Volume LXXIII, Number 37
Voices of Princeton Oral History Project . . . . . . . . 5 Alexander Road to Close November 6 . . . . . . . . . 12 Cannabis Conference to Explore Challenges, Choices . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 PU Field Hockey Splits with 2 Top-10 Foes to Open Season . . . . . . . . 34 PHS Football Kicking Off 2019 Campaign At Hightstown . . . . . . . . . 37
Imagining What D .H . Lawrence Would Make of Brexit in This Week's Book Review . . . 22 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Berkshire Hathaway Fox & Roach Realtors . .14, 15 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 28 Classified Ads . . . . . . 45 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Music/Theater . . . . . . 23 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 43 Police Blotter . . . . . . . 19 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 45 School Matters . . . . . . 11 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
www.towntopics.com
Welcoming Week Starts With Friday Salsa Night, Many Events to Follow Promoting inclusiveness, unity, and diversity, Princeton’s fourth annual Welcoming Week will kick off this Friday, September 13. Sponsored by Princeton Human Services, Princeton Public Library (PPL), and a number of other local organizations, Welcoming Week will feature more than a dozen different events from September 13-22 and is “a time to celebrate and amplify the values that unite us as neighbors, parents, and colleagues, and that make our town more welcoming to newcomers and everyone who calls our community home,” according to the Welcoming Week flyer on the Human Services Department’s website at princetonnj.gov. Last year there were more than 2,000 events in 400 communities across the globe during Welcoming Week, with more than 80,000 people participating. A naturalization ceremony will take place at 2 p.m., September 18 in the PPL, where 23 Princeton immigrants will be taking the Oath of Allegiance to become United States citizens, in a ceremony presided over by the Department of Homeland Security United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. “Welcoming Week is a time to encourage neighbors to engage in acts of kindness, welcoming, and inclusion, and to bring neighbors together to start conversations and create a welcoming environment for all,” said Princeton Human Services Director Melissa Urias. “Our events during Welcoming Week are meant to bring together residents who may not have an opportunity to meet otherwise, and share their cultures and experiences in an inclusive setting to allow all individuals in our community to feel connected and welcomed.” Emphasizing the importance of building “common ground in our community,” PPL Community Engagement Coordinator Kim Dorman pointed out, “Princeton is a town that thrives on all of the incredible people who live here permanently and those who come for short-term residencies. It is part of what makes us unique and successful. In order for people to thrive, they need to feel welcomed into the community.” Packed Schedule
The Arts Council of Princeton (ACP) will launch Welcoming Week on Friday Continued on Page 11
75¢ at newsstands
Wednesday, September 11, 2019
County To Vote on Armored Vehicle Purchase The Mercer County freeholders are scheduled to vote Thursday, September 12 on the $309,000 purchase of an armored vehicle for the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office, but many local residents and organizations have voiced opposition to the proposed acquisition as an unwise use of taxpayer funds and a troubling militarization of law enforcement. Andrew Koontz, the only one of the seven freeholders who has publicly expressed opposition to the purchase, described his “strong visceral reaction to a military-style vehicle that the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office would own and operate. It brings to mind militarization
of local police departments that we saw in Baton Rouge (2016) and Ferguson (2014).” He continued, recalling the TV footage of the disturbances in Ferguson and Baton Rouge, “I saw the equipment they were using, and I had a reaction as an elected official. Someone voted for that. I had a strong reaction that this is not the kind of policing I like to see at the local level.” In a phone conversation on Monday, Koontz went on to explain his understanding of the dangerous work done by the Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team (SERT), traditionally known as
PROUD ARTIST: The Arts Council of Princeton hosted its annual Fall Open House on Saturday afternoon, which featured hands-on artmaking, artist demos, live performances, and an opening reception for its fall exhibition, “Wonder .” Participants share why art is important to them in today’s Town Talk on page 6 . (Photo by Erica M. Cardenas)
the Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team. “They have their lives on the line. I understand that,” Koontz said, but he noted that local law enforcement has access to state police armored vehicles, one of which was brought to Princeton but not used in March 2018, when police were in a prolonged standoff with a man with a gun at Panera Bread on Nassau Street. “Military buildup is the wrong way to go,” Koontz said, urging instead a focus on gun control. “We’ve got to do a better job of getting weapons out of the hands of the wrong people.” Continued on Page 10
Art Against Racism Program Examines Social Justice Issues Since putting together a 10-day program designed to promote social justice, inclusion, equality, and anti-racist community-building, to be held in Princeton September 20-30, its organizers have been bowled over by the public’s response. Art Against Racism: Princeton Area and Beyond will bring talks, exhibits, readings, faith community conversations, and a drag show to Morven Museum & Garden, The Arts Council of Princeton, McCarter Theatre Center, the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice, and three local churches. “We started on this in June,” said attorney, activist, and Princeton resident Rhinold Ponder, one of three people behind the series. “The response has been so great that I haven’t approached more than one-tenth of my resources. There has not been a ‘no.’ There are people and organizations that will wonder, ‘Why didn’t he call me?’ But it just became so big, so fast, that I had to put a limit to it.” The program came together after Ponder received a call from a group called CREATE Core Courage, which was looking to develop art based around specific social justice issues. This is the second year that the organization has fostered these events. The mission of the inaugural Art Against Racism group show and related events “is to help people in the Princeton area consider and discuss racism locally, and beyond,” according to a press release. Funds raised by the event will benefit Continued on Page 13