THE PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS (POP)
PO BOX 22505
NEWARK, NJ 07101
973 801-0001
www.njpop.org
CONTACT: LAWRENCE HAMM

MARCH 8, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

MARCH FOR JUSTICE, EQUALITY, AND PEACE WILL BE HELD ON ANNIVERSARY OF MARTIN LUTHER KING’S ASSASSINATION

The MARCH FOR JUSTICE, EQUALITY, AND PEACE will be held on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, 5:00pm, starting at the Martin Luther King Statue, 495 Dr Martin Luther King Jr Blvd in Newark, New Jersey.

The event is sponsored by People’s Organization for Progress (POP). The march is being held on April 4th which marks the 55th anniversary of the assassination Dr Martin Luther King.

The statue is located in front of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Justice Building near the corner of Springfield Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard.

Participants will march to the federal building and back to the King statue where a rally will be held.

“In the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd police brutality continues unabated. In fact, the numbers of police shooting deaths per year has actually increased since then. Very few police accountability and reform measures that were introduced have become law,” stated Lawrence Hamm, Chairman, People’s Organization For Progress.

“Racism, white supremacy, and fascism plague the nation. Racist violence and bias related crimes are increasing. Racial inequality, discrimination, and segregation are growing,” Hamm said.

“Attacks on voting rights, women’s rights, and workers rights continue. Voter suppression, racist gerrymandering, and attempts to impede and even ban the teaching of black history intensify,” he said.

“Income inequality, obscene concentration of wealth, poverty, environmental catastrophe and the threat of a nuclear world war are on the rise. Democracy in the U.S. is threatened and under attack,” he said.

“Specific demands of the march will include passage of bills in the New Jersey legislature that would establish police review boards with subpoena powers and other police reform measures, a task force on reparations to African Americans for slavery, and same day voter registration and other voting rights protections,” Hamm said.

“Marchers will demand the full implementation of the state’s Amistad Law which requires the teaching of African American history in all public schools. They will also demand a halt to all attempts to ban books and and the lifting of existing bans in school districts,” he said.

He also said they will demand the re-inclusion of material on Amiri Baraka and other black writers that have been removed from the College Boards AP African American curriculum, and the strengthening and expansion of Black Studies departments and programs on college and university campuses.

“At the federal level we will be marching for the passage of voting rights legislation including the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, police accountability bills including the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and the Breathe Act, and stronger civil rights laws to protect against racial discrimination,” he stated.

The federal demands also include doubling the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15.00 per hour, free college and elimination of all student debt, the establishment of a Medicare For All system of free universal health care in the U.S., and an end to war including the conflict in Ukraine through de-escalation, diplomacy, and a negotiated peace settlement.

“Now is the time to stand up, speak out, and protest. Everyone who wants justice, equality, and peace is urged to march with us on April 4th,” Hamm said.

Participants in the march will be asked to wear masks and practice social distancing. For more information call People’s Organizations For Progress at (973)801-0001.

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