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

OCTOBER 9, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MARCH TO TRENTON CONTINUES TODAY TO HILLSIDE AND ELIZABETH

SECOND LEG OF 67 MILE MARCH TO TRENTON BEGINS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 9TH

The second leg of THE LONG MARCH FOR JUSTICE: March To Trenton For Police Accountability, Social Justice, And Economic Progress will take place today. The march was called by People’s Organization For Progress.

The march which began yesterday will resume today, Saturday, October 9th, 9:00am, at City Hall, 920 Broad Street in Newark, NJ.

The marchers will proceed down Broad street to Clinton Avenue and then take Elizabeth Avenue to North Broad Street in Hillside, New Jersey.

The march is scheduled to arrive 11:00 am at Korlesky Park, 1209 Central Avenue in Hillside where they will be greeted by supporters. They will be welcomed by Hillside Mayor Dahlia Vertreese.

Afterwards marchers will leave the park and keep walking through Central Avenue to Conant Avenue and to Salem Avenue. They will proceed along Salem to North Avenue and then to Newark Avenue in Elizabeth.

They will proceed to No Broad Street and to Broad Street. The marchers will stop about 12 noon at the Union County Courthouse, 2 Broad Street, corner of Broad Street & Rahway Avenue, in Elizabeth.

They will be greeted there by supporters. The march will end for that day in Elizabeth.

The march began yesterday, 11:00am at 2 Church Street, the intersection of Church Street and Bloomfield Avenue, in Montclair, New Jersey. The participants marched approximately 13 miles through five cities which included Montclair, Orange, East Orange, Irvington, and Newark.

They were welcomed by Councilman Weldon Montague in Orange, Mayor Ted Green in East Orange, and Mayor Tony Vauss in Irvington. Mayor Green marched with them from East Orange to Irvington.

The march route is approximately 67 miles long and will wind its way through 27 towns and cities. It is scheduled to take place over 9 days.

Lawrence Hamm, Chairman, People’s Organization For Progression will attempt to walk the entire distance, and will cover about 8 to 12 miles per day. The largest portion of the march route proceeds along Route 27 South and Route 206 South.

The march is expected to end 1:00pm, Saturday, October 16th, at the State House in Trenton, New Jersey.

The march has been endorsed by Newark Communities For Accountable Policing, Black Lives Matter of NJ, Black Lives Matter Paterson, Atlantic City Chapter of the National Action Network, Trenton Anti-Violence Coalition, Our Revolution of Trenton- Mercer County, New Jersey Chapter of the Poor People’s Campaign, Salvation and Social Justice, Latino Action Network, American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU NJ), Showing Up For Racial Justice New Jersey (SURJ -NJ), Northern New Jersey Jewish Voice For Peace, New Jersey Peace Action, and Equal Rights and Justice Radio Show (on WBAI Radio 99.5FM).

“We are walking from Montclair to Trenton to highlight the issue of police brutality and to demand the NJ Legislature pass legislation to hold police accountable,” stated Hamm.

“First and foremost we demand passage of A4656/S2963, the police review boards with subpoena power bill,” Hamm said.

There are other police related initiatives that POP wants to highlight and support during the march.

These include a bill to make officer disciplinary records public (S2656); a bill banning and criminalizing chokeholds (S2617); a bill establishing requirements for use of deadly force (A4526/S3825); and a bill ending qualified immunity in New Jersey (A4578/3730).

The group is also demanding that Governor Murphy veto a bill that would allow police to view bodycam footage before issuing their reports (S3939).

“At the national level we are calling for the passage of HR 1280, the George Floyd Justice In Policing Act,” he said.

This bill passed by the House of Representatives would create a nationwide data base for police misconduct; require racial profiling training of officers; create nationwide standards for police use of force; eliminate no knock warrants; ban the use of chokeholds; and eliminate qualified immunity for police.

“We are also marching for racial, social and economic justice. We demand that African-Americans receive reparations for slavery in the United States,” Hamm said.

POP is demanding the passage of A711/S322 by the NJ Legislature and HR40/S40 by Congress. These bills would create reparations study commissions at the state and national levels.

“We are marching against all forms of voter suppression. We demand passage of voting rights legislation including the For The People Act (HR 1) and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (HR 4),” he said.

“Once again we are calling for abolition of the Senate filibuster rule which we believe is the prerequisite to the passage of the voting rights bills,” Hamm said.

“We are also marching for economic justice. We demand passage of a $15 federal minimum wage and the passage of the PRO Act to facilitate worker unionization,” he stated.

The march route will proceed through the following towns and cities: Montclair, Orange, East Orange, Irvington, Newark, Hillside, Elizabeth, Roselle, Linden, Rahway, Edison, Metuchen, Iselin, Highland Park, New Brunswick, Somerset, North Brunswick, Franklin Township, Kendall Park, Princeton, Lawrence Township, Ewing, and Trenton.

The basic schedule of the march is as follows: Day One: Friday, October 8th Start 11:00am, 2 Church Street (Intersection Church St and Bloomfield Ave) Montclair. March to Orange, East Orange, Irvington, Newark. Rally 4:00pm at Newark City Hall. Day Two: Saturday, October 9th Newark, Hillside, and Elizabeth. Day Three: Sunday, October 10th Elizabeth, Roselle, Linden, Rahway. Day Four: Monday, October 11thRahway, Colonia, Iselin, Metuchen, Edison. Day Five: Tuesday, October 12th Edison, Highland Park, New Brunswick. Day Six: Wednesday, October 13th New Brunswick, Somerset, North Brunswick, Franklin Township, Kendall Park. Day Seven: Thursday, October 14th Kendall Park, Princeton. Day Eight: Friday, October 15thPrinceton, Lawrenceville, Lawrence Township, Ewing. Day Nine: Saturday, October 16th Ewing, Trenton. Finish Line rally 1:00pm in front of State House Annex, 131 West State Street, Trenton, NJ.

POP invites those who support the mission and objectives of the march to participate. Each individual can determine for themselves how far they want to walk.

The group is soliciting volunteers and additional organizational co-sponsors for the march.

For more information call the People’s Organization For Progress (POP) at (973)801-0001.

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