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New Jersey (NJ)

Dockworkers On Strike At Ports In New York, New Jersey And Elsewhere

October 1, 2024 Daniel Munoz, NorthJersey.com. , , , , , ,
Dockworkers at ports from Maine to New Jersey to Texas went on strike Tuesday, for the first time since 1977, in a move that some experts say could disrupt the supply chain and billions of dollars worth of products for weeks or more just before the holiday shopping season kicks off. The North Jersey-based International Longshoremen’s Association walked off the job, seeking a big increase in pay, as its last contract expired at midnight Tuesday. The workers also oppose automation at the ports, which poses a threat to their jobs. Striking dockworkers stood at several locations outside the Port of Newark and Port of Elizabeth on Tuesday morning with signs that read "Automation hurts families: ILA stands for job protection." Occasionally someone would drive by honking and holding up a fist in support.

Strike Two: SJP Rutgers- New Brunswick Suspended (Again)

September 2, 2024 Students For Justice In Palestine At Rutgers - New Brunswick, Mondoweiss. , , , , , , , ,
On July 5th, 2024, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) received a letter from the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution Services notifying us that we have been suspended until July 4th, 2025. Once again, we recognize this as an act of repression and anti-Palestinian racism, and therefore refuse to adhere to the guidelines of the suspension. The Rutgers Administration has deemed us responsible for the following: 1) Disruptive or Disorderly Conduct, 2) Failure to Comply with University or Civil Authority, and 3) Non-Compliance with Other University Policies. Disruptive Or Disorderly Conduct In regards to Rutgers’ first allegation, we understand that the Rutgers Administration is attempting to maintain the regular operations of the University despite its involvement in the current genocide being committed in Gaza.

New Jersey’s Legislature Stalled Reparations Inquiry For Years

August 12, 2024 Kimberly Izar, Next City. , , ,
Shortly after the Ku Klux Klan marched through Newark, New Jersey, in the 1920s, large areas of the city and surrounding communities were redlined by the federal government as investment risks because Black people lived there. The discriminatory practice of redlining locked generations of Black families out of equitable access to jobs, housing, schools, and other wealth-building resources. Redlining built on the legacy of slavery and has since evolved into modern-day segregation, where racially diverse and low-income communities continue to have limited access to economic and public health opportunities.

Urban Farms Are A Lifeline For Food-Insecure Residents

July 15, 2024 Kimberly Izar, Next City. , , ,
In Montclair’s Third Ward is a tiny farm with big community value. In the summertime, Montclair Community Farms transforms its less-than-10,000-square-foot lot into a space with something for everyone: a garden education program for children, a job training site for teens, and a pop-up produce market for Essex County residents. “People really love being here,” says Lana Mustafa, executive director of Montclair Community Farms. “It’s really developed into something really beautiful and productive and community-oriented.” On a breezy afternoon in early June, bunches of lettuce, bok choy, parsley, and garlic scapes begin to sprout and ripen. Some are even ready to harvest. Mustafa and her team are preparing inventory for their Monday farmers market, where several dozen shoppers use their SNAP or WIC benefits to buy fresh produce.

Casino Workers Are Fighting For The Air They Breathe

May 17, 2024 Kim Kelly, In These Times. , , , , ,
Rome burned to the ground almost 2,000 years ago, but Caesar’s Palace in Atlantic City, N.J.,is still smoking. The sprawling casino, hotel and entertainment complex is a holdover from the city’s mid-century glory days, where a visitor can still slurp down a shrimp cocktail and gamble to their heart’s content — and in some parts of the casino, light up a cigarette or a stogie and chain smoke the night away. When New Jersey passed its Smoke-Free Air Act in 2006, casinos were a notable exemption. Now, Atlantic City’s casino workers, with help from the United Auto Workers, are fighting to close the loophole and clean up the air in their workplaces.

Dispatch From The Rutgers Encampment For Palestine

April 30, 2024 Jason Koslowski, Left Voice. , , , , ,
“There is only one solution, intifada revolution!” “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!” and “Gaza children, don’t you cry! The students here are at your side!” and “Whose streets? Our streets! Whose campus? Our campus!” We chant. Another encampment for Palestine has started. This one’s at Rutgers University’s New Brunswick campus where I’m an adjunct teacher. We marched across campus and took the streets. I was chanting next to one of my students, when we saw each other we were both grinning ear to ear.

Protesters Target Event Pitching West Bank Real Estate Deals

March 13, 2024 Michael Arria, Mondoweiss. , , ,
On Sunday, hundreds gathered in the New Jersey township of Teaneck to protest an event where dozens of companies pitched real estate deals in Israel and the illegally-occupied West Bank. Protesters marched over a mile from the Teaneck Armory to Congregation Keter Torah synagogue, where the real estate show was held. They waved Palestinian flags and chanted, “Free Palestine!” “In a world where uncertainty looms and antisemitism shows its ugly face more boldly than ever, the decision to invest in a home in Israel is not just wise—it’s exhilarating!,” declared a post promoting the event.

The Public Bank That Wasn’t: New Jersey’s Excursion Into Public Banking

March 9, 2024 Ellen Brown, Web Of Debt. ,
In 2017, Phil Murphy, a former Goldman Sachs executive, made the establishment of a public, state-owned bank a centerpiece issue during his run for New Jersey governor. He regularly championed public banking in speeches, town halls and campaign commercials. He won the race, and the nation’s second state-owned bank following the stellar model of the Bank of North Dakota (BND) appeared to be in view. Due to the priority of other economic-policy goals, the initiative was largely kept on the back burner until November 2019.

FightBackBetter.com: Hyper Focused News For NJ’s Pro-Palestine Movement

February 5, 2024 Bob Witanek, Fight Back Better. , , , , ,
“NJ area news hyper-focused on the topic of the efforts in solidarity with the people of Palestine” is how editor of the new site Bob Witanek describes his newly rebranded http://FightBackBetter.com. The news is certainly of the advocacy bend – unlike most standard journalism that attempts to maintain a semblance of impartiality. According to Bob Witanek, “The assumption is that our readers are on this site to find out what they can do to take effective action against the US-supported genocide targeting the Palestinian people in Gaza. ”The site is structured to present the dozens of activities and organizational efforts occurring around NJ each and every week with the details and the contact information, to show what the editor believes is repression against some sectors of opposition to the what he considers “genocide’.

High Schoolers Walked Out For Palestine And Received Death Threats

January 3, 2024 WO Teens For Palestine , Left Voice. , , , ,
Hello everyone. I need to remain anonymous because of the threats I’ve been receiving, so sadly I cannot say my name, but I’m a senior at West Orange High School and was part of the walkout that occurred on Wednesday, November 22. Basically, I just want to speak on the struggle I faced when planning this walkout. Originally we had it planned for Monday, October 30 after our town’s recent board meeting where board member Robert Ivker went on a tangent on the October 7 attack where he called all Palestinians evil, rapists, and baby killers, which triggered our initial interest in creating the walkout because this town only speaks and supports one side.

On The Picket Line

October 11, 2023 Marie Kelly, Workers World. , , , , , ,
Registered nurses at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey, have taken action against corporate greed and exploitation as well as union-busting tactics. Their strike is into its third month. The 1,700 nurses, represented by United Steelworkers Local 4-200, are demanding safe staffing. Research has proven that adequate nurse to patient ratios save lives. The pandemic was the match that lit the fire around safe staffing. Nurses were pushed to the brink and were no longer willing to put their patients’ lives and their own well-being and professional licenses at risk. Since the strike, RWJU bosses have shown that they undervalue their nurses by suspending health benefits and limiting picket lines at hospital entrances.

New Jersey Nurses Two Months Into Strike For Safe Staffing

October 7, 2023 Sudip Bhattacharya, Labor Notes. , , , ,
There ought to be nine nurses on the day shift at 9 Tower, a trauma surgery unit inside the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Instead, some days there are just three. “Sometimes I’d look at a patient’s face and know that I won’t be able to maybe help feed them when they need to be fed,” said nurse Sophia Moccio, “or clean them when they need to be cleaned. It is distressing, and depressing for us.” Staffing levels this bad are a major reason why she and 1,700 of her co-workers at RWJUH have been on strike since August 4. Nurses in her 34-bed unit often have to manage the care of six patients apiece—and sometimes seven or eight.

BLET Engineers Unanimously Endorse Strike At NJ Transit

September 12, 2023 Progressive Railroading. , , , , ,
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) members who work at New Jersey Transit last week voted unanimously to authorize a strike. Five hundred locomotive engineers employed by NJ Transit received strike ballots in August. Voting results show 81% of the eligible 494 union members cast ballots and all of them favor a strike, BLET officials said in a press release. NJ Transit recently announced plans to spend more than $440 million to lease luxury office space, which has infuriated many BLET members, they said. “The agency has millions for penthouse views, but not a dime for train crews who kept the trains running throughout the worst days of the pandemic, and haven’t had a raise since 2019," said BLET National President Eddie Hall.

Biden Just Helped Overrule An ICE Detention Ban In New Jersey

August 30, 2023 Sam Carliner and Paul Ginesta, Left Voice. , , , ,
Immigrant rights activists in New Jersey are facing a challenge. August 31 was supposed to be the day that the state’s last remaining Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center finally closed. Instead, CoreCivic — the private prison company that runs the center — sued to keep the center open, and President Biden publicly came out on CoreCivic’s side. On August 29, two days before CoreCivic’s contract was set to expire, a federal judge ruled to keep the center open. The immigrant rights movement has not taken this development passively. Leading up to the ruling, various organizations and activists in the state mobilized to defend our immigrant neighbors and our right to ban ICE detention centers.

‘Something Must Change’: New Jersey Nurses Strike For Safe Staffing

August 24, 2023 Kelsey Khan, Labor Notes. , , , ,
I am one of 1,700 nurses on strike at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey. We are members of United Steel Workers Local 4-200. The hospital administration has used intimidation, scare tactics, and lies to convince the public that patient care is at the top of their priority list and at the bottom of ours. We have had enough. We are on day 20 of our strike, and nurses are beginning to feel the pressure. Our health insurance ends at the end of this month, and the financial strains of supporting our families on unemployment are growing. We are standing outside of the hospital day and night to show our dedication to achieving a fair contract that benefits us and, most importantly, our patients.
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