On Wednesday November 12th, the Perth Amboy City Council unanimously voted yes on resolution R-451-11/25 Supporting the Immigrant Trust Act.

The resolution was introduced by local grassroots organization Perth Amboy for All to show support for the Immigrant Trust Act (ITA) that has been stalled in Trenton. Perth Amboy for All set out on a petition drive to acquire signatures from their fellow neighbors, family members, and acquaintances within the city to show support for the resolution. The organizers gathered over 330 physical signatures for the petition. The group hopes that passage of the resolution locally will motivate the NJ State Assembly to introduce the Immigrant Trust Act to a vote, so that it can become law.

The Immigrant Trust Act would help protect many immigrants from unjust deportations and human rights violations. I.C.E would be prohibited from using information obtained by essential social services such as local police departments and hospitals, for the purposes of detainment and deportation, unless it does so in response to a serious crime. The Immigrant Trust Act would undoubtedly protect a community like Perth Amboy that is 80 percent Latino.

The resolution was first proposed to the council on October 22nd by Ruben E. Mendez, founder and chairman of Perth Amboy for All. He presented and handed the petition to Councilmember Cruz-Batista, accompanied by passionate speeches and pleas by the organization members to stand up to protect the community.

The resolution was put on the city council agenda for a vote on November 12th, and the council voted unanimously in favor. After the vote, the City Councilmembers expressed their gratitude to Amboy for All members for their courage in speaking out about this issue, and bringing it to their attention. Perth Amboy became the first city in New Jersey’s 19th legislative district, represented by NJ Assembly Speaker Coughlin ( D ) to support the Immigrant Trust Act.