Courage in Action: This Is Our Moment  

Let’s be real — democracy is under siege. From book bans to voter suppression to neighbors being pulled off the streets, the same anti-democratic forces we’ve fought for generations are surging, louder and bolder than ever.  

And yet here in New Jersey, we are not backing down.  

At the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, we don’t just talk about justice. We build it — law by law, policy by policy, vote by vote. Because justice isn’t a promise. It’s a practice.  

And thanks to you, that practice is building power.  

In 2025, your support fueled real wins:  

• Youth power rose up: 16- and 17-year-olds voted for the first time in Newark’s School Board election and claimed their rightful seat at the table of democracy.  

• Reparations entered the mainstream: Our groundbreaking report For Such a Time as This: The Nowness of Reparations for Black People in New Jersey exposed how the legacy of slavery directly shapes today’s racial disparities and offered a bold blueprint for repair.  

• Voting rights fought back: Based on our NJVRA Now: Why New Jersey Needs Its Own Voting Rights Act report, we have charted a path to protect every vote, even as those rights crumble nationwide.  

This is what progress looks like when we refuse to wait.  

But progress isn’t victory. Not yet.  

 As we look toward 2026, the stakes couldn’t be higher.  

Your renewed support will help us:  

• Expand the Vote16 movement statewide and put power into the hands of young people ready to lead.  

• Bring reparations into our communities by turning the New Jersey Reparations Council’s blueprint into real policy and repair. 

• Demand higher education that liberates because opportunity should never depend on the size of a tuition bill.  

Every stride forward has started with you — your courage, your faith, your refusal to let cynicism win.  

Let’s meet this moment together. 

Because when federal leadership fails, states like ours must lead.  

This is not just another appeal. It’s a call to courage, a call to action. Your gift today will turn today’s courage into the justice of tomorrow.