PARSIPPANY — Tax Policy lawyer and advocate Rosemary Becchi relaunched her non-profit advocacy organization Jersey 1st this week, with the goal of creating a voice for New Jerseyans. “I met a lot of hard-working New Jerseyans in the past year and they simply want a voice in our government” explained Becchi Founder of Jersey 1st.
“I talked to business owners, college students, moms, dads, veterans, members of the disabled community, and those who serve in law enforcement. They are all deflated right now- they feel that they have not been heard in Trenton or in Washington DC. The goal of Jersey 1st is to bring people together to advocate for better business policies, lower taxes, in-school learning, support of our law enforcement, and protection of our everyday freedoms. Our Jersey 1st team is rolling up their sleeves and ready to get to work on these issues.”
At the heart of Jersey 1st is its NextGen interns from throughout New Jersey who is dedicated to making a difference. These Jersey 1st interns are working to balance their new internships with their coursework from Seton Hall University, Ramapo College, Rutgers University, Rowan University, University of Michigan, Providence College, James Caldwell High School, Kushner Academy, and Newark Academy. They all share a vision of a new era of activism in New Jersey, with different dialogue. Weekly zoom meetings are centered around policy discussion and brainstorming about ways to promote their views and a new vision of open and non-judgmental dialogue about difficult issues. At the top of their minds right now, is the current remote learning models.
“Too many decisions are being made based on politics and not on science,” said Becchi. “It’s time to open our schools and get our economy going again. New Jerseyans need a voice— a voice to advocate for small businesses, for members of our disabled community, for our children who are suffering by not being able to attend school in person.”
The current economic and political climates present an extraordinary opportunity to capitalize on the momentum of millions of New Jerseyans who feel overtaxed, overregulated, and underrepresented. Jersey 1st recognizes the pivotal timing and the opportunity to effect change in New Jersey and will do so through a grassroots organization, targeted fundraising, effective policy advocacy, and the implementation of a multi-media campaign including a weekly Facebook Live segment on the Jersey 1st Facebook page on Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m.
“It’s time to change the narrative of politics today and confront the destructive, hateful cancel culture that does more to divide than unifying. Our problems here in New Jersey are hard – and we need to work together to solve them” said Becchi. “It’s time to put the needs of New Jersey families and businesses first so that the next generation can afford to live in their home state and raise their children here. At the end of the day- that’s our motivation.”
