Bergen County NJ women earn YWCA awards for racial justice

Three Bergen County residents are among six winners of this month’s YWCA Northern New Jersey 2024 Racial Justice Awards.

At the April 30 event at the Montclair Art Museum, the awards will go to six recipients who, according to the YWCA, “demonstrate leadership by working to eliminate racism and promote peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.”

“We wanted to focus one award at this particular event on the importance of creating space for local government seats aimed at helping fill these seats with candidates of color,” said Helen Archontou, the CEO of YWCA Northern. New Jersey. “All three of them are being honored individually for being, in many ways, the first in the places that they’re pushing themselves through… They’ve all really done a lot of work in terms of being able to embrace diversity not just for themselves create, but also to bring others along in the following years.”

These are the recipients:

Jannie Chung

Chung serves on the Closter Borough Council and was the first Korean American council member elected to the borough in 2015. She is also a member of the public safety and buildings and grounds committees. Chung ran for state Assembly in the 39th District in 2017, but did not win.

Yris Encarnacion

Encarnación has served on the South Hackensack Township Committee since 2017. In 2019, she was selected as mayor of South Hackensack, the first woman born in the Dominican Republic to hold that position in the United States. She will continue to serve in that position. Encarnación is also the police chief of South Hackensack. She serves on the board of the Bergen County Office of Social Services.

Gervonn Rice

Rice served on the Teaneck Township Council from 2016 to 2022 and was first appointed to the council to fill the vacancy following the death of then-Mayor Lizette Parker. Before her time on the board, Rice served on the Teaneck Board of Education for nine years. She currently serves on the board of Never Alone Again Domestic Violence Organization & Resource Center in Teaneck.

These other people will be honored by the YWCA during the event.

Vivian Cox Fraser

Fraser, president and CEO of the Urban League of Essex County since 2004, has overseen ULEC’s growth and transition from a social services organization to a comprehensive community development corporation. Fraser will receive the Theodora Lacey Racial Justice Award, which “recognizes individuals who demonstrate exemplary leadership, work to eliminate racism and promote peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all people.”

Zonnediepe Iyer

Iyer is director of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights. He previously served as Assistant Attorney General and Senior Advisor to New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin. Iyer will receive the Pastor Thomas Johnson Racial Justice Trailblazer Award, recognizing those “who work to resolve bias and ethical issues in the fight for racial justice.”

Shennell McCloud

McCloud is the CEO of Project Ready, a Newark-based nonprofit organization committed to social justice through community engagement campaigns. McCloud will be the Dr. Received Arnold Brown Racial Justice Award, which is presented to those “who make a difference in the lives of others by implementing innovative ways to improve society; promoting volunteerism, community service and acts of kindness; and standing up for a good cause or a difficult social problem.”

How to attend the awards dinner

Tickets for the event, which starts at 6:30 p.m., can be purchased for $75 for youth or young adults (25 years or younger) and $125 for adults. Proceeds will go toward funding YWCA Northern New Jersey’s racial justice programs.

Ricardo Kaulessar covers race, immigration and culture for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the top news from your local community, subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @ricardokaul