October 21, 2014
Newark Communities for Accountable Policing (N-CAP), a movement dedicated to reforming the Newark Police Department, will recognize the October 22nd National Day to Protest Police Brutality by taking to the streets of Newark on Wednesday to educate residents about police misconduct here.
“Today we take to the streets to engage the residents of this city because the only way to ensure reforms to the Newark Police Department will be long-lasting and effectual is if the community is a part of the process from start to finish,” said Rashawn Davis, organizer at the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey.
The steering committee of N-CAP, made up of labor unions, social justice groups, and community organizations, includes 1199 SEIU Healthcare Workers East, American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, Garden State Equality, Ironbound Community Corporation, NAACP New Jersey State Conference, New Jersey Communities United, Newark LGBTQ Community Center, and the People’s Organization for Progress.
Following weeks of protest in Ferguson, Missouri after the police shooting of an unarmed African-American man, Mike Brown, nearly 70 cities across the country have scheduled actions against the mass incarceration of African Americans and Latinos that commemorate those who suffer from abusive police tactics.
"People are saying in the streets what we've been saying all along, that police brutality is a national issue," said Lawrence Hamm, founding Chairman of People's Organization for Progress.
N-CAP members will leaflet in fifteen locations throughout the day in Newark to inform Newarkers about the findings of the U.S. Department of Justice’s civil rights investigation of the Newark Police Department, which found widespread civil and human rights abuses. The group will also be promoting a rally for police reform of the Newark Police Department on November 12th at Newark City Hall.
“Together, we can build Newark for public safety and civil rights, only with police accountability.” Melvin Warren, Chair, Criminal Justice Committee, NAACP New Jersey State Conference.
The leafleting locations in Newark include: Broadway Avenue, Springfield Avenue, Ferry Street, East Side High School, Newark Penn Station, Bloomfield Avenue, Elizabeth Avenue, Broad and Market Streets, Halsey Street, South Orange Avenue, Mount Vernon Place, Lincoln Park, Military Park, Rutgers-Newark, and Essex County College.