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| Make the Road New Jersey | |
|---|---|
| Name | Make the Road New Jersey |
| Formation | 2004 |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | Paterson, New Jersey |
| Region served | New Jersey |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
Make the Road New Jersey is a grassroots immigrant rights organization based in Paterson, New Jersey that provides direct services, organizes community members, and engages in policy advocacy on issues affecting Latino communities, immigrants, and low-income residents. Founded in the early 21st century, it developed programs addressing workers' rights, tenant organizing, and civic participation across several New Jersey counties. The organization works alongside municipal bodies, labor unions, civil rights groups, and faith-based networks to advance legal services, education, and policy campaigns.
The group emerged from immigrant-led community activism in Passaic County, drawing on organizing models used by Make the Road New York advocates and Latinx organizers in New York City, Newark, and Elizabeth, New Jersey. Early chapters built coalitions with actors such as SEIU, United Food and Commercial Workers, and community legal clinics connected to Rutgers University and Seton Hall University law programs. During the 2000s and 2010s the group mobilized around high-profile local events including municipal elections in Paterson, New Jersey, statewide debates over sanctuary city policies tied to New Jersey Transit rider communities, and response efforts to immigration enforcement actions by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and federal courts.
The stated mission centers on empowering Latinx communities, immigrant families, and working-class residents through leadership development, direct services, and public policy campaigns. Program areas include worker centers that coordinate with Occupational Safety and Health Administration outreach partners, tenant rights campaigns that liaise with county housing authorities in Bergen and Hudson Counties, and citizenship clinics that collaborate with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services guidance. Education initiatives partner with local school districts—such as those in Paterson Public Schools and Passaic Public Schools—while youth programs connect students to pathways found in institutions like Montclair State University and Ramapo College. Voter engagement drives have coordinated with county boards of elections, civic coalitions, and national networks like Voto Latino.
The organization has lobbied New Jersey legislative bodies including the New Jersey Legislature and worked with gubernatorial offices during administrations such as those of Jon Corzine and Phil Murphy to advance bills on labor standards, tenant protections, and immigrant access to services. Campaigns contributed to municipal ordinances in cities like Paterson, Newark, and influenced state-level measures such as expansions of healthcare access and driver license rules debated in the New Jersey Department of Motor Vehicles and committees of the New Jersey General Assembly. Strategic litigation and coalition advocacy sought alignment with statewide movements led by groups such as ACLU of New Jersey, National Immigration Law Center, and statewide labor coalitions during wage-theft and workplace-safety campaigns.
Direct-service work includes Know Your Rights workshops modeled after trainings used by American Civil Liberties Union affiliates, deportation defense referral networks connecting to private immigration attorneys and nonprofit law offices, and employment-justice outreach in partnership with New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Clinics have provided naturalization assistance and DACA renewal guidance following programs influenced by rulings in federal cases like United States v. Texas. Tenant organizing efforts addressed eviction prevention using precedents from local housing court practices in Essex County and Passaic County jurisdictions, and collaborated with legal services providers such as Legal Services of New Jersey.
The organization operates through local chapters, member-led committees, and an executive leadership team overseen by an executive director and board of directors representing activists, labor leaders, and nonprofit executives with ties to institutions like Guttmacher Institute-adjacent advocates and community foundations. Funding streams include private foundation grants from entities akin to the Ford Foundation and Open Society Foundations model funders, government contracts for service delivery from county human services departments, and private donations coordinated with fiscal sponsors and donor-advised funds. Fiscal oversight and audit practices reflect standards common to nonprofits registered with the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs and filing requirements for the Internal Revenue Service tax-exempt organizations.
The organization has faced criticism from conservative activists, municipal officials, and some law enforcement proponents who contest its stances on immigration enforcement, municipal cooperation with federal agencies such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and ballot-access initiatives. Opponents have raised concerns paralleling disputes seen in debates involving Sanctuary jurisdictions and immigration policy across states like California and New York. Internal critiques from former members and local stakeholders have argued about strategic priorities and transparency, echoing accountability debates that have affected other advocacy nonprofits including high-profile scrutiny facing groups partnered with national networks like Make the Road New York and labor affiliates. Legal challenges and public controversies have occasionally drawn media coverage in outlets focused on regional politics and immigration reporting.
Category:Nonprofit organizations based in New Jersey Category:Immigrant rights organizations in the United States