The City of Newark last week inaugurated a new mayor for the first time in twenty years. After five terms as mayor and four terms as a City Councilman, Sharpe James no longer holds elected office in Newark, although he remains a state senator representing the Newark Metropolitan area. It will be strange to hear anybody referred to as Mayor of Newark besides Sharpe James. Not only did Newark inaugurate a new mayor, it also swore in an almost entirely new Municipal Council. Only two council members were re-elected, and they were on the new mayor’s slate. A sea change occurred in Newark and the “old guard” has now been replaced with new leadership.

Mayor Cory Booker (doesn’t it sound strange?) and the Municipal Council inherit many challenges, but also many opportunities. It takes leadership of a city with a host of pressing problems. Top on the list of problems is increasing gang violence and death. Within a week of taking office there were more than 12 shootings in Newark, and the city is poised to exceed the number of homicides in the city last year, with the year only half over. Citizens in the city do not feel safe, at home or on the streets. In addition Newark is one of the poorest cities in the nation with average income around $20,000 a year. Only 25 percent of the jobs in Newark are held by people who live in Newark. These problems are in many ways fostered by a public school system that for decades has failed to provide children with a quality education. Many of the children it failed are now the parents of children who attend the same poor schools. Far too many of these parents are underemployed, unemployed and face other issues in trying to raise their children and provide for their families. Education is a major challenge the new mayor and council face in seeking to make Newark the city it can and should become. But the city cannot succeed unless the schools produce students who have the skills for jobs in the 21st century. There are also other challenges facing Booker and the municipal council― housing, healthcare, economic development and restoring the confidence and trust of the citizens of Newark in its government.

But the new administration and municipal council also have opportunities before them. Challenges present opportunities. Citizens can walk their streets without fear and gangs can be corralled and controlled. Already Newark has joined in a gang initiative with the U.S. Attorney and other partners to address the problem.

Mayor Booker has been a strong proponent of school choice, whether charter, private or vouchers. This does not mean that he is not supportive of the public schools; I know that he is. It does mean that he believes that children should have quality education by “any means necessary.” Mayor Booker and the Municipal Council can make this a priority by supporting school choice in Newark, not at the expense of the public schools, but in the best interests of the citizens and their children. Proper education will reduce gang memberships, violence, crime, and incarcerations while at the same time reducing poverty and its associated problems. This is a tremendous opportunity which I pray the administration and council will embrace.
I believe the greatest the mayor and council have is the opportunity to make citizens of Newark feel good about themselves. This would be invaluable. Right now citizens throughout the city are excited about change in leadership and the hope if it offers. This excitement and hope must be seized and capitalized upon. To his credit the mayor is doing just that. He is focused on making the streets safe, getting out among the people and speaking optimistically about the city, its people and its future. He is embracing everyone and is receptive to other’s ideas and he’s listening.

All of us should pray for, encourage and be supportive of Mayor Booker and the Newark Municipal Council. They have difficult challenges before them, but they also have a marvelous opportunity to make New Jersey’s largest city a model for the nation and provide a brighter present and future for its citizens, particularly its children.