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New Jersey legislation to create a “New Jersey Reparations Task Force”: Assembly #711/Senate #322 

A711/S322 is a bill that would create a Reparations Task Force, to study proposals for African-Americans in New Jersey and make recommendations for action.  It is expressly designed to help advance work for racial justice here in the Garden State.  

The Assembly bill has been sent to the Assembly State and Local Government Committee chaired by Asm. Vincent Mazzeo. The NJ Senate version goes before the Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee chaired by Sen. James Beach.

Sponsors:

Assembly:  Shavonda Sumter, District 35; Britnee Timberlake, District 34; and Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, District 15  

Senate:  Ron Rice, District 28; Sandra Cunningham, District 31; Troy Singleton, District 7; Loretta Weinberg, District 37; Shirley Turner, District 15; and Nina Gill, District 34. 

If passed into law, what would this bill do?

A Reparations Task Force would be created consisting of 11 members, comprised of four legislators and seven citizens. This bill, among other things, requires the task force to:  (1) examine the institution of slavery within the State of New Jersey;  (2) examine the extent to which the State of New Jersey and the federal government prevented, opposed, or restricted efforts of former enslaved persons and their descendants who are considered United States’ citizens to economically thrive upon the ending of slavery; and (3) examine the lingering negative effects of slavery on living  African-Americans and on society in New Jersey and the United States.

The Task force will make recommendations for what remedies should be awarded, through what instrumentalities, and to whom those remedies should be awarded; and address how said recommendations comport with national and international standards of remedy for wrongs and injuries caused by the State.  An interim report is required within 12 months with a final report for action to be delivered within 24 months.

Why is this bill necessary?   

Many Americans of good faith and conscience have struggled for years with the searing legacy of 450 years of legalized slavery, Jim Crow laws and other policies of institutionalized racism North, South, East and West across the United States up to the present day. The system of slavery that flourished in the United States constituted an immoral, shameful, and inhumane deprivation of the life, liberty, humanity, citizenship, and cultural heritage of Africans and also denied them, among other things, the fruits of their own labor upon which this country, and its economy, was built.

An overwhelming body of scholarship, legal and community evidentiary documentation, and the modern day lived experiences of the descendants of enslaved Africans form the basis for inquiry into the ongoing effects of the institution of slavery and its legacy of persistent systemic structures of discrimination on living Black people and communities in the United States.

While many Northern states abolished slavery following the Civil War, New Jersey opposed the Emancipation Proclamation and was the last Northern state to abolish slavery.  Following the Civil War, New Jersey refused to ratify the Reconstruction Amendments. New Jersey’s deep roots in American slavery and its vestiges have endured to the present day.  A direct line can be traced from New Jersey’s role in American slavery to its system today of voter suppression, racial wealth disparities, mass incarceration, racial segregation, and crumbling infrastructure in Black communities in New Jersey, such as the current elevated lead levels in water and homes.

Through a thorough and searching public discussion of how Blacks have been treated in New Jersey for the last 400 years, the call for reparations will raise the level of understanding of all citizens of the state and seek to repair the harm that has resulted from America’s original sin in the Garden State.

Unitarian Universalist/UU Faith Action NJ Position on this Legislation.

Many of our congregations in New Jersey are supporting or studying the adoption of an 8th Principle, one that would directly address the spiritual and ethical demands of this shameful legacy on our faith movement today. This bill has not currently been adopted as an official part of the UU Faith Action of New Jersey issue agenda. However, two of our member congregations, UU Church in Cherry Hill and the UU Congregation of Princeton, have held virtual forums on the issue of reparations and have begun to make connections throughout NJ to have this piece of legislation enacted. The Board of Trustees of UU Faith Action New Jersey has discussed the issue and is trying to decide how best to address it. Clearly, the import of the legislation directly speaks to UU Faith Actions call for the dismantlement of racism. Whether the Board creates a special Task Force to take on this issue or the Criminal Justice Task Force includes this on the 2020 Issues agenda, UU Faith Action can be a catalyst in expanding the dialogue on race throughout the state.

For the full text of the bill: https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2020/Bills/A1000/711_I1.HTM

The Case for Reparations, Ta Nehisi Coates. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/06/the-case-for-reparations/361631/

RHein/10/2020

 

New Jersey legislation to establish requirements for the use of deadly force: Assembly 4526

 A4526 was introduced in August 2020, and seeks to define when the use of deadly force by police officers is justified.  It eliminates making an arrest or preventing an escape as justification for the use of deadly force. There isn’t a Senate version as of this writing.

Bill Sponsors:  

Assembly:  Cleopatra G. Tucker, District 28;  Shavonda E. Sumter, District 35;  Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, District 15

If passed into law, what would this bill do?  

This bill amends current law to provide that the use of deadly force by a police officer, or a person authorized to act as a police officer, when attempting to make an arrest is justified only if  there is imminent threat of deadly force to the person using force or to someone else.  

The bill states that deadly force may not be used to prevent the escape of a person charged or convicted of an offense.

Why is this legislation needed?

Under current New Jersey law, a police officer is justified in using deadly force when making an arrest if the force is necessary to thwart the commission of a crime, or to prevent the escape of a person convicted or charged with a crime, as long as the use of force creates no substantial risk of injury to an innocent person.

The lack of specific legal limitations on the use of force by police may be one factor in the large numbers of persons, particularly persons of color, who are killed by the police.  It is estimated that in the US about 1,000 civilians are killed by the police each year. Black men are three times more likely to be killed by police than white men. 

Focusing on policing in New Jersey, the Force Report by NJ Advance Media studied 70,405 reports of use of force from 2012 to 2016.  This report found that a Black person was 224% more likely to have force used on them than a white person.  While the report covered all types of force and not only deadly force, 21% of the subjects were injured by the use of force.

The proposed bill will make clear that deadly force is to be used only in extreme circumstances when lives are at stake.  Ideally implementation would include training in de-escalation and conflict resolution.

Unitarian Universalist Principles. 

In taking positions on specific legislation related to criminal justice in our state, the CJR task force looks to the Seven Principles which we share with all Unitarian Universalists.  In supporting the Deadly Force bill, we consider the First Principle as most relevant, along with the proposed 8th Principle currently under consideration by the UUA.

• The 1st UU Principle calls us to affirm the inherent worth and dignity of every person.  A person who is a suspected of a crime is still entitled to be treated with respect and humanity.  
• The Proposed 8th Principle calls us to affirm and promote a diverse society, acting to accountably dismantle racism and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.  Our criminal justice system is part of the structure of systemic racism that continues to favor the white majority over the rights of persons of color.  Historically, police power has been used to enforce laws that promoted slavery and Jim Crow segregation.  To dismantle racism, it is essential to make changes in how the police engage with all community members, especially persons of color.

Note: Follow this link to read the full text of the bill: https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2020/Bills/A4500/4256_I1.HTM

For more information:

“Congregational Toolkit for Engaging Racism and Local Policing” of All Faiths Justice Alliance.

https://www.uufaithaction.org/all-faiths-policing-toolkit/

“New Jersey Force Report” at https://force.nj.com/

JLauby/10/2020

MARIJUANA IMPLEMENTATION LEGISLATION  (the Assembly and Senate versions of each are identical now, so opening the Assembly bill gets you to the basic info.

A21/S21–     “New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act”; legalizes personal use cannabis for certain adults, subject to regulation by Cannabis Regulatory Commission; removes marijuana as Schedule I drug.

A1897/S2535 Provides for certain criminal and civil justice reforms, particularly addressing legal consequences associated with certain marijuana and hashish offenses as well as raising awareness of available expungement relief.**

New Jerseyans voted overwhelmingly to legalize cannabis for adult use. Now comes the all-important task of passing legislation which will implement this decision. Given the disproportionate harm experienced by communities of color under cannabis prohibition, it’s essential that the state’s response prioritizes ending arrests and the collateral consequences that stem from them.

Time: Nov 7, 2020 10:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

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