Jersey City NAACP Branch Endorses Vote NO Campaign Opposing Short-Term Rental Ban

Rev. Legay: “This short-term rental ban is economic discrimination”

Jersey City, NJ – Today, the Jersey City branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) announced their opposition to the City’s short-term rental ban and encouraged their members — and all Jersey City residents — to VOTE NO on Municipal Question 1 this Election Day, November 5th.

The Jersey City NAACP supported the short-term rental community’s effort — backed by Airbnb — to put the ban on the ballot, circulating petitions and helping to collect the over 20,000 signatures received by the community this summer.

“By targeting the 70 percent of Jersey City residents who are tenants — the majority of whom are people of color — this ban amounts to nothing more than economic discrimination, plain and simple. Even worse, it will promote the Tale of Two Cities that has long existed here, satisfying the few while leaving the rest of us who rely on the short-term rental economy hung out to dry,” said Rev. Nathaniel B. Legay, president of the NAACP Jersey City branch. “Along with our strong belief in the importance of this issue, we feel especially called to stand up for justice now, given the ugly political harassment that short-term rental hosts of color have experienced throughout this campaign, simply for speaking out for their rights and livelihoods-and their right to vote. When we fight, we win — and that’s why we are calling on Jersey City to join us in voting no this November.”

“The short-term rental community is grateful for the NAACP Jersey City branch’s moral example and witness against economic exclusion and racial justice as they advocate for a NO vote on Nov. 5,”  said Graeme Zielinski, spokesperson for the Keep Our Homes campaign.

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Paid for by Keep Our Homes, 123 Town Square Place, Unit 239, Jersey City, NJ 07310