PITTSBURGH MAYOR ED GAINEY speaks in Brighton Heights, Oct. 28, after six people were shot during a funeral. (Photo by J.L. Martello)
Mayor Gainey applauds community for getting ‘violent criminals off the street’
Charron Troutman. Jaylone Hines. Shawn Davis. Hezekiah Nixon.
Pittsburgh Police said the four African American males are responsible for two shooting incidents on the North Side in the past six weeks, and while there could be other suspects at-large, their arrests are indicative of what happens when Pittsburgh’s Black community tells what they know to the police.
“I thank the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, but I also want to thank the community,” voiced Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey at a news conference at police headquarters, Nov. 2. “Because this is the first time I’ve heard of, that so many tips are coming in. So many people from the community are calling, saying what is going on. And I thank you for that. Because it’s helping us out, to get leads and continue to solve cases. I’ve told you from Day 1, we can’t do it alone. We need the community, we need the rest of the judicial system; there’s a lot of pieces that go into making sure we are the safest city that we want to be.”
Mayor Gainey then thanked the neighbors, “not just the ones that called in, but the ones that reached out via social media who said, ‘Hey, we heard X, Y and Z,’ the ones that continue to reach out and provide information. I’m happy you’re doing that, and I’m going to ask you to continue, because that’s the type of cooperation we need in order to ensure we’re doing a great job and making sure we take these violent criminals off the street.”
Police and the mayor have been adamant that the community speaks up if they know who’s committing the violent crimes in the city. They said it following the Oct. 15 shooting on the North Side near a gas station and Allegheny Commons along Cedar Avenue, which claimed the ble for its creation.
“This is a major win for the city of Pittsburgh,” Scott told the online housingtrustfundproject.org in 2018. She lauded the HOF, saying it would allow “more than 7,000 Pittsburgh families to stay in their homes or move to safe and affordable homes. Every person in Pittsburgh deserves a place to call home. The affordable housing crisis required our elected leaders to take action, and that’s what they did.”
Scott died on Nov. 2 at her home in Homestead. It’s unclear the manner of Scott’s passing.
On Sunday, Nov. 13, a daylong memorial event was held at the Homewood YMCA to celebrate Scott’s life, organized by the Celeste Legacy Circle group.
“Celeste raised most of us into the activists we are today,” said her close friend, Brittani Murray, on Facebook. “Celeste uplifted and championed every fabric of what it means to have a Black life in Pittsburgh and supported every intersection of that life.”
Community activism is something most people aren’t cut out for. But for Scott, it was a calling. In addition to Pittsburgh United, Scott volunteered with New Voices Pittsburgh, the Alliance for Police Accountability and SisTers PGH. Scott served on the boards of SisTers PGH, Pittsburgh Union of Regional Renters and Lawrenceville United. Scott also was a founding member of Black Femme Excellence Co.
While the COVID pandemic stopped a lot of things and people, Scott carried on. In July 2021, when the City of Pittsburgh, then under Mayor Bill Peduto, announced it would receive $335 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan, Scott joined other activists on the steps of the City-County Building: “We must ensure that the city uses these funds to address years of racial and economic inequity and ensure accountability and transparency in the process,” Scott said. “Homeownership is important, but it’s renters who have suffered the most during the pandemic. Including rent relief is critical, and if Council had engaged the public in this process, that’s one of many things that would have been abundantly clear. It is vital that the public has a say in deciding how to spend this money—not just the usual voices and the folks in power—but the community, especially those most in need of relief. Council needs to slow down, pause the vote, and engage the community in a real and transparent way.”
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey, upon learning of her passing, said that “Celeste was not only a tireless advocate for affordable housing—resulting in the creation of Pittsburgh’s Housing Opportunity Fund—but a celebrated community leader known for her kindness and generosity. She was a fierce champion for racial justice, housing justice, and queer liberation. The City of Pittsburgh is a better place because of Celeste. May her memory be a blessing, now and always.”
Soon-to-be Congresswoman Summer Lee also commented on Scott’s passing: “Celeste Scott was such a beacon of light and love for our community. A fierce advocate, especially for our Black and queer communities, for housing justice and racial justice, a compassionate mother and community mother to so many. Rest in power, Celeste.”
Scott also advocated for Black transgender people in Pittsburgh, which was noted by SisTers PGH founder Ciora Thomas: “I am forever grateful for your life and your sacrifice and the fight it took for you to exist within a place that worked you to death.”
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