PARTNERS FOR WOMEN AND JUSTICE SUPPORTS RELIEF FOR NEW JERSEY IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

ADVOCATES FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE URGE GOVERNOR MURPHY TO MAKE COVID RELIEF AVAILABLE TO UNDOCUMENTED WORKERS

April 14, 2021

Partners for Women and Justice (Partners) announces its support for providing New Jersey stimulus relief to New Jersey workers, excluded from federal stimulus payments, and its solidarity with Make the Road Members, who are on day 8 of their hunger strike. We call on Governor Murphy to take action now to ensure that all New Jersey families can recover from the economic fallout from COVID-19. Partners provides free legal assistance to low-income victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, including undocumented immigrants, who are seeking civil restraining orders and related assistance in family law matters.

COVID-19 has unleashed a shadow pandemic of domestic violence and devastated low-income immigrant survivors, many of whom held jobs concentrated in the hardest-hit service sector of the economy. Unemployment, COVID infections and deaths, insecure housing, and hunger have especially harmed immigrant families and escalated violence for those in abusive relationships. At the same time, the disqualification of immigrants from stimulus funds and unemployment benefits has limited the opportunities to leave. “Victims will prioritize food and safety for their children over their own physical safety,” according to Lisa Roskos, Senior Staff Attorney at Partners.

Meaningful stimulus funding for immigrant workers will provide a lifeline to immigrant families who have endured fourteen months of the pandemic without any financial support. “Financial relief for immigrant families can help ensure that all New Jersey survivors can find safety for themselves and protect their children from the trauma of continued exposure to violence in the home,” says Julie Murphy, Executive Director of Partners.

For more information on the impact of COVID, see “The Impact of COVD-19 Intensifies the Shadow Pandemic of Domestic Violence in New Jersey,” co-authored with the Seton Hall Center for Social Justice, available at https://pfwj.org/_media/Partners-for-Women-and-Justice-Report-on-Pandemic-Impact.pdf.

###

Make the Road NJ
http://www.maketheroadnj.org/