By Matthew Hersh
The Joint Effort Princeton Witherspoon-Jackson Community Safe Streets Summer Program returns July 31 through August 9 and will once again celebrate the people, history, and traditions of Princeton’s historic Black neighborhood. This year’s program, however, carries added significance as it commemorates the 10th anniversary of the designation of the Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood as Princeton’s 20th Historic District while welcoming New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill for one of its signature events.
Sherrill is scheduled to appear on Wednesday, August 5, during the Jim Floyd Memorial Community Discussion, where she will receive the Paul Robeson Witherspoon-Jackson Community Honors Award before delivering remarks on “The Future of the Garden State.”
For Joint Effort coordinator John Bailey, however, the governor’s visit is one part of a much larger effort that has become an annual tradition of honoring the neighborhood’s past while investing in its future.
The Joint Effort program has evolved from the youth sports initiative Bailey and other community leaders founded in 1974 into a broad celebration of the Witherspoon-Jackson neighborhood’s history, culture, and civic life. This year’s program builds on that tradition with the theme “Challenges, Choices & Opportunities,” connecting Princeton’s Black history with conversations about the community’s future.
“This event is really about trying to bring that information from a historical perspective, recognize people who are doing things today, and forecast a little bit about what Princeton’s future looks like,” said Bailey.
Each day of the celebration is dedicated to a member of the Witherspoon-Jackson community whose life and contributions helped shape the neighborhood. Among those recognized this year are Carlton Saunders, Martha and Edmond Wells, Gilbert “Scoot” Carter, Robert and Bobby King, Earl McQueen Sr., Rhetta McGowan, Pat Fisher, Louise Stevenson, and others whose lives reflect the neighborhood’s rich history.
Rather than focusing on a reunion, Bailey said the program is rooted in remembering the people, organizations, institutions, and events that defined the community.
“We’re dealing with a recollection of historical individuals, organizations, events, institutions — folks who’ve made an impact in the community,” he said. “Every time we do an event like this, I acknowledge a day after someone who has made a contribution.”
That philosophy extends throughout the nine days of programming, which includes a community fish fry, gospel festival, family recognition ceremony, Paul Robeson multimedia presentations and cultural exhibits, basketball clinics and memorial games, scholarship presentations, community conversations, and a block festival featuring singer Grace Little.
The August 5 program featuring Sherrill will include photography and art exhibits, displays of Paul Robeson artifacts, and a documentary presentation before the governor receives the Paul Robeson honor and speaks about New Jersey’s future.
The Joint Effort program will also feature the presentation of Jim Floyd Memorial Lifetime Awards to Princeton Mayor Mark Freda, the Nassau Inn, John Broadway, Bill Johnson, and Jimmy Mack. Mildred Trotman Community Service Awards will recognize retired municipal Finance Director Sandra Webb, retiring Princeton Public Schools Executive to the Superintendent Susan McGreevy, retired Town Topics Contributing Editor Don Gilpin, retired Princeton Police Chief Christopher Tash, and Princeton Councilman David Cohen.
It will also recognize dozens of founders and longtime volunteers whose efforts have sustained the organization over the years.
Bailey said the annual celebration is about honoring longtime residents, but is also intended to position younger generations to carry forward the neighborhood’s history and legacy.
“There is always an opportunity to put some new people in the game,” he said, noting that volunteers are recognized each year for helping organize events, mentor youth, and keep community traditions alive.
The program concludes with recognition of longtime Black Princeton families, continuing a tradition Bailey sees as essential to preserving the
community’s story.
Asked what he hopes people take away from the program, Bailey pointed not to a single policy initiative or community campaign, but to the act of gathering itself.
“Bringing the community together is the action,” he said. “This is an act of historical engagement. It’s a messaging, a recall and remembrance of what folks have done, and the role African American citizens have played in the overall development of Princeton.”
He added that those conversations seamlessly extend to present-day issues facing the community, from education and development to affordable housing and the future of Princeton itself. Remembering the neighborhood’s history, he said, provides a foundation for those discussions while ensuring the stories of earlier generations are passed on.
Sponsors include Studio Hillier, Palmer Square, Nassau Inn, McCaffrey’s Food Markets, Capital Health, First Bank, NJM Insurance Group, Bank of Princeton, the Arts Council of Princeton, Pinneo Construction, the African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey, Witherspoon Media Group, the Municipality of Princeton, Princeton Public Schools, Princeton University, Princeton PBA Local 130, Princeton YMCA, and several other community organizations and individual supporters.
Additional information and a complete schedule of events are available at artscouncilofprinceton.org/event/joint-effort-witherspoon-jackson-community-princeton-safe-streets.