TAKING A STAND—Bartender Latika Pamplin and Pittsburgh police officer Brenda Tate pose with signs on the Black Beauty Lounge’s windows, warning shoplifters never to come inside. (Photos by J.L. Martello) Within hours of the Hicks family opening their SHOP ‘n SAVE in the Hill District in the 1980s, boosters were selling cartloads of merchandise two blocks away. Add to that the employees “giving away” huge quantities of inventory and the store failed in short order; killing any chance of revitalizing the Hill for 30 years. The term “booster,” said Pittsburgh Police Spokesperson Diane Richard, is a professional shoplifter, as opposed to, say, a teenager taking a pack of gum.
In this May 1, 2013, file photo, President Barack Obama's nominee for the Federal Housing Finance Authority director Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C., waves during the announcement of his nomination in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) by Alan Fram Associated Press WriterWASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked President Barack Obama's picks for a powerful federal court and a housing regulatory agency, prompting Democrats to threaten curtailing the GOP's ability to derail nominations. "Something has to change, and I hope we can make the changes necessary through cooperation," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said after the votes.
In this Nov. 11, 2007, file photo, recording artist Jay-Z performs at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York. (AP Photo/Gary He, File) by Anne D'InnocenzioAssociated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — When big-name celebrities pair up with big businesses, customers often believe the adage: You are the company you keep. Rap artist Jay-Z is learning that firsthand. He has complained this week that he's been unfairly "demonized" because he hasn't backed out of his collaboration with Barneys New York after the luxury retailer was accused of racially profiling two Black customers.
In this Dec. 4, 2006, file photo, Chief Judge Robert M. Bell listens to arguments in the Maryland Court of Appeals in Annapolis, Md. (AP Photo/Chris Gardner, File) by Jessica GreskoAssociated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert M. Bell was 16 years old when he recruited classmates to join a sit-in at a downtown Baltimore restaurant. The sit-in was Bell's first, and he remembers being a little nervous. On the afternoon of June 17, 1960, the group entered Hooper's restaurant, and a hostess said she wouldn't seat them. "I'm sorry, but we haven't integrated as yet," she said. The group pushed past her and sat anyway. Police were called, and 12 demonstrators, including Bell, were charged with trespassing. Eventually, the case made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., speaks during a news conference at 30th Street Station in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) PITTSBURGH (AP) — U.S. Sen. Bob Casey said new spending cuts to federally funded medical research will take effect in January if Congress does not stop them, and he blamed an earlier round of funding cuts for massive job losses in Pennsylvania.
This July 26, 2013 file photo shows the Rev. Al Sharpton gestures as he takes part in a panel discussion during the National Urban League's annual conference in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) by Karen MatthewsAssociated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The Rev. Al Sharpton threatened Saturday to boycott luxury retailer Barneys if the department store doesn't respond adequately to allegations by Black shoppers that they were racially profiled there. "We've gone from stop and frisk to shop and frisk, and we are not going to take it," the Black civil rights leader said. "We are not going to live in a town where our money is considered suspect and everyone else's money is respected."
Sheila Stewart at a June, 2013 event honoring her 25 years of excellence in radio broadcasting. (AFRO File Photo/Rob Roberts)
by Avis Thomas-Lester
AFRO Executive Editor
(Updated...
This undated image provided by H&M shows plus-size model Jennie Runk, who is a size 12 or 14, in a swimsuit ad from 2012. (AP Photo/H&M) by Mae AndersonAP Retail Writer NEW YORK (AP) — When it comes to women's clothing sizes, there's some funny math going on. The average American woman is about 25 pounds heavier than she was in 1960. Yet women's plus-size clothing, generally defined as size 14 and up, still makes up only about 9 percent of the $190 billion spent annually on clothes. What's wrong with this equation? It's not that plus-size women aren't into fashion. Rather, the fashion industry doesn't seem interested in them.
In this Nov. 18, 2012 file photo a child dressed as "Zwarte Piet" or "Black Pete", right, watches a parade after St. Nicholas, or Sinterklaas, arrived by boat in Amsterdam, Netherlands. (AP Photo/ Margriet Faber, File) by Toby SterlingAssociated Press Writer AMSTERDAM (AP) — A Facebook page seeking to preserve the "Black Pete" clowns in blackface who accompany St. Nicholas to the Netherlands during the holidays has become the fastest-growing Dutch-language page ever, receiving 1 million "likes" in a single day. The mushrooming popularity of the "Pete-ition" page reflects the depth of emotional attachment most Dutch people — 90 percent of whom have European ancestry — feel to a figure that helped launch the tradition of Santa Claus.
AT LAST—Linda Imani Barett celebrates finally being able to buy groceries in her neighborhood. (Photo by J.L. Martello) by Christian MorrowCourier Staff WriterApparently, waiting 30 years and one day for a new grocery store is too long for some Hill District residents. The day before its scheduled opening, Heldman Plaza SHOP ‘n SAVE operator Jeff Ross went to check on the store and found “shoppers” roaming the aisles.
