Will NJ pay Black Americans for slavery’s legacy? Advocates hope to spur Trenton

Last Juneteenth, the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, a Newark-based advocacy group, launched the New Jersey Reparations Council to determine how to compensate Black people impacted by the legacy of slavery in the Garden State. The council’s goal is to put out a report on Juneteenth 2025 outlining how those reparations would work. The next step for the council was to create nine committees that would address various aspects of the brutal and damaging institution of slavery in New Jersey: History of Slavery in New Jersey, Public Narrative & Memory; Economic Justice; Segregation in New Jersey; Democracy; Public Safety & Justice; Health Equity; Environmental Justice; and Faith and Black Resistance. Four committees have held virtual sessions over the last year to discuss their findings and hear public comment. The most recent virtual meeting was held by the Health Equity Committee on Feb. 8, with the next one on April 14. There are plans by the council for an in-person event on June 19 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark to mark one year from when it launched. The council’s work on reparations comes at a time when the subject can bring about negative reactions and resistance...