For the past 28 years, Rep. Joe Preston Jr. has defeated many opponents in elections for the 24th Legislative District seat. In the May primary he will take on William Anderson and Todd Elliot Koger, who also opposed him in the previous election. JOSEPH PRESTON JR. Preston represents Wilkinsburg, East Liberty, Aspinwall, Lincoln-Lemington-Belmar, Point Breeze, Larimer, Homewood, Highland Park and East Hills. Looking back on what he’s done in recent terms, he sees the revitalization of East Liberty as a symbol of what’s to come for other areas of his district. “Seeing East Liberty, its going and we’re getting close to looking at other things. Wilkinsburg is turning around,” Preston said. “We set the tone, the turn around.”
Pittsburgh School Board Director Mark Brentley Sr. has long said the city’s North Side residents are perennially ignored by their city council and state House representatives because both offices are located in the Hill District. So, once again, he is trying to change that by challenging incumbent state Rep. Jake Wheatley for the District 19 seat in the Democratic primary May 18. MARK BRENTLEY Brentley is also, again, running against former city councilwoman and Democrat-endorsed Tonya Payne, whom he challenged last year for the city council seat she eventually lost to Daniel Lavelle. Brentley is trying to bank on anti-insider sentiment noting both Payne and Wheatley are former aides to longtime Hill councilman Sala Udin, even though Payne ousted Udin from his council seat in 2005.
A sea of pink covered Schenley Park on Mother’s Day for the Komen Pittsburgh Race for the Cure. Of more than 30,000 people who converged in Pittsburgh on Sunday, about 3,000 were breast cancer survivors. Everyone participated with a mission of eradicating breast cancer through education, screening, research and treatment. The Pittsburgh event—one of the biggest Komen races in the country—raises millions to save lives. The Mother’s Day event, a 5K (3.1 miles) run/walk and a 1-mile fast walk, has raised millions of dollars to date in the Pittsburgh market to support national breast cancer research. TEAM TRACEY—From all over the city Team “Tracey” walked for Tracey Feagins, who was recently diagnosed with cancer. Tracey, in pink, is in the middle of the group.
Recently the Courier ran a story on the decline of Black policemen in the city. So we asked Pittsburghers how they felt about this issue. Here’s what you said: BERNADETTE HOLLY “Yes. They can relate to us as a people.” Bernadette HollyClairtonVector Inc.
Children’s fair MAY 15—The Extra Mile Foundation of Pittsburgh will host a Children’s Health Fair from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at Holy Rosary School, 7120 Kelly St., Homewood. It is open to all students in grades 5-8 and there will be face painting, soul line dancing, hip-hop aerobics, workshops for parents and more. The event is free. For more information, call Karen Hall at 412-874-5802 or e-mail hallk32@yahoo.com.
From the 1940s through 1962, Evelyn Cunningham led the crusade for civil rights and women’s rights as a writer and editor for the Pittsburgh Courier, the largest Black newspaper in the country at the time. After leaving the paper in 1962 she continued her fight to open closed doors for women and Blacks to the point of being one of the most respected and feared women in the country. EVELYN CUNNINGHAM Cunningham died April 28 of natural causes at the Jewish Home and Hospital in Manhattan, said her niece, Gigi Freeman. She was 94. She traveled the world while covering many stories and opening doors for women. She was a founder of The 100 Black Women.
Almost two years after her son Antwann was shot and killed in Homewood at the age of 21, Sheryl Jackson still finds it hard to talk about his death. And what continues to add to the pain of her loss is that her son’s killer has not been arrested. Jackson did not say much, but said because the pain of her loss it is still great, “I do not like to talk about it. It still depresses me.” ENOUGH IS ENOUGH—Sheryl Jackson, mother of Antwann Jackson, holds her son’s 2-year-old daughter, Maia Jackson, in front of his billboard. The sign states a reward is offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual who murdered her son. Like Jackson, there are many out there with the same story. The loss of a loved one with no closure or justice because the killer is still out there. And many times, some in the community know who it is, but do not say anything. Out of approximately 42 homicides in the city of Pittsburgh for 2009, Police Cmdr. Thomas Stangrecki said 15 of those homicides are still unsolved and all of them are Black males. And this year there are 17 homicides in the city—seven of those are unsolved and six of those are Black men.
So far this year, April has had the lowest number of homicides and even more, the lowest number of Black homicides. This month, there was only one Black murder. Although the numbers were low, the senseless factor remains. Many of the homicides were due to disputes that got out of hand and took a wrong turn. Whatever happened to stepping back and taking a deep breath during an argument? When did it get to the point of picking up a gun, a knife or even a bat? Although there was only one Black homicide, even one is one too many. We, as a community, have to unite and continue the efforts, so that one can be turned into none.
April 29 saw the completion of the city of Pittsburgh’s month-long series on diversity and inclusion. As part of the DiverseCity 365 initiative, women in leadership positions around the city led the HerStory Discussion at the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh, giving others insight into how they had shattered the glass ceiling. LUKE RAVENSTAHL DiverseCity 365 began in October 2007 as a means of increasing diversity and inclusion throughout the city. The Department of Personnel & Civil Service Commission created a taskforce to develop strategies toward this goal and establish monitoring programs.
With most of the gubernatorial candidates having participated in multiple public forums prior to the African American Chamber of Commerce event April 29, there was little chance anyone would hear something new. But independent candidate Robert Mansfield, an African-American U.S. Army veteran from Philadelphia, took that little chance and ran with it as far as he could, which led to a few raised eyebrows from those previously unexposed to Libertarian viewpoints. AIRING DIFFERENCES—State gubernatorial candidates prepare to make opening statements during the candidates’ forum at the Rivers Club. From left: Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel, Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, independent candidate Robert Mansfield, state Auditor General Jack Wagner, state Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams and state Attorney General Tom Corbett. “The old way is over. We need a ‘new normal,’” he said. “We need less regulation and less tax. We should phase out business taxes by 2016.”
