Democrat,

We have an unwelcomed guest in New Jersey this week, former President Donald Trump. While President Trump has incited an insurrection, made cuts to healthcare for millions of Americans, and restricted access to reproductive rights – Democrats in New Jersey have fought back. President Trump and our very own homegrown Trump acolyte, Jeff Van Drew, may think they are riling New Jerseyans up, the time is now for New Jersey Democrats to get to work, pound the pavement, and show up in numbers. There is no place in our state for Trump’s extremist rhetoric. There will be Days of Action across the state this Saturday for Democrats to do what we do best – the work. I hope to see you at one of these events.

As we observed Holocaust Remembrance Day earlier this week, we pay tribute to the six million Jewish lives that were lost during the Holocaust. Antisemitism has almost doubled in recent times, and in response, our Jewish Caucus has been working in partnership with community leaders and elected officials to address this.

This week we celebrated Teachers Appreciation Week. I wanted to take a moment to recognize and thank all of our educators who dedicate their lives to shaping the minds of future generations!

College students in New Jersey will now have free access to teletherapy, crisis connection, and wellness programming round the clock, every day of the year, until April 2026. This initiative was launched a year ago and is a first-of-its-kind partnership between the state and Uwill, a mental health and wellness platform. The program serves students from 45 eligible institutions of higher education in New Jersey who opted into the partnership.

Currently, over 10,000 students have registered on Uwill’s digital platform and have scheduled nearly 32,000 sessions with the network of licensed and qualified mental health providers available. This support will be available to all current and incoming students until April 2026.

“There is no question that young people have been facing a mental health crisis for some time – the causes of which are multi-faceted and include everything from the rise of social media, to increased academic pressures, the impact of the pandemic, and much, much more. While we are still at the beginning of our fight to strengthen youth mental health, I am incredibly proud of the serious way our administration has approached this issue,” said Lieutenant Governor Way.

President Biden presented the Presidential Medal of Honor to 19 individuals, including former Senator Frank Lautenberg, who was the first member of the New Jersey delegation to receive this prestigious award. Senator Lautenberg was a trailblazer in promoting affirmative action, investing in public transportation, and advocating for renewable energy.

President Biden has said of the late Senator “… it’s beyond my capacity to find the words to do justice to Frank Lautenberg. He always thought in terms of what he could do, what he should do.”

Senator Frank Lautenberg will forever be remembered as a champion of New Jersey’s values and a true embodiment of the state.

— Chairman LeRoy J. Jones, Jr.

P.S. We invite you to join us in commemorating AANHPI Heritage Month with a celebration hosted by the AANHPI, Hindu, Muslim, and South Asian American Caucuses. This event will be a wonderful opportunity for you to learn more about our AANHPI community.