The immigrant labor force in Northern New Jersey has historically been extremely diverse, both in terms of occupations and countries of origin. Im/migrant labor was an essential component of the Industrial Revolution, which in the U.S. arguably began in Northern New Jersey at the Great Falls in Paterson, and then flowed down the Passaic River to Newark and Jersey City.
The public dialogues in North Jersey engaged the wide variety of immigrant communities, past and present, whose labor built New Jersey’s three largest cities. At each stage of this history different im/migrant communities arrived to work in the factories and construction sites, provide domestic care and nursing, staff restaurants and other service industries, and start the businesses that give the state its distinct character. African American, Arab, Eastern European, Jewish, Latine, and South Asian migrants all contributed to this labor history, contributed to the public dialogues, and have a stake in the monument design.
