People’s Organization for Progress marches 67 miles to Trenton

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — On Oct. 8, the People’s Organization for Progress, a longtime activist group that has expanded from Essex County to statewide, held “A Long Walk.” POP Chairperson Larry Hamm led the long-distance walk, starting in Montclair and moving the full 67 miles to Trenton, the state’s capital.

Many marches, rallies and demonstrations have been held by POP to bring attention to many N.J. issues, including calls for better school funding, increased job opportunities and training, more affordable housing, and accountability for police misconduct. 

“We are walking from Montclair to Trenton to highlight the issue of police brutality and to demand the N.J. Legislature pass legislation to hold police accountable,” Hamm said. “First and foremost we demand passage of A4656/S2963,” a bill that would give police review boards subpoena power.

There are other police-related initiatives that POP wanted to highlight and support during the march. These include a bill to make officer disciplinary records public, S2656; a bill banning and criminalizing chokeholds, S2617; a bill establishing requirements for use of deadly force, A4526/S3825; and a bill ending qualified immunity in New Jersey, A4578/S3730. The group is also demanding that Gov. Phil Murphy veto a bill that would allow police to view bodycam footage before issuing their reports, S3939.

“At the national level we are calling for the passage of HR 1280, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act,” Hamm said. This bill passed by the House of Representatives would create a nationwide database for police misconduct; require racial profiling training for officers; create nationwide standards for police use of force; eliminate no-knock warrants; ban the use of chokeholds; and eliminate qualified immunity for police. 

“We are also marching for racial, social and economic justice. We demand that African Americans receive reparations for slavery in the United States,” Hamm said. 

POP is demanding the passage of A711/S322 by the NJ Legislature and HR40/S40 by Congress. These bills would create reparations study commissions at the state and national levels. 

“We are marching against all forms of voter suppression. We demand passage of voting rights legislation including the For the People Act, HR1, and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, HR4,” Hamm said. “Once again we are calling for abolition of the Senate filibuster rule which we believe is the prerequisite to the passage of the voting rights bills…. We are also marching for economic justice. We demand passage of a $15 federal minimum wage and the passage of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act to facilitate worker unionization.”

  Larry Hamm, NAACP, People’s Organization for Progress