A federal security grant will go towards ten faith-based and non-profit organizations in the 9^th Congressional District, with $150,000 for each, Congressman Bill Pascrell said at a press conference Tuesday morning at Camp Veritans in Haledon.  Camp Veritans is among those ten.  The Congressman was joined by members of law enforcement, Haledon Mayor Michael Johnson, Camp Director Carla Rudow, as well as members of the Veritans Club which support the camp. 

With kids taking swimming lessons and the echoing tones of Taylor Swift wafting through the hot summer air, Pascrell, eschewing a suit for a more relaxed shirt and jeans, shared some of his own stories and pleasant memories of the place, having attended Camp Veritans as a youth himself.  Wanting to protect the camp, and other places around the district which have a faith-based nature, he spoke of the dangers of extremism and anti-Semitism in the country in general, but also in the state of New Jersey in particular.

Amid the backdrop of the Veritans summer camp facilities, nestled within the trees at the base of William Paterson University, Pascrell said, “We put money in the federal budget to help primarily religious organizations in order to strengthen their locations physically and morally.  As you know, a lot of religious organizations have had their programs destroyed. When I ran for Congress in the ninth district for the first time, it was in 2012, someone threw a bomb inside of a rabbi’s home in Rutherford.  It was a horrible situation.  Thank God nobody got hurt. I went back to Washington with our chairman at that time, Benny Thompson, and we decided that we had to do something about this, so we can help communities as well as those religious organizations. So, I’m here not only to announce $150,000, which would be unheard of for religious organizations, but to tell you that there are ten organizations in the ninth district, and each will get $150,000.”

Money from the grant will be applied for physical security investments such as security barriers, window and lighting upgrades, as well as emergency preparedness planning, training, and enhanced engagement between the public and private sector along with Homeland Security.  “Every dime we put in the legislation will be accounted for, so that nobody will be playing any games,” Pascrell said.  “We try to enhance this program every year.”

On summer camp in general, Pascrell said, “I can’t think of anything more fun for kids and young adults… people drive down the Turnpike, they can’t imagine places like this exist in New Jersey, the beauty of New Jersey.  This camp is an oasis.  Standing in a stunning place like this, it is hard to think of negative things at all.  We need more positive things.  The rise of domestic extremism is one of those challenges and I’ve been warning about it since I got to Congress.”  Pascrell recalled when he was named to the 9/11 Committee, saying that extremism was at the “front door”, but the government chose not to address it.  “How foolish, how stupid.  This threat can touch any of us anywhere, I’ve seen it with my own two eyes. Even a refuge like this one must be protected.  Over the last two decades, I’ve raised the alarm on the rise of antisemitism.  I am pleased to announce that New Jersey is the second largest recipient in the whole country to benefit from the non-profit security grant program.”

The security grant program has grown over the last decade, Pascrell said, from $10 million to $300 million.  He said that children are not ignorant of the dangers around them and have been paying attention.  “The kids are listening!  They can’t believe their ears; they see the threats.  If a child can’t feel safe at summer camp, they can’t feel safe anywhere.”

Pascrell said that he also had utmost respect for the separation of church and state, but the federal funds, which go towards Christian, Jewish, and Muslim non-profit institutions in the Ninth District, are to protect these segments of the community.  The funds do not, therefore, represent a governmental endorsement of religion, but address the fact that these non-profits cannot financially manage needed security measures without governmental grants.