catholic bishops, law professors and national mental health groups. There was also a less expected cohort seeking clemency: more than 70 current and former prison workers who got to know Mr. Dorsey behind bars.”
Arizona Abortion Rights Amendment Garners Sufficient Signatures for 2024 Vote
truthout
“On Tuesday, Arizona for Abortion Access, a coalition of reproductive rights organizations, including the ACLU of Arizona and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, announced that they had gathered sufficient voter signatures for their initiative to qualify for the November ballot. If passed, the initiative would amend the Arizona Constitution to safeguard abortion access.”
Local & Regional Updates
NJ goes to court against congestion-pricing tolls
NJ Spotlight News
“New Jersey was at federal court this week to challenge the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s imminent plan to impose a controversial $15 per car congestion-pricing toll for vehicles driving into Manhattan’s business district. With little time to spare, the Murphy administration claimed the plan will only divert more traffic through local neighborhoods, without offering to mitigate the environmental impact of added air pollution — or sharing any of the revenue with NJ Transit agencies.”
700K New Jersey workers face barriers to unemployment benefits, study finds
The New Jersey Monitor
“The unemployment insurance system leaves behind more than 700,000 New Jerseyans, largely due to federal unemployment regulations that put roadblocks between some vulnerable workers and jobless benefits…The figure includes people who are eligible for unemployment benefits but don’t know it, self-employed workers, and undocumented immigrants barred by law from seeking unemployment insurance, according to the report from the Center For Popular Democracy.”
A New Jersey man didn’t trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
WHYY (NPR)
“Jameek Lowery entered the dimly lit lobby of the city’s police headquarters in a panic. He was having a mental breakdown — and needed help…Paterson police repeatedly punched Jameek Lowery before putting him into an ambulance. He arrived unconscious at the hospital handcuffed to a gurney and died two days later.”
The NJ State Library Has Received Over $34 Million in Federal Funding to Invest in Capital Improvements at Community Facilities Statewide
NJ Office of the Governor
“The New Jersey State Library (NJSL), an affiliate of Thomas Edison State University, is pleased to announce the launch of its Community Center Digital Connect program, a community resilience project that will address disparities in access to education, employment, and health services by investing in capital improvements at community facilities across the state.”
NJ Election News:
Ballot Battles...An Update!
It was just two weeks ago when Tammy Murphy was still in the NJ Senate race, and the future of our state's unique "county line" ballot was uncertain. Who knew so much could change in 14 days!
Shortly after our March 22nd newsletter, Tammy Murphy dropped out of the race for Sen. Bob Menendez's seat. With Mrs. Murphy off of the ballot, Rep. Andy Kim is in a prime position for what would have been the optimal spot on a county line formatted ballot. As of Wednesday, 4/3, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals denied the motion by county clerks to stay the ruling by U.S. District Judge Zahid Quraishi to abolish the controversial ballot design. Both sides will have an opportunity to argue their case for the new vs. old ballot design, but for now, the Democratic primary in June will feature the new "office ballot" design.
Meanwhile, members of NJ's GOP are seemingly not in agreement themselves about the county line ballot. "Far Right" factions within the Republican party seek the same abolition of the party line that majority of Democrats do, while others in the party remain keen to defend the traditional ballot. For the time being, the Republican primary ballot will not be changing. Read this NJ Spotlight News article to see what members of the Republican Party are saying.
For the most recent updates on the ballot battle, you can watch the NJ Spotlight News reports on PBS as well as on their website. In the most recent update, they speak with an associate professor of Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, Dr. Julia Sass Rubin. Watch the video segment here!
