N.J. Reparations Council to tackle environmental justice

Perth Amboy marker details history of slavery in N.J. This marker near the city’s historic Ferry Slip notes that near the site enslaved Africans disembarked in Perth Amboy, one of the main ports in eastern New Jersey at that time. Perth Amboy was designated a “Site of Memory” by the UNESCO Slave Route Project in 2019. (Ande Richards/Ande Richards) New Jersey’s Institute for Social Justice (NJISJ) will continue to examine the state’s history of slavery and its impact on Black New Jerseyans. The two-year-long probe by the Institute’s Reparations Council will study New Jersey’s history and connection to its current racial landscape, making strategic recommendations for reparative justice policies in New Jersey. On Oct. 7 at 6:30 p.m., the Reparations Council’s Environmental Justice Committee will present its findings on the effects of environmentally racist policies during the Institute’s seventh public session. Strategic communications and branding consultant Nicole Miller is a member of the Environmental Justice Committee. She says her interest in the environment comes from bringing sustainable solutions to small local businesses, religious organizations, elected officials and community groups at her firm, MnM Consulting. “New Jersey has long profited from both the exploitation and neglect of Black communities, dating back...