Princeton Asks Residents To Celebrate International Migrants Day

Dear Editor:

On behalf of the Princeton Human Services Commission, we would like to publicly share with our neighbors in Princeton and the larger Mercer County region, our deep appreciation of the bravery and kindness of our migrant neighbors and friends. We fully support their integration into our communities and applaud their efforts to find a better, safe, and secure life for their children and families.

On Dec. 18, 1990, the United Nation’s General Assembly adopted a resolution concerning the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. We ask our neighbors in the greater Princeton and Mercer Communities to join us in celebrating International Migrants Day this year by commemorating the often difficult journeys of our migrant friends.

Please take a moment to reflect on the circumstances that have led people throughout history to seek refuge among us, to acknowledge their rights to seek a better life, and to support their journey to do so.

The mission of the Princeton Human Services Commission is to serve vulnerable and underserved populations, among whom are some of our immigrant neighbors. We have come to realize the great strength and promise of these neighbors and the contributions they make to the life of our community, as well as the losses and traumas many of them have experienced in their journeys. We know we are all stronger as friends, neighbors, and people that make up a community when we come together to listen to and support each other—to understand the needs of our neighbors and their desires to grow and make their families safe and to secure a livelihood.

On Dec. 18, on International Migrants Day, we are honored to dedicate our work to the individuals and families among us who most need our help and support. We urge you to explore every opportunity you may have to get to know our migrant and immigrant neighbors better—to be a part of, alongside them, the journey to create a more connected local community, here and in Mercer County.

If you are seeking a way to be more substantially involved, we are happy to share some of the resources we have in the Commission as well as activities we have been involved in to create a more inclusive community here in Princeton. Please feel free to visit our website princetonnj.gov/departments/human-services or to contact our office 609-688-2055.

— By Ross Wishnick, Princeton Human Services Department Commission Chair