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In response to immigrant workers complaining about the application process and lack of aid, New Jersey doubled the amount of applicants it will grant a piece of the $40 million Excluded New Jerseyans Fund. Applicants can now receive $2,000 each and the amount of aid per household now maxes out at $4,000, each doubling the previous amounts. Roughly 100 people gathered at a rally outside of the statehouse in Trenton to protest the size of the fund last week, sharing their stories of losing family members to COVID-19, having to work with no PPE and losing their jobs. New Jersey Monitor
In other local immigration news…
Nuevayorkinos Presents Essential and Excluded at MoMA PS1
Nuevayorkinos partnered with members of the Fund Excluded Workers Coalition, Make the Road, New York Communities for Change and the Street Vendor Project to honor immigrant culture and labor within New York, specifically in Queens. Nuevayorkinos is a digital project dedicated to documenting New York City’s Latinx culture and history through family photographs and stories. The installation focuses on the hunger strikers, organizers and decision-makers who fought for the $2.1 billion Excluded Workers Fund to help immigrants who were excluded from state and federal unemployment and pandemic relief. The space also highlights the migration stories of these workers while celebrating the power of their struggle. The installation is open until January 10, 2022. Deanna Garcia for Documented
