Tim Stevens, founder of the Black Political Empowerment Project, said, “This is tragic. My first reaction was it’s pretty sad when you can’t hold a picnic without violence, and not only violence, but gun violence. We’ve come a long way, but in the wrong direction. The sad part is collectively we’re no longer shocked, you have three people in a family directly affected.”
The three gunmen are still at large and authorities are asking anyone with information to contact them.
Connie Parker, Pittsburgh Unit NAACP president, said, “We’re sitting back locked in our homes because we think we’re safe and we’re not. it. We have to be our own gatekeeper. We all need to work to make it happen.”
Parker said things can’t go on like they are and us not come up with some agenda, we have to say we will not let these few individuals terrorize our communities.
She said the NAACP is committed to working on agenda to saving our communities.
Pennsylvania State Representative Ed Gainey, along with Pittsburgh Councilman Rev. Ricky Burgess, have issued a joint appeal, asking anyone with information to come forward.
Gainey said, “There’s no code of silence when it comes to a baby dying. It’s time to stand up and come forward. The only way this baby will get justice is to talk about what you know. We can’t have the perpetrators of this crime think they got away with this.”
Stevens said that people with information about the incident and who fail to report it, even anonymously, are contributors to the crime.
“Who is that stupid and non-caring enough to shoot into a group of people at a picnic, a positive family event? My concern is that, unfortunately, we as a community have reached a sense of callousness and that’s unacceptable.”
(To report any information, please call Pittsburgh Bureau of Police Homicide Squad at 412-323-7161.)
About Post Author
