Black voters turned out in record numbers during this month’s election, rallying behind now Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill. Given the impact they had in her win, leaders from the New Jersey Statewide Black Agenda this week laid out their priorities and called on Sherrill to take bold action in her first 100 days as governor.
Rev. Charles Boyer, pastor of the Greater Mt. Zion A.M.E. Church in Trenton and head of Salvation and Social Justice group, said the group’s first priority is making sure the Sherrill administration reflects the diversity of the community.
“Even within the transition, it’s important that Black folks are represented, in the way that we represented during the vote and the way that we’re represented in the state,” said Boyer in an interview with NJ Spotlight News. “From there within the first 100 days, we’re looking forward to them convening a biannual meeting with Black leadership, to talk about ways to move policy issues forward.”
Those policies, Boyer said, range from education to maternal health, economic issues to social justice programs.
“We’re looking for things like housing for first generation home buyers, deeper investments in freedom schools, looking towards building on the affordable housing movement, particularly, working with the Black faith community and other faith communities to do that, convening really targeted action oriented work groups to move on economic and community development in cities like Trenton and Newark, an introduction of Black maternal health legislation to address the Black maternal health crisis. And convening a task force to take action on the racial wealth gap.”
Boyer also wants to see Sherrill work with the Legislature to reverse what he calls “very punitive youth waiver bills” that waive young people to adult sentencing. And he’s calling for the New Jersey State Police to remain under the control of the state attorney general.
