2.22.23 NPC

by Bill Neal

For New Pittsburgh Courier

If you don’t know the legend that is Jennifer Bruce, you most likely have been locked in a safe, secured in a vault, and submerged 50 feet under the historic Pitt Fitzgerald Field House!

Bruce is a 1980 graduate of Carrick High School who was destined for greatness. The daughter of Mr. Clarence Bruce, a well-known, well-loved and proud member of the Homestead Grays, and the sister to Kirk Bruce, former South Hills basketball star and member of the Pitt Panthers’ famed 1973-74 team that finished 25-4 and advanced in the NCAA Regional Finals. Kirk Bruce was then drafted by the Utah Stars of the former American Basketball Association. By the way, while the accolades are flowing, all will agree that given the athletic genes being passed down from Mr. Bruce, all other matters of importance were blessed by Mrs. Bruce...Amen!

Ceremonial swearing-in for Congresswoman Summer Lee held in East Liberty

the first Black Congresswoman in Pennsylvania history

by Rob Taylor Jr.

Courier Staff Writer

Yes, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee already took the Oath of Office in becoming the first Black congresswoman in Pennsylvania history back in January.

But the congresswoman decided to hold a ceremonial swearing-in ceremony, at the place where it all started—Pittsburgh.

It all took place at the famed Kelly Strayhorn Theater, in East Liberty, on Sunday, Feb. 19. More than 250 people packed the theater to watch Court of Common Pleas Judge Nicola Henry-Taylor perform the swearing-in ceremony, as Rep. Lee held up her right hand, left hand on the Bible, the Bible held by Rep. Lee’s mother, Shelda Lee. While there were the usual affirmations for Rep. Lee by certain speakers, the crowd cheered as elected official after elected official offered their

congratulations to Rep. Lee via video. Names like newly-minted Pa. Governor Josh Shapiro, Senator Bob Casey, Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison, State Rep. Joanna McClinton (who also serves as Democratic leader of the Pa. House of Representatives),

U.S. Rep. Ayanna Presley (D-Mass.), U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). “We have lived experiences that bring us to Congress that help us move at the urgency that you all deserve,” Rep. Tlaib said of her and Rep. Lee. “You all did something pretty incredible (in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties). You really pushed back against all the rhetoric,” and chose to elect Rep. Lee, someone who “speaks truth to power.”

SEE LEE A5

This Week In Black History A Courier Staple

• FEBRUARY 22

1950—Basketball legend Julius “Dr. J” Erving is born in Roosevelt, N.Y. He was the most dominant NBA player of his era. The former Philadelphia 76’er was 6’7”, 210 pounds.

• FEBRUARY 23

by Sherri Kolade

For New Pittsburgh Courier

The unthinkable happened weeks before the pandemic broke in early March 2020 for La Toya Bond who learned of the murder-suicide of her stepmother and father.

“There were parts of him that were known to only him like the struggles and the depression and the secret battles,” the St. Clair Shores resident said of her father, Herman McKalpain, 66, who ended his life after taking the life of his wife, Elizabeth McKalpain, 67, in their home in Sterling Heights. “By all appearances, he seemed happy.…We were all shocked when this happened. Nobody saw this coming.”

Bond, a suicide awareness advocate (and host of a podcast show in honor of her late father), told the Michigan Chronicle that she has learned so much about the topic of suicide and she participates in a suicide loss survivors’ support group through the non-profit organization, Kevin’s Song.

Bond’s father, a former sports radio show host on WGPR in Detroit, lives on in a sense through her podcast, “Speaking of Love.”

“I always say that my podcast is my therapy… and I do this because this was something that he loved…. So having this podcast, in essence, it’s like I’m walking in his gift.…There’s a lot of stigma behind suicide and my purpose is to erase that stigma.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the 10th leading cause of death in the United States in 2019 was suicide, claiming more than 47,500 people. Also, there were about two and a half times as many suicides in the United States as there were homicides (19,141) that year.

The CDC added that suicide was the “second leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 10 and 34, and the fourth leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 35 and 44.”

E’yandra Otis, a Detroit resident, nearly committed suicide in 2016 after experiencing emotional turmoil and the loss of numerous family members and friends.

“I spent so much time in the funeral home I felt that I worked there,” Otis told the Michigan Chronicle previously about cousins and friends of his who tragically died. “It was a lot—a long year.”

Around the world, more than 700,000 people die by suicide every year, which is one person every 40 seconds, according to the World Health Organization, which reports that for each adult who passed away from suicide, there might have been over 20 others attempting suicide.

While mental health is becoming more widely discussed in the Black community, discussions about suicide remain taboo.

Every year, however, over 700,000 people commit suicide. In 2019, African American populations experienced a 7 percent suicide rate, while risk factors for suicide remain consistent across race and gender.

For Otis, having conversations and seeking mental help helped him out of his downward spiral of emotions also stemming from family troubles, financial hardships and more.

Otis, who almost ended things with some alcohol and pills, said he finally came to that life-changing day five years ago and is glad he did.

“I used to be a person that holds a lot of things in,” he said. “Now if I’m getting to a point where I feel like I need to talk to or call somebody I don’t have a problem asking for help.”

Dr. L.A. Barlow, a clinical psychologist with the Detroit Medical Center, told the Michigan Chronicle that with the pandemic and its variants still ongoing (and social isolation still a thing), continuing to work on your mental health is not something to look down upon, especially in the Black community.

“Culturally a lot of times in our community we were raised to say, ‘Family business stays in the household,’” she said, adding that these things need to be talked about.

“Mental healthcare and mental well-being [don’t] discriminate no matter race. Why should we not get the help?”

Dr. Carmen McIntyre, chief medical officer at the Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority, is a big proponent of addressing mental health and has previously discussed with the Michigan Chronicle what are the warning signs for suicide.

“Some risks that increase the likelihood of suicide include major depressive episode; substance use or abuse, such as alcohol or cocaine; divorce or widowhood; recent loss [such as losing a job, or a loved one]; physical illness and chronic pain,” she said, adding that it is important to look for signs of depression as this has the “greatest correlation” with suicide attempts.

“Depression doesn’t look the same for everyone, but some hints are feeling sad, or being agitated and angry [especially in children and adolescents]; changes in sleep and appetite; loss of interest in activities that were previously enjoyed such as spending time with friends or playing sports; difficulty with concentration or memory; feelings of guilt or worthlessness; and fatigue or decreased energy,” she said.

Warning signs of suicide include:

Talking about death, wanting to die, or wanting to kill oneself.

Talking about feeling helpless, hopeless, having no reason to live, or being a burden on others.

Increasingly reckless behavior, including the use of alcohol or drugs.

Becoming more withdrawn or feeling isolated.

Feeling enraged or talking about getting revenge.

Loss of interest in the things one cares about.

Making arrangements or setting one’s affairs in order, including giving away one’s possessions, or saying goodbye to people.

Finally, suddenly seeming happier or calmer. This is because the person has made the choice to die and has a sense of relief that their suffering will soon end.

Bond said that individuals who feel suicidal should reach out for help and not be afraid.

“And just know that you are loved and you are here on this earth for a divine purpose,” Bond said, adding that everyone was born with a gift, talent or something that they could offer to the world. “So, for my dad, for example, his gift to the world was his heart. He had a big heart. And he was a great dynamic public speaker.… The next person may be like Patti LaBelle.… It doesn’t matter how small or how big…we have our own unique gifts that we bring to the world.”

If someone needs immediate help, call The National Suicide Prevention

1868—Dr. W.E.B. DuBois is born William Edward Burghardt DuBois in Great Barrington, Mass. DuBois can easily qualify as Black America’s leading scholar and intellectual of the late 1800s and early 1900s. He was also an educator and social activist fighting tirelessly against racial injustice and U.S. imperialism. He started the NAACP’s influential “Crisis” magazine. He organized what many consider the First Pan African Congress. (Actually, it was the second. The first took place in 1900.) However, in his later years DuBois became increasingly frustrated with American racism, injustice and hypocritical brand of democracy. He turned to socialism around 1927 and despaired of the NAACP’s legalistic approach to obtaining rights for Blacks. He nevertheless authored several influential books including “The Souls of Black Folks.” He coined the phrase ‘talented tenth” to describe what he believed would have to be a class of educated and skilled Blacks who would have to lead the race out of its oppression. DuBois finally went into self-imposed exile in the West African nation of Ghana saying, “In my own country for nearly a century I have been nothing but a Nigger.” He died in Ghana’s capital, Accra, on Aug. 27, 1963. He was 95.

• FEBRUARY 24

1864—Rebecca Lee Crumbler becomes the first African American woman to receive a medical degree. Born in 1833, she graduated from the New England Female Medical College. Prior to becoming a doctor, she had worked as a nurse in Massachusetts for more than six years.

1868—The U.S. House of Representatives voted 126 to 47 to impeach President Andrew Johnson. Johnson had run afoul of a group of pro-Black legislators known as the Radical Republicans because of his opposition to full citizenship rights for former slaves. He survived being ousted as president by one vote in the U.S. Senate. As far as historical speculation goes, it would have been much better for Black rights and the course of Black history if Johnson had been ousted. His opposition to full rights, including voting rights, for Blacks helped lay the foundation for the un-doing of Reconstruction and the many gains Blacks had made during that period.

1966—Kwame Nkrumah is ousted in a military coup as president of the West African nation of Ghana. This was another event which changed the course of Black history for the worse. Nkrumah, educated at the predominantly Black Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, had been a major intellectual and pragmatic force for Pan-Africanism and worldwide Black unity. From the time he became the first president of Ghana in March 1957, he had worked tirelessly for international Black advance and world peace. His ouster left a void which after 40 years has not been filled by any other African leader. Nkrumah died in 1972.

• FEBRUARY 25

1851—The first Black Women’s Rights Convention is held in Akron, Ohio. The keynote speaker was anti-slavery activist Sojourner Truth.

1966—Constance Baker Motley becomes the first African American woman appointed to a federal judgeship . She takes the bench in the Southern District of New York. Motley was a major civil rights hero helping win several important cases during the 1950s and ‘60s. Among the cases was the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case, which desegregated the nation’s schools. She worked for the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund and helped Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in several of his legal battles. Born in 1921 in New Haven, Conn., Motley died in 2006.

1980—Black Entertainment Television, the first Black owned company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, begins broadcasting from its headquarters in Washington, D.C.

While still Black programmed, BET is now owned by media conglomerate Viacom.

• FEBRUARY 26

1920—Dr. Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950) founds the first nationally organized celebration of Black American history (then called Negro History Week), which was first celebrated on this day in 1926. Woodson scheduled the week to coincide with the birthdays of Civil War President Abraham Lincoln and Black abolitionist Frederick Douglass. However, in 1976, Negro History Week was expanded into the current day Black History Month. For his efforts in promoting knowledge of Black historical achievements Woodson became known as the “Father of Black History.” In explaining the need for the celebration, Woodson once said, “Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history.”

1964—Heavyweight boxing champion Cassius Clay changes his name to Muhammad Ali after rejecting Christianity and joining the Elijah Muhammad-led Nation of Islam.

• FEBRUARY 27

1748—This is the probable birth date of Prince Hall—the “Father of Black Masons.” Hall was a veteran of America’s war of independence from England, founder of the first African-American Masonic lodges and one of the most prominent Black leaders of his era. The charter for the first Black Masonic lodge was granted on Sept. 29, 1784. It was known as African Lodge #459 of Boston.

1869—Congress adopts the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution making it illegal for the U.S. government or any state to “deny or abridge” the right to vote “on account of race, color or previous condition of servitude.” This was one of the so-called “Reconstruction Amendments (13th, 14th & 15th)” which essentially ended slavery, made Blacks full U.S. citizens and guaranteed the right to vote.

1872—Charlotte E. Ray graduates from the Howard University Law School becoming the first Black female lawyer in the United States. It also appears that she was the third female lawyer of any race. She was admitted to the Washington, D.C., bar the same year she graduated. But racism and sexism prevented her from making a living as a lawyer in the nation’s capital, so she moved to New York and got a job with the Brooklyn school system.

• FEBRUARY 28

1708—One of the first recorded slave revolts in American history takes place on Newton, Long Island (New York). Seven Whites are killed. In retaliation, two Black male slaves and one Indian male slave were hung, while one Black female slave was burned alive.

1879—A date considered by many to mark the beginning of the great “Exodus of 1879,” when thousands of Blacks begin fleeing racism, violence and economic exploitation in the South for new lives in the Midwest, especially Kansas. One of the most prominent organizers of the exodus was former Tennessee slave Benjamin “Pap” Singleton. An estimated 20,000 Blacks took part in the exodus. They were driven in part by the Homestead Act which promised free land. But by 1880, efforts had already begun to curtail the movement of Blacks to the Midwest. In 1881, Pap Singleton was hauled before a Senate investigative committee looking into his role in the exodus.

1989—Philip Emeagwali is awarded the Golden Bell Prize for solving one of the 20 most difficult problems in computer science. The prize is widely considered the “Nobel Prize of Computing.” The feat of the Nigerian-born computer scientist involved, at the time, the world’s fastest computer computation—a staggering 3.1 billion calculations per second. He figured out how oil flows underground and thus better enabled companies to extract it.

Suicide and its stigma should be classified as a pandemic

LA TOYA BOND

Turahn Jenkins and James Kraus announce new Pittsburgh law firm

Attorneys James Kraus and Turahn Jenkins announced on Feb. 13 the formation of a new law firm, Kraus Jenkins, to be based in Pittsburgh. The new firm will also have an office in Washington, D.C., the New Pittsburgh Courier has learned. The firm of Kraus Jenkins will focus on representing clients in civil and criminal litigation, and government investigations. The civil litigation practice will be wide-ranging with heavy emphasis on the representation of healthcare providers, including hospitals and physicians. The criminal litigation practice will span the full range of criminal matters.

Founding member James Kraus expressed optimism for the new venture: “Our new firm is an exciting opportunity to build upon a foundation of uncompromising integrity, merging established practices that share key characteristics —a deep wealth of trial experience and a fervent dedication to giving our

best each day to our clients.”

Kraus has more than 30 years of civil and criminal trial experience. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.

Kraus began his career with the U.S. Army JAG Corps, initially serving as a criminal prosecutor and operational law officer with the Army’s 4th Infantry Division. He has since built a distin -

ing from low-level misdemeanors to Criminal Homicide. He continues to build upon a criminal defense and civil litigation practice, intuitively balancing his roles as a zealous advocate and a trusted advisor while achieving noteworthy results both in and out of the courtroom. Jenkins is a dedicated community leader and social justice advocate currently serving as Vice President of the Allegheny Lawyers Initiative for Justice.

Jenkins sees the key components of the new firm to be “our faith in each other and the shared belief that each and every client is deserving of a dignified and individualized approach to legal counseling and fierce advocacy.”

Kraus and Jenkins are joined in their practice by attorney Lee Goldfarb. Goldfarb has over a decade of experience in both civil and criminal litigation, beginning her legal career with the Of -

fice of the District Attorney in the Child Abuse Unit. There she successfully prosecuted over 30 jury trials, in addition to a multitude of non-jury trials, involving matters of physical and sexual assault of children as well as homicide. Goldfarb’s practice includes the representation of medical professionals and hospitals in matters ranging from claims of medical malpractice to allegations of violations of the federal False Claims Act.

She also represents individuals and corporate organizations in response to government investigations. As the firm eagerly launches, the partners of Kraus Jenkins are intent on a model of dedication and diligence. With earnest enthusiasm, Kraus emphasized “investing the highest quality of effort on behalf of our current and future clients.”

guished career in private practice and tried scores of civil cases in defense of hospitals, physicians, and other healthcare providers, as well as financial professionals.

Kraus has also represented professionals in response to government investigations, as well as a wide range of clients at trial in state and federal courts in response to criminal charges.

Founding member

Turahn Jenkins has been practicing for nearly 20 years, including stints at both the Office of District Attorney and Office of Public Defender where he tried a broad spectrum of cases rang -

JAMES KRAUS

TURAHN JENKINS

Ceremonial swearing-in for Congresswoman

Summer Lee held in East Liberty

Senator Casey remarked that Rep. Lee has “labored to advance the cause of justice” for families of marginalized communities, “economic justice, social justice and so much more. And I have no doubt you’ll be a tireless advocate and champion in Washington.”

Mayor Ed Gainey made it to the event; his presence had Rep. Lee stopping her speech to acknowledge all the support that Pittsburgh’s first Black mayor showed her over the years. Before Rep. Lee became an elected official, Mayor Gainey was a fixture in the Pa. House, as a representative for the 24th District, which included many East End neighborhoods. With Gainey’s support and Rep. Lee’s unwavering confidence in herself, Rep. Lee ran for state representative in the 34th District, which included Braddock, North Braddock, Swissvale and other neighboring Mon Valley communities. She won the primary in May 2018, and officially took office in January 2019. When U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, the longtime congressman, announced he was retiring from his seat in the 18th District, Rep. Lee made

trict seat, and won a hotly contested Democratic primary in May 2022. The race was so hot that super PACs (Political Action Committees) spent millions on media advertising to degrade Rep. Lee. Still, she prevailed over her primary Democratic challenger, Steve Irwin.

“This is a historic moment,” voiced Pennsylvania’s first Black Lieutenant Governor, Austin Davis, at the podium. “In 2023, we’re still reaching new heights and making new Black history. This moment is a symbol of how far we’ve come as a people, but it’s a reminder of how far we still have to go.”

In one setting, on this one day, there was Black history everywhere. Ed Gainey, the city’s first Black mayor, Summer Lee, the state’s first Black congresswoman, and Austin Davis, the state’s first Black Lieutenant Governor...literally within yards of each other, in East Liberty, where much has been made about the neighbor-

very clear that we let each other know how we felt, and she let me know very early she was not afraid of me; and I let her know that I was not afraid of her,” the fiery Kelly said. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S., and specifically the Pittsburgh region, Kelly recalled how it hit the Pittsburgh region hard. People were left without jobs, oftentimes without food...but, “the very first phone call that I received from an elected official was from Summer Lee,” Kelly said. “Did not have a conversation with her for almost a

year. But she reached out to me and said, ‘listen, I understand, the working men and women, over 80 percent were laid off in Allegheny County,’ and she just wanted to offer her assistance. I said, ‘you know what, that’s really something.’” Kelly, with the crowd hanging on to every word, then revealed that the relationship between him and Rep. Lee began to grow.

“Was Summer different, or was she making us different? Was she opening up eyes? And I thought to myself, there is some-

thing happening here. It’s not politics...the narrative was changing. Summer was changing the narrative of politics in Allegheny County that allowed leaders to step up and say, ‘you know what, this woman does have something to offer.’ This was more than a congressional race; this was about somebody changing the narrative for generations to come.”

the announcement that she would be running for Congress. However, a redrawing of the Pennsylvania congressional map split the 18th District into two districts, the 12th and 17th. Representative Lee ran for the 12th Dis-

hood becoming gentrified; more Whites moving in, as more Blacks seemingly are forced to move out.

“I’ve had the privilege of serving with Summer in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for nearly five years,” voiced the lieutenant governor,

saying—those people closest to the pain should be closest to the power. I cannot wait to see the great things she will do on behalf of the people in Pennsylvania and in America.” Darrin Kelly, the president of the 100,000 member Allegheny/Fayette Central Labor Council,

“I got to see up close and personal her fight, and I’m here to tell you she is a fighter, a voice for the voiceless, and a fighter for working class and marginalized folks.”

Lt. Gov. Davis added: “She’s always grounded her service in a single

was candid about his early interactions with the Woodland Hills High School graduate.

“Not too long ago, Summer Lee and I didn’t always see eye to eye, and the first time that we spoke, it was very, very,

CONGRESSWOMAN SUMMER LEE, AT THE KELLY STRAYHORN THEATER IN EAST LIBERTY, FEB. 19.

DARRIN KELLY, PRESIDENT OF THE ALLEGHENY/FAYETTE CENTRAL LABOR COUNCIL.

PENNSYLVANIA LT. GOV. AUSTIN DAVIS

The 2023 Ronald H. Brown Leadership Awards Gala

THE STAGE WAS PACKED at the 2023 Ronald H. Brown Leadership Awards. From Left to Right: Back: Carlos T. Carter with Civic Leadership Honoree Saleem Ghubril, Emerging Leader Honorees NA for Change (Jaime Martinez, Elise Britton, Avery Neely, Sam Podnar), Co-Chair Demeatria Boccella and Board Chair Andrea Clark Smith, Esq. Front Row: Annie Hanna Cestra, Margo Hinton (the NA for Change Advisor), Community Leadership Honorees Leon Ford and Dr. Angela Reynolds.

CO-CHAIR DEMEATRIA BOCCELLA congratulates the honorees while Co-Chair Annie Hanna Cestra and Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh President & CEO Carlos T. Carter applaud their accomplishments.

‘We don’t let people define who or what we are.’

‘Black Violin’ plays at the Byham, March 12

by Genea L. Webb

For New Pittsburgh Courier

For Hip-Hop instrumental group Black Violin, the violin and viola are not just instruments.

“The Violin is our tool to be able to inspire, uplift and entertain,” said Wil B., one half of the dynamic duo known as Black Violin.

Entertain, uplift and inspire is what the group plans to do on its March 12th visit to the Byham Theater during a welcomed stop on its “Experience” tour. The show is at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at www.trustarts.

org.

“The ‘Experience’ tour is us taking certain songs and re-introducing those songs in a different way.

The show is very high energy and entertaining. We introduce songs that we have never performed before and we will still play some hits that people are used to hearing,” Wil B. said.

Joining Black Violin on stage are Nat Stokes on drums, DJ SPS on turntables and Liston Gregory on keys.

Black Violin burst onto the musical landscape in 2004 performing with Alicia Keys at the 2004 Billboard Music Awards. They went on to win “Showtime at the Apollo” in 2005 and for almost two decades have been blurring the lines between classical music and modern HipHop beats and vocals.

Front men Kev Marcus and Wil Baptiste first met in orchestra class at Dil-

lard High School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., becoming classically trained on the violin and viola through their high school and college years. Upon graduating, the pair reconnected to produce beats for Florida rappers and began building a strong following in local clubs. The duo’s 2019 effort, “Take the Stairs,” earned a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album. The group plays approximately 200 shows a year, many of which are for young, low-income students in urban communities. The band received its second Grammy Award nomination as Best Americana Performance for the song, “The Message,” in collaboration with the Blind Boys of Alabama. “We did a few big venues with the Blind Boys of Alabama, and they wanted to collaborate with us. They sent us a song and we sent them music and they loved it and it ended up earning us our second Grammy nomination. The Blind Boys of Alabama are still out there doing their thing for 60-plus years. That’s a long time to be touring. That’s inspiring alone. They are still rocking. They are still doing it,” Wil B. said.

The group is glad to be back on the road again interacting with audiences.

“Our mission as people is to take something, perfect it and give it away,” said Wil B., who enjoys playing basketball when he isn’t recording or touring.

Black Violin’s touring

screeched to a halt thanks to COVID-19.

“During the pandemic, we sat down and we didn’t tour much. We were home for two and a half years and I got the chance to bond with my kids and family,” recalled Wil B., who has three children, ages 7, 5 and 4. “In 2020 we did a Christmas al-

bum, ‘Give Thanks.’ We had been wanting to do a Christmas album for a long time and that seemed like the perfect time. In 2021 we went out and we did nine or 10 shows, there were still lockdowns, people still had to wear masks. In 2022 we did virtual events—we used Kev’s garage—and we did

corporate events and masterclasses with kids.”

In 2019, Kev Marcus and Wil B. launched the Black Violin Foundation Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering youth by providing access to quality music programs in their community. The group believes that music and access to music shouldn’t be determined by race, gender, or socio-economic status. Black Violin Foundation’s inaugural program, the Musical Innovation Grant for Continuing Education, provides scholarships to young music students to attend a program of their liking that fosters musical creativity and innovation.

“The foundation is an extension of our outreach stuff and what we do on the road when we talk to kids,” Wil B. said. “We help kids not to let their dreams be snuffed out because of things outside of their control. Our advice to them is to be true to who they are, and people will be drawn to you. If you are true to who you are, everything else will flow. As a violinist and being Black, people tend to put you in boxes. Black Violin is defying the odds because we don’t let people define who or what we are.”

BLACK VIOLIN WILL PERFORM AT THE BYHAM.

THE MEMBERS OF BLACK VIOLIN

Pittsburgh’s own Jennifer Bruce —a basketball legend

2023, fans gathered at the Petersen Events Center in Oakland, in part to watch the Panthers do battle with Notre Dame, but just as much to celebrate the retiring of #12, the game shirt of Jennifer Bruce. Bruce became just the second female athlete at Pitt to have her jersey retired, and the sixth basketball player at Pitt to do so. She scored 2,295 points in a Panther uniform from 1981-85, and also collected 998 rebounds and blocked 203 shots.

“To say that I’m elated, proud, appreciative and humbled at the same time would be an understatement,” expressed Bruce, in a statement from the university to local media. “I can’t honestly say that growing up and loving this game so much that I would be having my jersey number retired at a major university, it is truly unbelievable and it’s the ultimate honor.

I would like to thank the University of Pittsburgh Athletic Department, my teammates of course, my family and friends. Besides my big brother, and my children there are two people in heaven who are extremely proud, Marguerite and Clarence

Bruce. There is no me without them.”

Pitt athletic director

Heather Lyke recalled Bruce as an “incredible player, dynamic leader, and inspiring role mod -

ognizing the league’s greatest players over its initial 25 years while also becoming Pitt’s first recipient of the ACC’s Women’s Basketball Legends award in 2014. Bruce ranks first in Big East history in conference games scoring average (23.3 ppg) and ranks 11th in conference game rebounding average (9.7 rpg).

el for so many while also laying the foundation of excellence for all future Pitt female student-athletes. Jennifer is well deserving of this honor, not only because of her accolades on the basketball court but because of the lasting impact she made on the Pitt community and athletic department during her four years as a Panther. A true legend of the program, Jennifer’s jersey will serve as inspirational goal for future Pitt women’s basketball players.”

A three-time first-team

All-Big East honoree, Bruce was named the 1984 Big East Co-Player of the Year after she averaged 23.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game, according to a Pitt news release. She was named to the Big East Silver Anniversary Squad, rec -

Now as a famous spokesperson once said, “Here’s the rest of the story.” Once married to the late, great Rod Scott, a standout player at Duquesne University, and the mother to two superstar players, Shayla and Tyler, Jennifer Bruce never let her success and accomplishments get to her head. If you knew her, you knew her success and you certainly knew the family legacy. Not only those mentioned, but her nieces and extended family members that added to the Bruce sports history. It would take another edition or two to log in all the records and achievements as well as her professional and community accomplishments. But this has to be re-emphasized—the number of lives Jennifer Bruce has impacted and affected are immeasurable. The head basket -

ball coaching positions, such as at Gateway High School, the countless AAU trips and games and the endless basketball clinics and special appearances she made for hundreds of groups during her career.

plishments she achieved as a student-athlete are beyond measure. We couldn’t be more excited to honor her and the legacy she left here at Pitt by raising her jersey into the rafters.”

JENNIFER BRUCE DURING HER PLAYING DAYS AT PITT. BRUCE FROM A1 CALL ALLISON PALM FOR YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AT 412-481-8302, EXT. 136. You’re not just subscribing to a ‘newspaper...’ You’re connecting with Black History. ‘SEVEN GUITARS’ CORRECTION In last week’s story “Pitt’s production of August Wilson’s ‘Seven Guitars’ showcases students and veteran actors,” two of the actors’ names were inadvertently spelled incorrectly. The correct spelling is Tru Verret-Fleming and Chris Collier.

CFPB seeks end

to hidden junk fees

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—Amid still-rising interest rates, most families remain financially challenged to make household needs fit into their budgets. For Black Americans whose wealth amounts to 25 cents for every $1 of White family wealth, according to the St. Louis Federal Reserve, the challenge is especially daunting.

Charlene Crowell

Commentary

So, it is particularly encouraging to Blacks, and others of modest means for a sitting president to speak to the average person’s concerns in the annual State of the Union Address.

“Junk fees may not matter to the very wealthy, but they matter to most folks in homes like the one I grew up in,” said President Joe Biden on February 7. “They add up to hundreds of dollars a month…I know how unfair it feels when a company overcharges you and gets away with it.”

“Not anymore.”

Junk fees are hidden and unexpected charges that are often not included in the initial or listed price of a transaction but are added on at the time of the payment.

Many consumers are unaware of how junk fees bloat the costs of a variety of goods and services. As a result, the actual costs consumers pay are much larger than expected or advertised. Prepaid card fees, convenience fees, overdraft fees, and late fees are among the myriad of add-on charges that consumers often learn about after or during transactions.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has a section of its website dedicated to explaining the varying types of junk fees and their respective charges. To learn more about this growing consumer issue, visit  https://www.consumerfinance. gov/rules-policy/junk-fees/.

Further, as the consumer’s financial cop-on-the beat, the CFPB has begun the rulemaking process to rein in the financial harms caused by a myriad of fees affecting at least 85 percent of consumers, according to a 2019 survey by Consumer Reports. The proposed CFPB rule change would make exorbitant late fees illegal. Based on the agency’s estimates, the proposal could reduce credit card late fees by as much as $9 billion per year—even though no additional collection costs are incurred.

SEE JUNK FEES B2

by Roz Edward For New Pittsburgh Courier

New Year’s resolutions aside and financial recovery seemingly around the corner from the economic ravages of the pandemic, it’s imperative that American consumers develop a realistic budgeting plan to get back on track to building savings and wealth for short, long-term and legacy goals.

Millions of African Americans are still reeling from the unparalleled setbacks of the past few years, and too many continue to face serious financial fallout in the aftermath of the virus. in large part due to job loss, wage reductions, and consequently the devastation imposed by inflation hinder financial recovery for individuals and families hard hit by upheaval of the past few years.

Wells Fargo wants consumers to do more than just survive or persevere through the storm. The leading financial institution encourages savings and budgeting, addresses budget basics and is applying new strategies and products to help Black Americans save for now and build for health financial futures.

“It’s very important to have financial health, and then to build wealth from having that financial health, but it starts somewhere,” explained Gigi Dixon, head of external affairs engage-

money

Budgeting and money management start with organization.

Organization is key to budget development and money management. Organize and automate your spending habits by gathering your financial documents, such as pay stubs, credit card and bank account statements, and auto or student loan bills, to ensure you have enough information to get started.

ment for Wells Fargo. “It starts with educating yourself around finance, understanding what role money needs to play in your life, and also understanding that money should work for you and not you necessarily always work for money.

“I think it is critical, because when we are able to pay bills, when we are able to take care of our family, when we have a home to live in, then we personally can be even more healthy physically and emotionally.

Getting back on the money track may at first glance appear to be a daunting task or at least one that doesn’t appear feasible in the short to near long term. But when you think about it, we actually may have proven a great deal about financial and economic resiliency in those lean years.

But there are still some critical money matters to be addressed and tried and proven budget basics that apply.

Once you’ve gathered the pertinent documents consumers can enter that information in Wells Fargo Budget Watch to create an online budget for effective and convenient money management.

Track your expenses—Do you know where your money is?

The esteemed author and poet Maya Angelou once advised an audience primarily made up of Black women that they should not only know how much money they have, but they should also know where money goes.

That edict doesn’t only apply to women. Develop an accurate picture of what you’re spending money on now, and what you’d rather spend money on later.

Track all of your expenses. That means everything from mortgage and rent payments to movie tickets and rideshares. Try to track all of your

Should I convert a college savings into retirement savings for my daughter?

Hi Damon. I recently read an article in Forbes Magazine titled, “How A 529 Plan To Child IRA Conversion Can Turn Your Teen Into A Middle-Class Millionaire.” I think I understand this article but would you please simplify it for me?

I thought this would be a great article for your audience as well. If what I understand from this article is accurate, this might be the best decision I made for my children. I have had 529 plans for my kids since birth. My daughter is currently in college. I haven’t had to touch my daughter’s 529 plan to pay for college yet.

~ Cynthia

Damon says: Before I explain “Converting a 529 College Plan into a Child Roth IRA,” let me first explain what a 529 College Plan and a Child Roth IRA are.

A 529 Plan is a tax-advantaged savings plan designed to encourage saving for future college costs. 529 plans, legally known as “qualified tuition plans,” are sponsored by states, state agencies, or educational institutions and are authorized by Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code. 529 plans typically offer tax benefits and other incentives to those who invest in them. Investment earnings in these plans are allowed to grow tax-free and can be used to pay for qualified educational expenses, such as tuition, room and board, books and other qualified expenses.

A Child Roth IRA is an individual retirement account for a minor. Contributions are typically made by a parent, legal guardian, or grandparent and can be used to save for a child’s long-term financial goals such as college tuition

or retirement. Contributions are limited to the lesser of the child’s earned income or $6,500 per year as of 2023 and must come from their own savings or from gifts from family and friends. If the child earns $1,000 in a given year which is less than $6,500 a person can contribute to an IRA, for that year they earned $1,000, the maximum contribution would be $1,000.

Converting a 529 plan to a child IRA means transferring the funds from a 529 college savings plan into an individual retirement account (IRA) that is owned by a child. This process can be accomplished by a parent or guardian, but the funds must be used for the child’s future retirement or college expenses.

When the 529 funds are converted to a child IRA, the child gains ownership of the account and has the ability to make decisions about how their money is invested and when it is withdrawn.

Converting Section 529 College Plan into a Child Roth IRA is something new that goes into effect in 2024.

Converting savings from a 529 College Plan to a child Roth IRA sounds good on the surface but very few will be able to benefit from it primarily because most parents and grandparents start saving for their children’s college late. On average, parents start 529 plans when the child is 7 years old. With the typical child going to college at age 18, that

gives the plan 11 years or so to grow and compound. Parents who save for their children’s college tend to underfund it, meaning not enough money is stashed away to pay for college let alone have excess money to convert to a Roth IRA.

Who this new conversion allowance will benefit the most are those who decided to bypass higher learning. Moving money to a Roth IRA for them can jumpstart their retirement savings.

Prior to this recent change that will go into effect in 2024 if the child decided not to go to college or college saving plan was overfunded, parents would change beneficiary to another child or grandchild.

Key points to know about converting 529 savings to a Roth IRA:

• The section 529 College Plan must have been open for 15 years.

• Can’t roll contributions or earnings on contributions made within 5 years of the conversion.

• Maximum annual conversion is $6,500 per year.

• There’s a $35,000 lifetime cap on the conversion.

Cynthia: My daughter is in college now. I haven’t touched the 529 plan as of yet. I have been contributing to it since she was born. She will turn 20 years old this year. There is about $50,000 in the account. What does that mean with this conversation?

Damon says: This means that you

are one of the few people who will benefit from this new conversion feature. The reason why you benefit from this is twofold: 1. You started saving in a 529 College Plan when she was born, giving this money more time to grow and compound in comparison to the average person who starts saving for their child’s college when they are 7 years old. 2. Now that she’s in college, you’ve been cash-flowing or paying as she goes to college out of pocket. You didn’t need to access the $50,000 in her plan. This gives you a pile of cash in this 529 plan continuing to grow. Starting next year when the new rule goes into effect, you can set up a Roth IRA on her behalf and start converting money from section 529 plan to it.

As you do this, I encourage you to engage her in this process and educate on what you’re doing and how this will benefit her later in life. Strongly discourage her from tapping into this money until she reaches retirement age.

To give you a visual of its potential growth, let’s say you converted $35,000 (lifetime cap) into a Roth IRA, this $35,000 investment would grow to approximately $690,000 over 30 years.

Keep in mind, your daughter’s balance is her 529 Plan is $50,000. The max you can convert starting in 2024 is $35,000. As a result it’s best to use the extra $15,000 towards her college education and benefit from the tax-free distribution it allows for qualified educational expenses Kudos for creating generational wealth for your daughter!

“It’s very important to have financial health, and then to build wealth from having that financial health, but it starts somewhere.”

Goodwill of Southwestern PA announces new President and CEO

The New Pittsburgh Courier has learned that the Board of Directors of Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania has announced the hiring of a new President and Chief Executive Officer, Monique McIntosh. She becomes the eighth Goodwill SWPA Chief Executive since its founding in 1919.

“I am excited for this tremendous opportunity to lead Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania,” said McIntosh. “It’s an amazing organization with a long, storied history of providing valuable services to improve the quality of life for people in our region. I am incredibly impressed with Goodwill’s well-known social enterprise model using revenue from retail stores to fund job training, address workforce access barriers, and increase family economic stability. I want the public to understand better that when they donate and shop at Goodwill SWPA, they are impacting thousands of individuals through our mission-critical services.”

Joining Goodwill SWPA from her most recent position as the Chief Program Officer of YWCA Greater Pittsburgh, McIn-

MONIQUE MCINTOSH

tosh also served in various leadership capacities at the organization, including Co-Interim Chief Executive Officer and Chief Administrative Officer.  Previous to her leadership at the YWCA, she served as Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh’s

Vice President of Programs and Services. In each of these roles, she expanded the reach and effectiveness of the organization.

McIntosh is a member of The Forbes Fund Advisory Council and United Way of Southwestern PA Women’s Leadership Council Diversity Work Group. She serves on the Wilkinsburg Community Development Corporation Board, where she chairs the Development Committee, and the Sixth Economic Empowerment Development Corporation Board. She also serves as an Advisory Committee member for the Homewood Community Development Collaborative and a Core Team member for the Homewood Comprehensive Community Plan, formally adopted into the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Additionally, McIntosh is an Advisory Committee member for the University of Pittsburgh Community Engagement Center. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master of Education from Penn West California.

“We are thrilled to have Monique as the new leader of Goodwill of Southwest-

ern Pennsylvania,” said Marijane Treacy, Chairperson of Goodwill SWPA’s Board of Directors. “For over 100 years, Goodwill has been a pillar of our community, and we look forward to her commitment to continuing Goodwill’s success, while forging new ways Goodwill can help our community in our next century of service.”

Succeeding Michael Smith, who retired last fall after serving as Goodwill SWPA’s President/CEO for 20 years, McIntosh will officially begin in her new role on March 1, 2023. She represents a considerable step forward for Goodwill SWPA as the first woman and person of color to lead the organization. Intentional diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging efforts at Goodwill SWPA over the past three years have led to stronger employee awareness and understanding, new community partner relationships, and elevating equity through the lens in which organizational decisions are made. Creating a culture of belonging where everyone is valued for who they are is the foundation of Goodwill SWPA’s DEIB strategy.

The issue behind student loan forgiveness

by Andre Ash

For New Pittsburgh Courier

President Joe Biden and the U.S. Department of Education announced last year their three-part plan to provide assistance to working and middle-class families struggling to pay federal student loans. The plan would provide borrowers with up to $20,000 in loan forgiveness. Other parts of the plan would help borrowers undergo a smooth transition to regular payments following several loan repayment pauses and extensions by the Biden-Harris administration.

Loan repayment pauses began under the Trump administration and continued into Biden’s presidency as families sought economic relief at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The White House and Department of Education have been seeking ways to

ensure there is targeted debt relief for low- and middle-income families especially as pandemic-related support expires.

On the issue of loan forgiveness, a plan erasing some or all debt for borrowers of up to $20,000 has become a sticky plan, which has caught political rebuke from Republicans, and a Biden agenda has now come to a complete halt as it faces challenges before the courts.

In an exclusive interview with Real Times Media, parent company of the Michigan Chronicle and the New Pittsburgh Courier, Miguel Cardona, U.S. Secretary of Education, spoke about the options for borrowers who have signed up for debt forgiveness, and the department’s efforts to aid student borrowers seeking assistance.

“The law says I have the authority,” said Secretary Cardona. “We have these

frivolous lawsuits that are trying to stop what we know the American people have been asking for.”   “People need better access to higher education and they need to be able to do so without being stuck in debt for the rest of their lives.”

Two lawsuits, focused on the issue of student loan forgiveness, are before the U.S. Supreme Court. In the Biden vs. Nebraska case, a group of Republican-led states argue their states would suffer economic dam-

age due to the potential loss of tax revenue and other profits state have with loan servicers. The case is before the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The other lawsuit is the Department of Education vs. Brown. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals argues the Biden loan forgiveness program is illegal, upholding a lower court’s ruling in Texas.  The Biden administration argues they have the authority to offer its program

of loan forgiveness based on the 2003 HEORES Act, or Higher Education Relief

Opportunities for Students, which gives the Department of Education special powers during a national emergency.

“The pandemic was the national emergency. The national emergency did require both administrations, the previous one and this one, to use that authority to pause loan payments and to adjust them the way we’re working to adjust them.”

Secretary Cardona believes $20,000 for PELL eligible students will go a long way for someone paying under $125,000.

He also said efforts are underway at the Department of Education to propose an income-driven repayment.

Cardona believes this plan will cut in half the payments people are making for loans secured for their undergraduate degrees.

“For far too long it has af-

fected people, not allowing them to buy a home, or move on with their life, especially for Black and Brown people.

We know they have greater debt, they’re more likely to go into default.”

Cardona said the department is doing its best to address access to higher education as well as inequities.

Many borrowers signed up for Biden’s student loan forgiveness program online. The program is currently on pause as the issue faces the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, many borrowers wait, hoping for significant student loan relief.

“We feel very confident that we have the legal authority and it’s the right thing to do,” Cardona said.

“We’re not talking about helping rich people. We’re talking about helping middle-class people get back on their feet just like we did with small businesses.”

Mind your budget and grow your money

MONEY FROM B1

spending for one month so you have a clear picture of where your money is going. If you can’t track for a whole month, don’t worry— even a few days can be eye opening.

Wells Fargo offers My Spending Report, a valuable tool for savers for making tracking expense tracking less cumbersome.

Identify areas to cut back

After you know where your money is going, you can decide what you really need versus what you just want. First, put your spending into one of the three categories below then think about how you can modify a few of them.

• Fixed essential expenses—Necessary expenses that are the same every month. This includes your mortgage/rent, car payments, student loans and insurance.

• Variable essential expenses—Necessary

monthly expenses that might cost a little bit more or a little bit less each month. This includes things like gas, groceries, utilities and cell phone bills.

• Non-essential expenses—The other things you don’t necessarily need, such as eating out, going to the movies, daily trips to a coffee shop etc.

“Budgeting is not just a matter of watching your money and knowing how you spent it. I did that daily on my banking app and eventually it dawned on me that I had to be more strategic in tracking and saving money. I had to set goals,” explained Wells Fargo customer Michelle Fling.

Now review your “non-essentials” category. Where can you cut spending?

Consider expenses like, subscriptions, memberships, and shopping, dining out, electronics and entertainment.

For example, it’s easy to overspend on

CFPB seeks end

food. If you typically spend $100 on takeout, budget to spend less than $50 and put the other $50 into savings.

Establish an emergency fund equal to six weeks of your income.

Don’t be discouraged if you have no emergency savings yet. Start by saving a paycheck’s worth of income and build from there.

Once you’re ready to start cutting back, My Savings Plan® can help you track your savings progress.

Most importantly, create a budget you can live with.

Don’t be overly ambitious to reach that savings benchmark and develop a budget that in reality won’t work for you and may even deter you from continuing on.

After identifying areas to cut spending, you’ll want to create a budget that allows you to save weekly and or monthly, prefer-

ably both.

To make budgeting easier, use Budget Watch to set specific goals and get notifications when you’re nearing your spending limits. You will also be able to chart your monthly expenses with information taken from your actual spending history.

The good news is that African Americans for the most part survived this most recent financial crisis and we are coming out on the other side more confident in our ability to not only make ends meet, but to be more prudent in our spending and actually enjoy some of the fruits of your labor … and frugality.

(Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy all our customers’ financial needs and help them succeed financially. Wells Fargo perspectives are also available at Wells Fargo Blogs and Wells Fargo Stories.)

to hidden junk fees

New rule could put $9 billion back in consumers’ pockets

“In markets across the economy, junk fees have unfortunately become the norm,” noted Rohit Chopra, CFPB Director in announcing the proposed rule. “These junk fees aren’t subject to the normal forces of competition. They’re often charged for so-called services that a consumer never wanted and are set at levels far beyond the true cost. Junk fees inflate prices and chip away at monthly budgets by obscuring part of the price from comparison shopping, making it difficult for Americans to shop around.”

“When we asked people to submit their comments on and experiences with junk fees, we were inundated with stories from thousands of individuals about being charged fees for things that weren’t in their control, like in the case of surprise overdraft fees,” continued Chopra.

“Many Americans believe these fees are just plain wrong.”

The proposed rulemaking is based on earlier CFPB research released last year that found that in only one year, 2020, credit card companies charged $12 billion in late fees alone. Card interest rates generate a separate revenue

stream. Other key findings from this report found that cardholders in majority-Black areas paid more in late fees for each card they held with major credit card issuers in 2019. People in areas with the lowest rates of economic mobility paid nearly $10 more in late fee charges per account compared to people in

areas with the highest rates of economic mobility.  While acknowledging the Bureau’s earlier efforts to rein in high-cost overdraft fees, Nadine Chabrier, a Senior Policy Counsel with the Center for Responsible Lending says more must be done to protect consumers from other costly junk fees.

“These charges wreak havoc on household budgets,” said Chabrier. “We applaud President Biden for highlighting their harm… We are encouraged that the consumer bureau announced it will take additional steps, and we urge the bureau to place strong limits on the size and frequency of these fees.”  More support for eliminating

these budget-busting fees came from Congresswoman Maxine Waters, the current Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee, and its former Chair.

“I was pleased to hear President Biden call out junk fees by name, and double down on the Administration’s commitment to limit hidden fees and surcharges in a number of industries,” stated Waters on February 8, the day after the State of the Union Address. “[W]e have long helped lead the fight to shine a bright light on these types of harmful junk fees and have advanced legislation to ensure consumers are not nickel and dimed out of savings that could go towards buying a new home or starting a small business.”

“Thanks to the leadership of Director Chopra, the CFPB is helping to advance these efforts to put more money back into consumers’ pockets. I, and consumers across the country, can’t wait for this rule to be finalized as soon as possible”, Waters added.

(Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at Charlene.crowell@ responsiblelending.org.)

JUNK FEES FROM B1

Sankofa is a word in the Twi language of Ghana meaning “to retrieve” and also refers to the Bono Adinkra symbol represented either with a stylized heart shape or by a bird with its head turned backwards, while its feet face forward carrying a precious egg in its mouth. (Wikipedia).

There is a saying that if you keep doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result, it is a sign of insanity. Black people have not yet been able to shake off the chains of oppression put in place during slavery. People have been blinded by the occultation of our history. Yes, if we are not aware of how we make mistakes, we will keep making them. We need to be able to look backward in order to chart a forward course.

Sankofa is one of the most profound concepts that we can utilize to correct our situation in the Western world. Unfortunately, it is currently under siege. There are forces in the United States government that are trying to rob us of our legacy. Black people have made great contributions to the development of the United States. In fact, we have played a major role in almost every arena in spite of the evilest forces conceivable that have attempted to thwart our efforts to thrive in this country.

One of the most egregious examples of this is the control that certain local governments are attempting to exercise over what elements of Black history should be taught. Think for a moment: what would it be like if someone came to the United States and forcibly denied the American people access to their history? Imagine if the Declaration of Independence was forbidden reading; imagine what would happen if the Revolutionary War was not allowed to be taught.

This is precisely what is happening to Black people in parts of the United States today. People who don’t look like us are denying us access to our history. That history provides our Sankofa, because it is through actions of the past that can help us chart our future course. To deny us our history is to cut off a part of our ability to thrive; it can keep our younger generation from benefitting from the past. To thwart access to our history is to attack our future.

In Florida, what has been called a “laboratory of fascism,” the move is on full throttle to erase important African American history. Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis has set the bar low and has arrogantly made a decision as to what elements of Black history will be taught in schools. In addition, that stance is shutting off the ability of concerned White citizens to understand how this will impact them. A lot of them have no clue as to the atrocities committed by their ancestors against Black people, even though vestiges of that behavior continue up to this day! They can’t connect the dots of the toxic behavior that besets many Black communities to a legacy of White racism. They ignore the destruction of Black Wall Street; they may not know about the Black babies that were torn from the breasts of Black mamas and the consequent animal-like existence that many were forced to endure.

They look at the high rates of crime in Black communities with disdain, opining that the fault is in Black innate inferiority. They do not understand that the sordid history of oppression that continues to this day has damaged many Black souls resulting in damaged communities. Because of the history black-out many of them don’t have a clue about the part their ancestors have played in the attempted destruction of a people.

Actually, the focus should be placed on the phrase “attempted destruction,” because Black people have achieved success in multiple fields of endeavor far beyond what would be expected from a people who were so mistreated and maligned. Our successes have obscured the pain that many have endured, which contributes to the fact that many White people don’t understand that we have survived in spite of their attempts to erase Black contributions to America and to the world. When we look back, it becomes apparent that Sankofa is under siege among both Black and White people. The White attempt to deny Black history is also thwarting an understanding of White history! They are shooting themselves in the foot! We are in this together; we will sink or swim depending upon the ability of the enlightened of both races to push back on the ignorance forced on us by a certain group of White supremacists. A Luta Continua.

(Reprinted from The Chicago Crusader)

Rod Doss Editor & Publisher Stephan A. Broadus Assistant to the Publisher Allison Palm Office Manager

Johnson Sales Director Rob Taylor Jr. Managing Editor John. H. Sengstacke Editor

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—Among hikers and campers, and even among those who are simply logical thinkers, an old axiom provides the indisputable wisdom that, “If you don’t know where you are, you won’t know where you’re going.”  Stated another way, “Knowing where you are is the first step in successfully achieving a goal or objective.”  Anyone who has attempted land navigation in the outdoors understands the truth of these statements. If you look at a map without knowing where you are, it’s impossible to get to another location by design.  In that circumstance, only dumb luck will get you where you want to go!

That same logic can be applied to provide a clear picture of the dilemma that many of our youth (and a distressing number of adults) suffer from.

It is the foundation of the insidious plot of the likes of DeSantis, Youngkin, and scores of others who wish to mollify African Americans into a state of docile acquiescence by denying them a clear understanding of who they are and their complete story.  “If you don’t know who you are, you’ll never know who you can be.”  Dr. Carter G. Woodson, Father of Negro (Black) History, said it with different words, but with a clear understanding of that outcome. Denying Black people an understanding of their identity is as old as our victimization in enslavement.  It started on the docks of the Motherland where captives of many different tribes and languages were bound and kidnapped with the recognition that

they could not offer organized resistance without a common language—a common identity.  It worked then and its legacy has continued throughout our American experience. Efforts to maintain divisiveness within the Black community offer no surprises.  For decades, these efforts have been camouflaged with plausible deniability to refute claims of overt racism.  Now, brazenly and without shame, leaders of the Republican party announce their true intent to undermine an entire community by erasing the history of a people.

I should not have to explain how enraged I was to learn that DeSantis’ Florida Board of Education had reached the erroneous determination that Black History had no “significant educational value.”  If nothing else, the realities of the economic worth brought to a growing nation by a system of human enslavement should have educational value.  There are other essays that delve more deeply into the economics of enslavement, but the outline at History.com (https:// www.history.com/news/slavery-profitable-southern-economy) provides a clear picture of what we have meant to

what is really important to this nation

—the acquisition of wealth.

It has been offered by these White revisionists that the teaching of Black History should begin in the year 1970 for any substantive learning to occur.  Those of us born in the 40s, 50s, and 60s are dramatically aware of the scope of our history which would be eliminated.  Where then is Dr. King, Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, SCLC, the Black Panther Party, Mary McLeod Bethune, the Civil Rights Movement, Brown v. Board, Emmitt Till, the Tulsa Massacre, the Little Rock Nine, Charles Hamilton Houston, Daisy Bates, the thousands of nameless others who sacrificed life and limb for the freedoms denied by this country, and those who overcame what were designed to be insurmountable obstacles to freedom and success.

White America is caught in a web of irreconcilable differences.  Their discomfort with the truth is an obvious nexus.  While they profess a nation founded on principles of justice and equity, their history and current actions belie this notion.  They claim that no student/person should be made to feel uncomfortable with history, but I believe that to be a deception.  When the aim is the erasure of history, the real goal is the extermination of the spirit.

(Dr. E. Faye Williams is President of The Dick Gregory Society (thedickgregorysociety.org; drefayewilliams@gmail.com) and President Emerita of the National Congress of Black Women)

The Black Super Bowl and the challenge of

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—African

American history was celebrated at this year’s Super Bowl. It was the first time that two Black quarterbacks faced off against each other. John Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles and Patrick Mahomes played a good game, and the Chiefs won narrowly. The NFL is more than 100 years old. What took so long for it to reach this milestone?

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell trumpeted the historic moment when he gave a press conference on “The State of the League.” When asked why it took so long, he replied, “there are probably a variety of reasons, probably none of them good.” The NFL has a history of virulent racism. According to Dave Zirin, an MSNBC columnist, “only eight Black men have ever quarterbacked in a Superbowl.” And Colin Kaepernick, the courageous African American who took a knee to protest racism, has not yet found a place in the NFL.

The Black National Anthem, rousingly delivered by Sheryl Lee Ralph, was featured live at the Superbowl for the first time. The anthem was written 123 years ago by James Weldon Johnson, an NAACP official, and teacher. It was a family affair, with his brother John Rosamond Johnson composing the music to accompany the song. The Superbowl was, in some ways, a celebration of African American History.  But Black folks can’t celebrate our history with others offering resistance and backlash. The conservative Congresswoman Lauren Boebert twitted, “America only has ONE NATIONAL ANTHEM. Why is the NFL trying to divide us by playing multiple? Do football, not wokeness” Boebert and her sidekick

by Jesse Jackson

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—Joe Biden’s State of the Union will feature good news. He has much to report—record job growth, record low unemployment, inflation down, and new efforts underway to rebuild our infrastructure, move to renewable energy and start to bring jobs back home.

What he won’t say, however, is that the United States has fallen behind.

We are number one in the world in guns but trailing most industrial countries in basic social needs.

We are number one in military spending, arms exports, and conflicts abroad. We are number one in the number of guns, the number of gun deaths, and in prisoners per population.

According to the Social Progress Index, however, on 50 social progress indicators we are the only advanced industrial country to decline over the last nine years, and we rank now 28 of 163 countries measured.

We’re not even in the top 20 in nutrition and basic medical care (44th), in maternal mortality (73), in health and wellness (33) in personal safety (48, behind Bosnia and Serbia).

We’ve witnessed decline in water and sanitation, in shelter and housing, in basic and advanced education and in personal rights and inclusiveness since 2011. Our life expectancy, which has been declining, now ranks about 46th in the world.

As reported by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 14.5 percent of children are raised in

Julianne Malveaux

Commentary

Marjorie Taylor Green shamelessly and thoughtlessly carry the right-wing agenda, operating publicly without a shred of dignity. At the State of the Union Address last week, Taylor Green, clad in all white, including a white fur collar, should have worn a matching hat (or hood) to make herself clear.

Boebart’s Twitter racism generated nearly 92,000 likes, more than 10,000 retweets, and much attention. Her backlash to Black excellence is similar to the conservative backlash to truth and Black history. According to Sarah Schwartz of Education Week, 44 states have “introduced bills or taken other steps that would restrict teaching “critical race theory” or limit how teachers can discuss racism. Eighteen states, of this writing, have passed this pernicious legislation. More than 1600 books have been banned in 138 school districts in 33 states so far, as the momentum for ignorance is increasing. Among the banned books—Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye and Beloved; and Margaret Atwood’s, The Handmaiden’s Tale. This book-banning, history-ignoring climate has some teachers frightened and intimidated. In some school districts, teachers who mention race can be fined or incarcerated.

One teacher covered her books with plain book covers so students couldn’t see titles that might be perceived as

poverty. Eleven million families pay more than half their income in rent.

Twenty-eight million still lack health care. We are alone among advanced countries without a national paid leave policy, without a universal childcare system. We spend twice as much per capita as most industrial countries on health care and get far worse results.

With Republicans now a majority in the Congress, few think much will get done in Washington. After running up over $7 trillion in deficits under Donald Trump without a murmur, Republicans are suddenly up in arms about debt—although not so concerned that they are willing to raise taxes on the very rich. To date, their announced plans focus mostly on partisan investigations, and obstruction—plus threats to default on our debt which would savage the economy.

Biden should use his address to lay out a plan—and to call the Congress to act. We need to invest in children, so every child has a chance. Extending the Child Tax Credit to low-income workers and the poor would be a good first step.

We need to invest in workers.

National paid family and medical leave, funding for childcare and early learning, a comprehensive unemployment system, an increased minimum wage, empowering workers to organize—this and more are needed so workers share in the profits they help to produce.

Too many neighborhoods in our cities are blighted by poverty, violence,

“offensive .”Many of the banned books have themes that deal with sex and sexuality. All the books apparently tell a truth that conservatives can’t handle.

Legislators are passing laws that are vague and silly. In South Carolina, a proposed law would prevent teachers from discussing anything that creates “discomfort, guilty, or anguish on the basis of political belief .”Florida has passed similar laws, and its governor has been a lead proponent in limiting teacher speech around race matters. Sarah Huckabee, the new governor of Arkansas, said she didn’t want students being taught to “hate their country.” But many African Americans, despite the oppression our people have experienced, love our country

It is no surprise that Florida’s governor has attacked an Advanced Placement (AP) Black Studies class and says it cannot be taught in Florida public schools. He has created a national controversy and prevaricated his interactions with the College Board, the organization that developed the class. His lies are not unusual. It reflects the lies he’d like teachers to tell when he waters down American history.

Black history is American history. The history of enslavement, lynching, and Jim Crow isn’t pleasant, but it happened. The theme of this Black History Month is resistance, which Black folks must do economically, politically, and educationally. Black educators and our allies have work to do. We must teach the truth and tell the truth, or the entire nation will suffer.

(Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author, and Dean of the College of Ethnic Studies at Cal State LA.)

and despair. Police act as occupiers with tragic results, as we witnessed once more in Memphis. There’s talk of spending tens of billions in a Marshall Plan to rebuild Ukraine —but before we do that, we need a Marshall Plan to rebuild our own cities, to ensure safe water, affordable housing, public transport, good schools, public parks and more.

We need to strengthen our democracy. Make voter registration automatic. Pass basic ground rules for elections to make voting easier, not harder. Put limits on big money in our politics. Revive the Voting Rights Act to protect the right to vote.

We are rich enough to afford this— Congress simply chooses not to do it, too often because members are more responsive to their donors than their voters. America deserves better.

In his first two years, President Biden has launched a major turn in policy. He has discarded the failed bipartisan globalization policies that shipped jobs abroad. He has made the case for rebuilding America and for meeting the challenge of climate change. But a real change of direction requires action over a series of years. And it requires convincing Americans to support the change —over entrenched and powerful interests, and over our bitter partisan divisions. Biden’s speech offers an opportunity to make a clear and simple case for action—and give people a clear choice if the Congress refuses to act.

Help wanted: math and reading tutors

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—The latest test results from the Maryland State Department of Education for 2022 were released, and the report requires an “all hands on deck” response. My first reaction was one of total disbelief. Then came a sense of sadness, knowing the devastating consequences of what I had just read. It confirmed my previous understanding that Baltimore City Schools were in trouble, but the report highlights the depth of a situation that appears to be out of control. Baltimore City’s math scores were the lowest in the state. Only 7 percent of third through eighth graders tested proficient in math, meaning 93 percent could not do math at grade level. In 23 of the 150 Baltimore schools, zero students tested proficient in math. The list of 23 schools included 10 high schools, eight elementary schools, three Middle/ High schools, and two Elementary/Middle schools. It is not just an inconvenient problem; it has become a major crisis impacting the future of Black communities.

It should be noted that another 20 Baltimore City schools had just one or two students test proficient in math. Unfortunately, this is not a crisis isolated to Baltimore. The City of Chicago had similar results.

Based on data from the Illinois State Board of Education, no student can do math at grade level in 53 Illinois schools.

Lowered police standards, diversity, and shortages

In 2015, Seattle University had a panel discussion about race and policing. The panel featured conservative commentator Ben Shapiro and left-wing cultural critic Charles Mudede.

Shapiro stated that overzealous policing has a cost and a benefit. Unfortunately, the victims of overzealous policing bear the cost, but the cost doesn’t outweigh the benefit. Mudede dismissed Shapiro’s cost-benefit analysis and stated right-wingers reject affirmative action out of fear of Black incompetency, but the incompetence of White police officers was never mentioned.

Mudede’s attempt to expose that double standard fell on deaf ears.

However, in 2017, Dr. Alfred S. Titus Jr., a retired New York police detective and law enforcement consultant, wrote, “Once again, [there is] a proposal to lower police hiring requirements in attempts to increase the candidate pool in cities that are suffering in the area of police recruitment. In the latest attempt to raise recruitment, some cities and police departments are considering accepting candidates with minor drug and criminal offenses to become police officers … The fact that this is being considered reveals to me that either this discussion does not include police or is being decided by persons who have no knowledge [of] what it means to wear the police uniform.”

J. Pharoah Doss Check

It Out

Nichols. Nichols was a Black man who was 29 years old. Five Black Memphis police officers beat him so badly that he died in the hospital a few days later.

Loury stated that a lot of people on “the right” are pointing out that standards were lowered to recruit more Black police officers. The poor tactics deployed by the five Black officers that were charged with Nichol’s murder revealed the consequences of these lowered standards. Loury added that he found that argument distasteful but asked Moskos if the argument had merit.

Moskos stated that the video footage of Nichols’ beating revealed police brutality combined with poor policing. He just wasn’t sure if lowered standards were a contributing factor and couldn’t state for a fact if the argument had merit.

But what did Loury find so distasteful?

“Racism didn’t kill Tyre Nichols—moronic, poorly trained cops did.” The opinion writer took issue with CNN’s Van Jones, The Atlantic’s Jemele Hill, and filmmaker Bree Newsome Bass, who all claimed that the five Black officers who beat Nichols were trained to be anti-Black and reflected a racist police culture. The opinion writer said these individuals were completely insane to attribute five Black men killing a Black man to racism.

Instead, the reader should draw the conclusion that the five Black police officers were incompetent morons.

Another New York Post opinion writer asked: Why does police professionalism in some enclaves keep regressing? Look no further than diversity, equity, and inclusion. These arguments had no merit for Loury because of their racist undertones. However, it was hard not to get the impression that Loury didn’t want to dive deeper into this subject.

Why not?

Relaxing requirements for diversity when recruitment was at its peak and lowering standards to fill shortages are different issues and shouldn’t be conflated.

Recently, Glenn Loury, a Black conservative and podcast host, interviewed former Baltimore police officer and professor of criminal justice Peter Moskos about Tyre

David W. Marshall

Commentary

Of the 53 Illinois schools, 33 schools are in Chicago. The same data identifies 30 schools where not a single student can read at grade level; 22 are Chicago schools. Sadly, there is one Chicago high school where not even one student is proficient in math or reading. The school is in the Little Village section of Chicago, which is plagued by gang violence. The failure of educational systems is a nationwide crisis. The numbers do not lie, and they tell a very complex story. While we may become shocked by the discouraging numbers and statistics, each represents children whose lives and futures are seriously jeopardized. The crisis of poor student achievement involves separate school districts nationwide having similar challenges. Since everyone plays a part in a child’s education, it comes from multiple sources when breakdowns occur.

In some cases, it is the student, parent, teacher, school board member, school administrator, or teacher’s union representative. In other cases, it may be a lack of school funding, bad policy decisions, or government bureaucracy. While school districts debate the pros and cons surrounding “social promotion,” kids are given passing grades and promoted to the next grade level despite having limited or no ability to perform academically. How do these students ever academically catch up? Do they ever?

Often, social promotion becomes a school district policy rather than a teacher’s decision. There are so many dedicated and passionate teachers and administrators in our schools, but they can eventually become frustrated, overwhelmed, and burnt out. We can easily place blame on the two-year impact COVID-19 had on school systems, but student achievement failures were preCOVID issues. The pandemic worsened the crisis, but it didn’t create the problem. The students and teachers are the ones who are on the front line when it comes to education, but are they receiving the necessary support from outside of the classroom? Are students getting the needed support at home?

Marietta English, a former president of the Baltimore City Teacher’s Union, says poverty presents students with so many challenges that it can be difficult for them to keep up in school. She says without a support system, students will never make it.

“If you look at everyone who has succeeded who’s come from poverty there was someone there to support them and help them through this process,” said English. According to a Maryland Department of Agriculture Poverty Profiles report from 2018, the child poverty rate in Baltimore City was 33 percent. Rev. Jesse Jackson often reminded us to “Keep hope alive.” How do we, as a community, keep hope alive amid what appears to be a hopeless crisis? The support system English is referencing must come from outside the classroom. Teachers are often mandated to teach grade-level material to students years behind. Overall, students cannot catch up. In many cases, it must be accomplished outside the school despite not having parental support at home. The community must fill the void by providing more math and reading tutors. With the help of tutors, students can learn and catch up at their own pace, apart from the pressures of the classroom setting, giving a child some hope where there currently is none. The Maryland and Illinois reports are separate SOS distress calls to alert those in our Black and brown communities. Our Black churches, HBCUs, fraternities and sororities, nonprofit organizations, and businesses need to form partnerships with struggling schools by providing tutors in a crisis that will only worsen.

(David W. Marshall is the founder of the faithbased organization TRB: The Reconciled Body, and author of the book “God Bless Our Divided America.” He can be reached at www.davidwmarshallauthor.com)

It’s been a few weeks since a mess started boiling over in Florida with the rollout of the new AP African American Studies course, and no one involved is looking good: not the state Department of Education, not the College Board, and definitely not Gov. Ron DeSantis, who blasted the course publicly and pressured the College Board to water it down. Now DeSantis, pumped up by what he thinks is his victory over educators, is making noise about going after all AP courses in the state.

It’s sad and infuriating to see the adults behaving like bullies and cowards, pointing fingers and trading accusations, while the ones being hurt are kids. Not just Black kids, who have waited years for a college-level course like this, but all kids— who will be deprived of a chance to learn foundational concepts in modern Black history if these adults have their way.

The new course omits many contemporary Black thinkers and writers. The core program doesn’t cover essential issues like structural marginalization, intersectionality, mass incarceration, reparations or the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement. It’s impossible to say students are well-versed in African American studies if these topics are considered optional. It’s even more absurd to say these students have attained college-level mastery of the subject, which is what AP credit is all about.

And what gets erased next? Do we teach kids about Martin Luther King Jr., and not Malcolm X? Do we sideline Jesse Jackson?

The same thing Mudede tried to emphasize in 2015, which was poor policing by White officers, was never linked to incompetency. Now that five Black officers have made national headlines for police brutality, right-wing media outlets have headlines about incompetency and lowered standards.

One New York Post headline said:

Svante Myrick

Commentary

How about erasing Ruby Bridges, the little girl who was the first to integrate New Orleans schools? Ridiculous? Not at all: the far-right group Moms for Liberty really did try to ban a book about Ruby from classrooms, claiming it was too upsetting for kids to read about the White mob that harassed 6-year-old Ruby on her way to school.  College Board officials insist that Ron DeSantis’s pressure did not force them to make the changes they made in the AP African American Studies course, and I will give them credit for publicly pointing out the ignorance and political motivations on display at the Florida Department of Education. Regardless, the Board played right into DeSantis’s hands. And their decision to remove important material from the core portion of the course had the same effect in the end: kids don’t get exposed to it and their freedom to learn is shortchanged. All of us should demand that the College Board revise the curriculum to more accurately reflect the contemporary Black experience.

And at the same time, we should set our

Apparently, Alvin Davis, the former lieutenant in charge of recruiting in Memphis, told the Associated Press that the Memphis Police Department lowered its hiring standards in an effort to keep staffing levels high. This led to underqualified and inexperienced officers throughout the department. According to the New York Daily News, “Memphis police reportedly asked for waivers to add candidates with criminal records and cut down on guidelines requiring an officer to have previous police experience, military service, or college credit.” Davis said, “They would allow just pretty much anybody to be a police officer.” No matter how distasteful the racial undertones further inquiry into the lowered standards has merit.

sights on removing politicians like DeSantis. Because he is hell-bent on building his right-wing political brand, today’s battlefield in the Far Right’s war on education is Florida; but it won’t stop there. It will be fought in Virginia, and Texas, and states across the country. Ambitious politicians like DeSantis in Florida and Glenn Youngkin in Virginia smell opportunity in this environment. It’s up to us to use the power vested in us by our representative democracy to stop them.

Maybe because I have served in office myself and have spent many years mentoring young elected officials, I will always have an unshakable faith in the power of representative democracy to solve problems and improve lives. I really believe that whatever mess elected officials have gotten us into, voters and true public servants can get us out. Those of us who care about threats to education need to wield our power at the ballot box against anti-education politicians. Or run for office ourselves. It might be a seat on the school board, or a local legislature, or a state office. Or higher.

That’s what I hope will come out of this disaster in Florida: not just the ultimate defeat of truly terrible officeholders but the elevation of truly good ones, who get into public service because they see a wrong to right. People we can count on to make inclusive education and opportunity a reality for all students, because all students have that right.

(Svante Myrick is President of People For the American Way.)

It shouldn’t take a fiery crash and toxic spill to push action on railroad safety

by Ben Jealous

People around East Palestine, Ohio, have been warned not to run their vacuum cleaners.

That was the reality two weeks after a train derailment in the village of about 4,700 people near the border with Pennsylvania that damaged public health and the environment in ways that still aren’t fully known.   Pennsylvania’s health department has told residents that data from its air quality monitoring “do not indicate a potential for long-term health effects,” but if people choose to vacuum after their evacuation they should do so “small amounts at a time and take frequent breaks by walking outdoors.” As confusing as those messages may be, Ohioans have gotten even less information from that state’s government.

Five of the derailed cars contained nearly 1 million pounds of vinyl chloride, a toxic flammable liquid; other cars carried butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, and isobutylene. The spills from the wreck have left a long chemical plume moving down the Ohio River at about a mile an hour. The result has been at least 3,500 fish killed.

The train’s owner Norfolk Southern said it is removing contaminated soil at the crash site, which can leach toxic chemicals into the water and air, after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) raised questions.

The immediate need is to respond to make sure that harm to people, wildlife, and waters now and in the future are lim-

ited to the extent we are able. As a starting point, residents need clear, understandable answers about risks they face and support to which they are entitled. While federal authorities generally defer to state officials in disasters, the simmering mistrust caused by the strange odors residents say they smell, the soreness of their throats, and the aching in their heads seems to cry out for a different response.

The EPA and Transportation Department must ensure that Norfolk Southern meets its obligation to make things right.

The Sierra Club’s Ohio director Ericka Copeland captured it—“East Palestine and the surrounding communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania deserve full transparency from the EPA, Norfolk Southern, and state leadership…Residents deserve to be able to safely return to their homes and access drinking water without the risk of everyday activities like vacuuming exposing them further to these chemicals.”

Moving forward, we need to do more to protect people and places from hazardous materials that move in more than 2 million freight cars each year. To be fair, reports show that freight rail spills happen less often than spills from trucks or planes. But we know those trains don’t run through posh suburbs. They run through places like East Palestine, a working-class White village where median household income is about two-thirds the Ohio average. They are places that historically get overlooked.  The best news is we already know what

to do. While the cause of the Ohio derailment hasn’t been determined officially, reports indicate a wheel bearing in the car that caused the accident overheated; there are sensors for that we can require. Similarly, we can replace braking technology that dates back more than a century with newer brakes that even Norfolk Southern said cuts stopping distances by 60 percent.

Anyone who saw videos of the burning cars after the crash or the huge cloud of smoke when vinyl chloride was burned off to prevent an explosion may be shocked to learn that the wrecked train wasn’t designated a “high-hazard flammable train,” which would trigger additional safety steps and more notice to state and local officials. This is an easy step to take. These remedies have been proposed before. The railroad industry calls them too costly. But that claim must be weighed against nearly $200 billion in stock buybacks and dividends for the nation’s biggest rail companies since 2010 as they also cut their workforces.

We can start by restoring brake system and other safety rules rescinded during the Trump administration. Once we push for all these common-sense measures to protect ourselves and our neighborhoods, we should start asking another question —what was going to happen to all those toxic chemicals once they reached the railyard where they were headed?

(Ben Jealous is incoming executive director of the Sierra Club, the oldest and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the country.)

Florida is just the latest battlefield in right’s war on education

AVALON BOROUGH

PUBLIC WORKS SUPERINTENDENT

Public Works Superintendent, Borough of Avalon, Allegheny County – Resumes are currently being accepted by the Borough council for the position of Public Works Superintendent. The public works department has a $565K budget, 3 FT, 2 PT and seasonal employees. The Superintendent reports to the Borough Manager and plans, organizes and directs the operations of the department. Operations include MS4 storm water management, streets and infrastructure, parks, swimming pool, public facilities/grounds and care of associate vehicles and equipment. The Superintendent collaborates closely with the Borough’s contract engineering firm on all projects. Working with the Borough Manager and Public Works Committee of Council, the Superintendent plays a critical role in developing and implementing a long-term strategy for road, sewer, facility and other capital maintenance and replacement programs. The full job description can be viewed at www.boroughofavalon.org

Interested applicants should submit their application to info@boroughofavalon.org or Manager, Borough of Avalon, 640 California Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15202 no later than 4:00 pm, Friday, March 17, 2023.

The Borough of Avalon is an EOE.

MCKEES ROCKS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

NOW HIRING – McKees Rocks

Community Development Corporation is hiring the following:

Community Engagement Manager responsible for the strategic program development and administration of all activities related to engagement including planning/facilitation/marketing of outreach activities and events.

Executive Assistant to maintain Executive Director’s calendar; prepare reports; handle information requests; and other functions, such as minute taking, correspondence, scheduling/attending meetings, community/organizational event participation, etc.

In addition to filling critical roles, this is an opportunity for successful candidates to participate in community change by providing input into the ongoing strategic development of the Sto-Rox community.

Deadline: March 14, 2023. Learn more or apply: mckeesrocks.com/ employment-opportunities

SR. ASSOC ATTORNEYS - TAX ( MLTPL OPENINGS)

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney seeks Sr. Assoc Attorneys - Tax ( mltpl openings) in Pittsburgh, PA to provide legal anlss & prep rsrch-based memos w/ spec. focus on Int’l & Domestic Tax.

Reqs: JD from accredited law school & 3 yrs exp. as an Assoc Atty. Must also have PA Bar Admission & have graduated from or be enrolled in a Tax LLM (Master of Laws) prgm. Apply online at https://www.bipc.com/lateral-attorneys

FIRE LIEUTENANT

MT. LEBANON, PA

The Municipality of Mt. Lebanon will accept applications for the position of fire lieutenant beginning February 13, 2023. Deadline to submit an application, resume, certifications, and complete the on-line written exam will be May 12, 2023. This is a lateral entry supervisory position requiring substantial fire service knowledge, skills, and background. Job responsibilities include supervision of volunteer staff, fire apparatus operation, fire suppression, fire prevention, public education, rescue operations, and hazardous material and emergency medical response. Starting salary is $76,310.00 with excellent benefits and pension. To review requirements and apply, go to https://mtlebanon.bamboohr.com/ hiring/jobs/150.

Mt. Lebanon is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

APPLICATIONS ARE NOW BEING ACCEPTED FOR THE POSITION OF POLICE OFFICER - ALTOONA POLICE DEPARTMENT

Applications for Police Officer with the City of Altoona can be obtained from the Human Resources Department of City Hall Monday through Friday between 8:30 A.M. and 4:30 P.M. For additional information or an application, please visit www.altoonapa.gov.

Completed applications must be received in the Human Resources Department no later than Noon on Friday, March 3, 2023.

Human Resources Department 1301 12th Street, Suite 400 Altoona, PA 16601

The City of Altoona is an Equal Opportunity Employer

SENIOR CONTENT OPERATIONS MANAGER

Duolingo, Inc. has multiple openings for Senior Content Operations Manager in Pittsburgh, PA. Responsible for the following duties: Manage end-to-end localization/ transcreation/content creation program(s), ensuring smooth and scalable work with a team of contractors and vendors; Develop thorough plans and facilitate timelines: identify risks, solve for dependencies and ambiguities, mitigate roadblocks, and ensure timely and smooth project launches; Collaborate across internal teams (engineering, product, design) to contribute to the strategy to content tooling and ensure localization/ transcreation/content creation best practices are upheld to minimize downstream issues and decrease cost and time-to-market for the localized versions; Triage, vet, and route international bugs to stakeholders: review, prioritize, track progress and extrapolate product insights of issues that affect international content relevancy, quality, and functionality; Document content creation and localization workflows and identify gaps or inefficiencies in project management and internal tools and processes within and between teams and suggest improvements; Improve and optimize existing processes, tooling and workflows to help scale our courses and content; Work with Engineers, PMs and Designers to A/B test new processes and solutions to improve the quality of Duolingo’s localized content; Build use cases, code, debug and automate stored procedures and scripts to identify and monitor content issues and bugs within our app; Help hire and onboard contractors to ensure consistently exceptional content.

Reqs.: Bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent in Computer Systems Engineering, Computer Science or related field. Must have one (1) year of experience in database management systems. Must have knowledge of the following: (1)

C++; (2) C#; (3) Javascript; (4) SQL; (5) Microsoft SQL Server; (6) Oracle Database. Email resume to: jobs@duolingo.com with Job No. SrContOperMgr2023 and title

“Senior Content Operations Manager” in subject line.

SOFTWARE ENGINEER Bodo, Inc. (Pittsburgh, PA) to slv prblms in prgrmng sys & data infrstrctr w/sgnfcnt impct in lrge-scle entrprse clstr & cld cmpting envrnmnts. Dvlpng cre anlytcs infrstrctrs sftwre using ctting edge tchnqs frm cmplrs, HPC, dtbses, cld cmpting & other rlted flds; Dvlping intgrtns w/ vrs cld pltfrms & on-prmses data systms; Cntrbting to rlted opn-srce prjcts; Dvlping & dbging cmplx sys, espclly in C/C++ & Python; Lrning various sklls in cmpler dvlpmnt usng LLVM, prlll cmptng & HPC using MPI, data infrstrctre dvlpmnt using Kubernetes, HDFS, & wrkng w/ Python intrnls (using Numba & CPython); dsgng & dvlpng vrious ftres of the Bodo Cld Pltfrm & Bodo Cmplr Engne; Imprvng prfrmnce & enhnce cpblts of Bodo anlytcs cmple engne; Trging & dbgging issues in Bodo sftwre & prvding cstmer sprt; Wrkng w/ vrious tchnlgies such as Kubernetes, Helm, NestJS, AWS srvces, Python & TypeScript; & Mntning & imprvng CI/CD pplns of svrl prdcts. Master’s degree in Cmptr Scnc or Engrng. Mst knw (thru acad trnng or wrk exp) ASP reasoners, Python & Docker. Send resumes to careers@bodo.com

REGIONAL/ACUTE PAIN

ANESTHESIOLOGIST

– University of Pittsburgh Physicians seeks a Regional/Acute Pain Anesthesiologist to work in Pittsburgh, PA (Allegheny County). Diagnose, treat, and manage pain in perioperative patients and other patients in need of pain management medical care; review pre-procedure testing and conduct preoperative evaluation of patients and develop plans of care; administer anesthetics during medical procedures using local, spinal, or caudal methods; responsible for documenting all aspects of anesthesia care directly administered; examine patients’ medical history and use diagnostic tests to determine risk during surgical, obstetrical, and other medical procedures; prepare patients for surgery and monitor patients to counteract any adverse reactions or complications during the surgical procedure; coordinate care and multi-modal pain management plans for patients recovering from surgery and establish preventative health practices. Must have a Medical degree or equivalent; must have completed a residency in Anesthesiology; must have completed an ACGME fellowship in Acute Pain; must be Board certified or eligible for certification in Anesthesiology; must have a valid PA medical license. Apply by following these steps; visit http://careers.upmc.com and enter 230000H8 in the “Search

Keyword/Job ID” field and click Go. EOE/Disability/Veteran.

MT. LEBANON, PA POLICE OFFICER TESTING

MT. LEBANON POLICE DEPARTMENT will be conducting a physical agility and written exam for POLICE OFFICER on Saturday, March 25, 2023. Starting at $73,886 annually. Must be a U.S. citizen; 21 years of age at hire; bachelor’s degree from accredited college/university at hire; pass physical, written, oral exams plus a comprehensive background investigation. Full test requirements, description and application may be obtained at https://mtlebanon.bamboohr. com/careers/147. Deadline ending no later than 4:00 pm, March 16, 2023. Mt. Lebanon provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment based on competence, merit, performance, and business needs. We are committed to valuing the diversity of all individuals without regard to race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, or any other classification protected by law. Reasonable accommodations for the needs of otherwise qualified applicants with disabilities will be made upon request to the Human Resource Office at 412-343-3625 or bcross@mtlebanon.org.

LEGAL ADVERTISING Bids/Proposals

CITY OF PITTSBURGH

OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET ADVERTISEMENT

Separate and sealed Bid Proposals will be received electronically starting on February 16, 2023 for:

2023-IFB-018 -Traffic Signal Installation/Removal (CD)

Information on solicitations is available on the City of Pittsburgh website: http://purchasing.pittsburghpa.gov

Bid proposals are requested on behalf of the City of Pittsburgh. All bids must be submitted via the above website and all required documents must be provided or the bid proposal may be considered non-responsive. The contractor will be required to comply with all applicable Equal Employment Opportunity requirements for Federally Assisted construction contracts. The contractor must assure that employees and applicants for employment are not discriminated against because of their race, color, religion, sex or national origin. Attention is called to Executive Order 11246, to Section 3 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, 12 U.S.C. 1701U, and to the Section 3 Clause and Regulations set forth in 24 CFR, Part 135.

The Contractor will be required to comply with the following laws, rules and regulations:

NOTICE FOR PUBLICATION

In the court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, PA, Orphans Court Division, Estate of Nadine Beard, deceased. Case No. 0223-00582. Notice is hereby given that on January 26, 2023, a Petition was filed by Quincy Leonard to terminate the interests of the heirs and devisees of Nadinde Beard, deceased in the real estate located at 435 Rochelle St., Pittsburgh (30’th Ward), PA 15210 (County Tax Parcel No. 14-N-00207) and to determine that fee simple title be in Quincy Leonard. If no exceptions to the Petition are filled within 30 days of the date of this Notice, Quincy Leonard will seek an Order adjudging that Decedent’s title is in him.Daniel L. Haller, Attorney, Neighborhood Legal Services, 928 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Estate of O’TOOLE ARLENE N. A/K/A

O’TOOLE ARLENE Deceased of ROSS TOWNSHIP, NO. 00474 of 2023, Executor, Brian T. O’Toole, 117 Oesterle Ln, Pittsburgh, PA 15214, or to MICHAEL J. SALDAMARCO, ESQ., STE. 100, 908 PERRY HWY. PITTSBURGH, PA 15229

Estate of MICHAEL E. HOLLIS, Deceased of Pittsburgh, PA, NO. 01921 of 2022, Anna Hollis, Executor, 4051 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15224

Estate of LORI L. HOLLIS, Deceased of Pittsburgh, PA, NO. 01922 of 2022, Anna Hollis, Executor, 4051 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15224

Estate of RUTH WYNN, Deceased

All provisions of US Executive Order 11246 of September 24, 1965, as amended by US Executive Order 11375 and as supplemented in US Department of Labor Regulations (41 CFR, Part 60), and of the rules, regulations, and relevant orders of the US Secretary of Labor. Contractor shall comply with all applicable standards, orders, or requirements issued of the Clean Air Act (42 USC 1857 et. seq.), Section 508 of the Clean Water Act (33 USC 1368), Executive Order 11738, and Environmental Protection Agency regulations (40 CFR, Part 15).

Contractor shall comply with the Davis-Bacon Act the Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 276a to 276a-7) as supplemented by Department of Labor regulations (29 CFR part 5)

Procedures for compliance to these acts shall be as follows:

All specifications for construction contracts and subcontracts will contain the prevailing wage rates (as enclosed in this bid package) as determined by the Secretary of Labor in accordance with the Davis-Bacon Act, as amended (40 U.S.C. 276-a to 276-C-5) and provision that overtime compensation will be paid in accordance with the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act Regulations (29 CFR, Parts 5 and 1926). The contract provisions shall require that these standards be met.

Notice of Requirement for Affirmative Action to Ensure Equal Employment Opportunity (Executive Order 11246):

Bidder’s attention is called to the “Equal Opportunity Clause” and the “Standard Federal Equal Employment Specifications” set forth in 41 CFR Public Contracts and Property Management Part 60-4.3 Equal Opportunity Clauses.

Goals for minority participation: 18%

Goals for female participation: 7%

These goals are applicable to all construction work (whether or not Federal or Federally-Assisted) performed in the “covered area.”

As used in this notice, and in the contract resulting from this solicitation, the “covered area” is Pittsburgh SMSA (Allegheny, Washington, Beaver and Westmoreland counties).

The contractor shall comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1988, as amended, Section 109 of the Community Development Act of 1974, with Executive Order 11625 (Minority Business Enterprise) and Executive Order 12138 (Women’s Business Enterprise).

The Proposers will be required to submit the package of certifications included with the contract documents relating to Equal Employment Opportunity. Vendors submitting responses on federally funded projects must register on SAM.gov and provide proof of registration.

The City of Pittsburgh reserves the right to withhold the award of contract for a period of sixty (60) calendar days after the opening of bids.

The City of Pittsburgh reserves the right to reject any or all Proposals

Estate of WILLIAM A. LOWRY, Deceased of Rodi Road, Penn Hills, PA 15235, Estate No. 022207511 of 2022, Shavonne L. Lowry, 219 Rodi Road, Penn Hills, PA 15235 or to Rebecca J. Maziarz, Esq., Dickie McCamey & Chilcote, P.C., Two PPG Place. Suite 400, Pittsburgh, PA 15222

LEGAL ADVERTISING Legal Notices

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

The Office of the County Controller of Allegheny County, Room 104, Court House, Pittsburgh, PA, will receive separate and sealed Bids on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 A.M. until 2:00PM and FROM 10:00 A.M. until 11:00 A.M. prevailing local time, Wednesday, March 15, 2023, and a representative of the Department of Public Works will open and read the Bids in the Conference Room 1, County Court House, Pittsburgh, PA, one-half hour later, 11:30 o’clock A.M., for the following:

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS

LICK RUN REPLACEMENT CONTRACT

JEFFERSON HILLS BOROUGH & SOUTH PARK TOWNSHIP COUNTY PROJECT NO. LC02-0510

As a prospective bidder please note the following general Project information regarding Pre-Bid Information, Bidding Requirements, and Contract Conditions. See the Project Manual and Drawings for detailed information, responsibilities and instructions.

PRE-BID INFORMATION: View the Proposal, Specifications and Drawings at the Office of the Contract Manager, Room 504, County Office Building, Pittsburgh, PA. The non-refundable charge for the Proposal and a disc containing the Specifications and Drawings is $107.00 including sales tax. The Contract Manager will accept only check or money order to the “COUNTY OF ALLEGHENY” in that amount and WILL NOT ACCEPT

CASH OR EXTEND CREDIT.

Prospective bidders may request to have their bid documents mailed. An additional fee of $16.05 for handling costs for each requested proposal must be paid in advance. The fee must be received at the office of the Contract Manager prior to mailing of any documents.

Interested bidders planning to purchase bid documents or attend the public bid opening are advised to follow Self-Monitoring and Social Distancing guidelines when entering the Allegheny County Courthouse or County Office Building. Interested bidders should also be aware that when entering either the Allegheny County Courthouse or County Office Building, a face mask meeting the guidelines set by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, must be worn at all times.

BIDDING REQUIREMENTS: The County requires pre-qualification of bidders, including subcontractors, as specified in Section 102.01 of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Specifications, Publication No. 408, 2020 Edition, Change No. 4, Effective April 1, 2022 on this project. Submit bid on the supplied Bid Forms in accordance with the Instructions to Bidders and General and Supplementary Conditions; include the following documents with the Bid Form, ALONG WITH ONE COMPLETE

PHOTOCOPIED SET OF PROPOSAL:

• Bid Security - certified check or surety company bond on County’s form to the order of/or running to the County of Allegheny in the amount of five (5%) percent of the Bid as evidence that you, the Bidder, will accept and carry out the conditions of the Contract in case of award. The County will accept only bonds written by Surety Companies acceptable on Federal Bonds per the current Federal Register Circular 570. Federal Register Circular 570 is available for inspection in the Contract Office, Room 504, County Office Building, Pittsburgh, PA 15219.

• Bidder Certification of Pre-Qualification, Classification and Work Capacity.

• List of Subcontractors

• Statement of Joint Venture Participation

• MBE and WBE Goals Attainment Certification - (ONLY NECESSARY IF YOU CAN NOT MEET THE SPECIFIED MBE AND WBE GOALS)

• Work Sheet Required Amount Performed By Contractor (Non Federal Project)

• MBE/WBE Subcontractor and Supplier Solicitation Sheet

• MBE/WBE Subcontractor and Supplier Commitment Sheet

THE COUNTY WILL REJECT BIDS THAT DO NOT INCLUDE THE EXECUTED DOCUMENTS SPECIFIED ABOVE WITH THE BID FORM.

You may not withdraw your bid for a period of Sixty (60) days after the scheduled closing time for receipt of bids. The County Manager reserves the right to reject any and all bids or waive any informalities in the bidding. CONTRACT CONDITIONS: In accordance with the provisions of the “Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act” of August 15, 1961, P.L. 987, as Department of Labor and Industry, the prevailing minimum wage predetermination requirements as set forth in the Attachments apply to this Project.

The anticipated notice to proceed is April 24, 2023. The project completion date is to occur by May 25, 2024.

The County of Allegheny County hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, minority business enterprises / women business enterprises [MBE/WBE] will be afforded the full opportunity to submit bids on the grounds of race, sex, color or national origin in consideration for an award.

It is a condition of the bidding process/contract that all responsive bidders/ contractors shall follow the minority business enterprises/women’s business enterprises [MBE/WBE] procedures set forth in the project manual/contract documents.

Corey O’Connor Controller County of Allegheny

WILKINS TOWNSHIP

110 PEFFER ROAD, TURTLE CREEK, PENNSYLVANIA 15145

2023 PAVING PROGRAM

ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS

Wilkins Township (Owner) is requesting Bids for the construction of the 2023 Paving Program.

Bids will be received by Wilkins Township online via PennBID, until Thursday, March 23, 2023, at 11 a.m. local time. At that time the Bids received will be publicly opened and read.

The Base Project consists of milling and resurfacing approximately 20,600 sq yds of asphalt roadway. Alternate Bids will also be received for the milling and resurfacing of up to approximately another 7,000 sq yds of asphalt roadway, to be awarded at the Township’s discretion. Bids will be received for a single prime Contract. All documents and solicitation details are available online at no cost on PennBid –https://pennbid.procureware.com. Bids shall be accepted online through the PennBid Program. Prospective Bidders may issue questions only through the PennBid website. Additional bidding requirements are found in Section 00 21 13, “Instructions to Bidders”, of the Bidding Documents. All bidders must submit bid security of a Certified Check or Bid Bond in the amount of 10% of the Base Bid. All bids shall be irrevocable for 60 days after the bid opening date as provided by the Act of November 26, 1978 (P.L. 1309, No. 317), as amended by the Act of December 12, 1994 (P.L. 1042, No. 142)

ADVERTISEMENT Bids are hereby solicited for the Community College of Allegheny County, 800 Allegheny Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15233 on the following:

RFP 3141 - FURNISH AND INSTALL SECURITY CAMERAS - ALL COLLEGE LOCATIONS

Pre-proposal meeting and site visits: March 2, 3, 6, and 7, 2023.

Project Labor Agreement

Compliance Required.

Due date: 2:00 P.M. Prevailing

Time on Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Any bid or proposals received after this deadline will be considered as a “late bid” and will be returned unopened to the offerer. Proposals may require Bid Bonds, Performance Bonds, Payment Bonds, and Surety as dictated by the specifications. No bidder may withdraw his bid or proposal for a period of ninety (90) days after the scheduled closing time for receipt of bids.

The Board of Trustees reserves the right to reject any and all bids.

The Community College of Allegheny County is an Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and encourages bids from Minority/Disadvantaged owned businesses. For more information, contact Michael Cvetic at mcvetic@ccac.edu.

NOTICE TO BIDDERS EMSWORTH BOROUGH

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

Sealed Proposals will be received by Emsworth Borough at the Municipal Building, 171 Center Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15202 until 2:00

P.M. on March 8, 2023, to be publicly opened and read that day at 6:00

P.M. for: 2023 EMSWORTH BOROUGH ROAD PROGRAM

Base Bid

This project involves pavement maintenance of various streets in Emsworth Borough, including the following approximate quantities: 14,400 SY of 3.5” +/- Profile Milling; 14,400 SY of 1.5” 9.5mm Superpave Wearing Course; Base Repair; 2” 19 mm Superpave Binder Course; Bituminous Wedge Curb Replacement; Concrete Curb Replacement; Concrete Sidewalk Replacement; Manhole and Inlet Frame Adjustments and Replacement; Inlet Repair; Installation of ADA Handicap Ramps; Restoration of All Disturbed Areas; Traffic Control and Resident Notification.

Add Alternate Bid No. 1-Plumer Avenue

Approximately 2,700 SY of 3.5” +/- Milling and Paving; Traffic Control; Including Items in Base Bid; Resident Notification; and Restoration for Plumer Avenue.

Add Alternate Bid No. 2-Meadow Street and Grove Avenue

Approximately 1,200 SY of 3.5” +/- Milling and Paving; Traffic Control; Including Items in Base Bid; Resident Notification; and Restoration for Meadow Street and Grove Avenue.

Add Alternate Bid No. 3-Columbia Gas Restoration

Approximately 4,500 SY of 3.5” +/- Milling and Paving; Traffic Control; Including Items in Base Bid; Resident Notification; and Restoration. Proposals shall be delivered in a sealed envelope and clearly marked on the outside with the words “2023 EMSWORTH BOROUGH ROAD PROGRAM”.

All bidders shall be PennDOT pre-qualified and attach their PennDOT Pre-Qualification Certificates to the outside of the proposal envelope in order for it to be opened and read publicly. Anti-Collusion Affidavit is also to be submitted with the Proposal in order for the Proposal to be considered responsive. Copies of Drawings, Specifications, Instructions to Bidders, General Conditions, Forms of Proposals and Agreement are on file and open to public inspection at the office of The Gateway Engineers, Inc., 100 McMorris Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15205-9401 where sets of said documents may be obtained upon payment of $75.00 per set. No refund will be made for the return of any documents. An additional $20.00 will be required for each set of plans if they are to be mailed.

Pennsylvania Prevailing Wages must be paid on this contract. Proposals to receive consideration must be accompanied by a Certified Check or Bidder’s Bond from a Surety Company authorized to do business in Pennsylvania, made to the order of Emsworth Borough in an amount equal to ten percent (10%) of the total amount of the Proposal as a guarantee that, if the Proposal is accepted, the successful Bidder will enter into an Agreement within 15 days after Notice of the Award of the Contract.

All Proposals must be in the hands of Emsworth Borough, 171 Center Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15202, by 2:00 P.M. prevailing time, March 8, 2023, and will be opened and read publicly on March 8, at 6:00 P.M

The Proposals must be made to Emsworth Borough, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and shall remain firm for a period of sixty (60) days. No Bidder may withdraw his Proposal during the sixty (60) day period without forfeiting his Bid guarantee.

Performance, Maintenance, and Labor and Material Payment Bonds, along with Public Liability and Property Damage Certificates of Insurance in the amounts specified, as well as Certificates of Workman’s Compensation must be filed with the executed Agreement upon acceptance of the Proposal from the successful Bidder.

The Owner reserves the right to reject any or all Bids, or any part thereof, for any reason, and also reserves the right to waive any informality therein.

Bidders are advised that the Borough will award the contract to the lowest responsible, responsive, and Qualified Bidder based on the total bid submitted. However, Bidders are advised that the Borough expressly reserves the right to reject all bids, and specifically reserves the right to award to the lowest responsible, responsive and Qualified Bidder a contract for all or any portions of the work listed in the Proposal, and in awarding a contract for less than the total work listed, or less than all portions of the work listed, the contract price will be determined from the total quantities for each item listed and the unit price bid for each item listed.

Cathy Jones Borough Secretary

OFFICIAL ADVERTISEMENT

THE BOARD OF PUBLIC EDUCATION OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PITTSBURGH

Sealed proposals shall be deposited at the Administration Building, Bellefield Entrance Lobby, 341 SouthBellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15213, on March 7, 2023, until 2:00 P.M., local prevailing time for:

Pgh. CAPA

Replace EM Generator General and Electrical Primes Project Manual and Drawings will be available for purchase on February 13, at Modern Reproductions (412488-7700), 127 McKean Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15219 between 9:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. The cost of the Project Manual Documents is non-refundable. Project details and dates are described in each project manual.

The Courier is THE VOICE of Black Pittsburgh.

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH INVITATION FOR BIDS (IFB) FOR SITE EROSION ABATEMENT AUTHORITY WIDE

IFB#300-09-23

The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) hereby requests bids from qualified Firms or Individuals capable of providing the following service(s):

Site Erosion Abatement Authority Wide

IFB#300-09-23

The documents will be available no later than February 21, 2023 and signed, sealed bids will be accepted until 9:00 AM on March 14, 2023 The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh will only be accepting physical bids dropped off in person from 8:00 AM until the closing time of 9:00 AM on March 14, 2023 in the lobby of 100 Ross St. Pittsburgh, PA 15219. Bids may be uploaded to the Authority’s online submission site, the link is accessible via the HACP website and within the IFB. Sealed bids may still be mailed via USPS at which time they will be Time and Date Stamped at 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. Parties or individuals interested in responding may download a copy of the Solicitation from the Business Opportunities page of www.HACP.org. Questions or inquiries should be directed to:

Mr. Kim Detrick Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Department 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-643-2832

A pre-submission meeting will be held via Zoom meeting; on March 2, 2023 at 9:00 AM. Please see meeting information below: Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 848 4478 7422 Passcode: 290486 +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C)

The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh strongly encourages certified minority business enterprises and women business enterprises to respond to this solicitation. HACP has revised their website. As part of those revisions, vendors must now register and log-in, in order to view and download IFB/ RFPs documentation.

Caster D. Binion, Executive Director Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh HACP conducts business in accordance with all federal, state, and local civil rights laws, including but not limited to Title VII, the Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act, The PA Human Relations Act, etc. and does not discriminate against any individuals protected by these statutes.

CLASSIFIEDS GET RESULTS!

COURIER CLASSIFIEDS

NOTICE IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

Notice is hereby given to the following persons, their heirs, successors or assigns, and to all persons whatsoever, that the City of Pittsburgh, by Celia B. Liss, Assistant City Solicitor, 328 City County Building has petitioned the Court of Orders quieting title to the following tax acquired real estate, pursuant to Act No. 171, approved December 11, 1984.

GD –2023-001750 CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs Geneva Dennis; Allegheny County Economic Development Dept-RAAC Liens; Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh; their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents 25th Ward, Pittsburgh 236 E. JEFFERSON ST. GEORGE LEDLIE SUB DIVISION PLAN PARTS 60-61. Lot 15 x 42 JEFFERSON STREET.GEORGE LEDLIE SUB DIVISION PLAN PART 60. LOT 15X40 JEFFERSON STREET. Block & Lot 23-F-131. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.ALL ROADS, PUBLIC OR PRIVATE, AFFECTING THE PREMISES. ALL MATTERS THAT MAY APPEAR IN THE GEORGE LEDLIE’S PLAN BOOK VOLUME 1, PAGE 99.

GD –2023-001772

CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs

Harry Jacobs; Sadie Jacobs; Commonwealth of PA Inheritance Tax Division; PA Attorney General; National Tax Funding; their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents 27th Ward, Pittsburgh Lot 60 X Avg. 69x 40 rear Eckert St. Cor. McClure. Tri Lot 9.11 x 25 x 31 T.A. Point cor. California & McClure Ave. Block 44-C, Lot 235. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.TITLE TO THAT PORTION OF THE LAND LYING IN THE BED OF ANY PUBLIC OR PRIVATE ROADS IS SUBJECT TO PUBLIC AND PRIVATE RIGHTS THEREIN.

GD –2023-001773 CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs US Department of Veterans Affairs; Veterans Affairs Administration; United States Attorney; their heirs, successors, assigns and Respondents 13th Ward, Pittsburgh 0 Silverdale St/ Samuel R Rush Plan 105-106 Lot 50 x 100 in all Silverdale St. Block & Lot 175-C189 ALL ROADS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE AFFECTING PREMISES AND THE RIGHTS OF OTHERS THEREIN. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.

GD –2023-001774 CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs

George P. Maykranz; PA Attorney General; Allegheny County Courthouse -Criminal Division; PA Department of Revenue; National Tax Funding; Caulis Negris; their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents 26th Ward, Pittsburgh 2802 Perrysville Ave. Parts 16-17. Lot 30 x 108 Perrysville Avenue. 2 ½ Story Frame House Block & Lot 77-P-222. Subject to covenants and restrictions, setback lines, easements, roads, rights of way and conditions appearing on a plat map. All roads public and private affecting premises and the rights of others therein. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.

GD –2023-001779 CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs

Edward Smigiel; Mary Kay Smigiel; Sanford E. Cohen; Eureka Federal Savings and loan association; Allegheny County Economic Development Dept. – RAAC Liens; their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents 15th Ward, Pittsburgh Hazelwood Avenue. Pollitt Plan Part 2. Lot = 3.62 x 164.85 x 21.71 x 72.53 x 16.53 x100. Block & Lot 55-H-311-001. All roads, public or private, affecting the premises. SUBJECT TO ALL MATTERS shown on the Pollitt Plan of Lots, as recorded in the Recorder’s Office of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania in Plan Book Volume 114, Page 58. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.

GD –2023-001792

CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs

Mabel E. Wilson; National Tax Funding; PA Attorney General; Caulis Negris; Commonwealth of PA- Inheritance Tax Division; their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents. 13th Ward, Pittsburgh 7432 Race Street. Homewood Driving Park Plan 308. Lot 25 x 93 Race Street. 2 ½ Story Brick House-7432. 1 Story Cement Block Garage Block & Lot 174-L-14. Title to that portion of the Land lying in the bed of any public or private roads is subject to public and private rights therein. Rights, Public and Private, in a 20 feet wide alley; subject to the proportionate part of the expense of keeping alley in good order and repair. Ownership of alley not insured. Legal operation and effect of all matters including, but not limited to, applicable easements, notes, setback lines, and conditions relative to Homewood Driving Plan as set forth in Plan Book Volume 17 pages 48 and 49

GD –2023-001821

CITY OF PITTSBURGH Vs

Robert Kleekpo; Alla Kleekpo; Frances V. Walls; Their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents. 5th Ward, Pittsburgh 3362 Webster Ave. Elizabeth Herron Plan 28 lot X 100 Webster Ave Block & Lot 26-N-89.

SUBJECT TO ALL MATIERS shown on the Plan as recorded in the Recorder’s Office of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania in Plan Book Volume 4, Page 279. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.

GD- 2023-001828

CITY OF PITTSBURGH vs

Donna M. Hamm; their heirs, successors, assigns and respondents 13th Ward, Pittsburgh 7127 Race Street. Homewood Driving Park Plan Parts 408-409. Lot 31 x 93 Race Street 2 ½ story brick house-7127 Block & Lot 174-E-92. Subject to all matters shown on the Plan as recorded in the recorder’s office of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania in Plan Book Vol. 17 Pages 48 and 49. SUBJECT TO ALL ADDITIONAL EASEMENTS, ENCROACHMENTS, AGREEMENTS, ETC. OF RECORD.

WHEREUPON the Court granted a rule on the aforesaid persons, and all persons, whatsoever, to appear and show cause within thirty days from this notice why the title of the CITY OF PITTSBURGH to the aforesaid real estate should not be adjudicated and decreed valid and indefeasible as against all mortgages, ground-rents, rights, title, interest in or claims against the aforesaid real estate, and to further show cause why the sale of the said real estate should not be made free and clear of all the aforesaid claims whatsoever.

CELIA B. LISS ASSISTANT CITY SOLICITOR CITY OF PITTSBURGH

COURIER CLASSIFIEDS GET RESULTS!

OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY

PRT Electronic Proposals will be received online at PRT’s Ebusiness website (http://ebusiness.portauthority.org). Proposals/bid submittals will be due 11:00 AM on March 9, 2023 and will be read at 11:15 AM., the same day through your web browser via Microsoft Teams video conferencing, for the following:

Electronic Proposal - Ebusiness website (http://ebusiness.portauthority.org)

BID NUMBER BID NAME

1 B22-11-112R Road Ops Laptops - Mounts

2 B23-01-05A LRV Wheel Flange Lubricator Sticks

3 B23-02-10A Transit Advertising Installation Services

4 B23-03-11A Air Oil Coolant Transmission & Fuel Filters

5 REV23-02-12A Waste Oil Removal

To join the bid opening through Microsoft Teams meeting on your computer, mobile app or room device Meeting ID: 266 902 650 345

Passcode: webj3N

Or call in (audio only)

412-927-0245

Phone Conference ID: 223 479 140#

No bidder may withdraw a submitted Proposal for a period of 75 days after the scheduled time for opening of the sealed bids.

A Pre-Bid Conference will be held via tele-conference on each of the above items at 10:00 AM, February 22, 2023 as well as through your web browser via Microsoft Teams video conference.

To join the pre-bid meeting through Microsoft Teams on your computer, mobile app or room device

Meeting ID: 262 541 887 775

Passcode: fF9W4B

Or call in (audio only)

412-927-0245

Phone Conference ID: 655 174 990#

Attendance at this meeting is not mandatory, but is strongly encouraged. Questions regarding any of the above bids will not be entertained by the PRT within five (5) business days of the scheduled bid opening. These contracts may be subject to a financial assistance contract between Port Authority of Allegheny County d.b.a. PRT and the United States Department of Transportation. The Contractor will be required to comply with all applicable Equal Employment Opportunity laws and regulations. Contractor is responsible for expenses related to acquiring a performance bond and insurance where applicable. All items are to be FOB delivered unless otherwise specified. Costs for delivery, bond, and insurance shall be included in bidder’s proposal pricing.

Port Authority of Allegheny County d.b.a. PRT hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively insure that in regard to any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, disadvantaged business enterprise will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, or national origin in consideration for an award.

The Board of PRT reserves the right to reject any or all bids.

ADVERTISEMENT THE TOWN OF McCANDLESS ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

Sealed Bids will be received by THE TOWN OF McCANDLESS, Department of Public Works, 9957 Grubbs Road, Wexford, PA 15090, for the following:

– Paving of various streets to include the following approximate

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) FOR JUST IN TIME INVENTORY SUPPLIERS RFP#850-07-23

The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) hereby request proposals from qualified Firms or Individuals capable of providing the following service(s):

Just In Time Inventory Suppliers

The documents will be available no later than February 13, 2023 and signed, sealed proposals will be accepted until: 9:00 AM on March 9, 2023. The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh will only be accepting physical proposals dropped off in person from 8:00 AM until the closing time of 9:00 AM on March 9, 2023 in the lobby of 100 Ross St. Pittsburgh, PA 15219. Proposals may be uploaded to the Authority’s online submission site, the link is accessible via the HACP website and within the RFP. Sealed proposals may still be mailed via USPS to the address referenced in the RFP at which time they will be Time and Date Stamped. Parties or individuals interested in responding may download a copy of the Solicitation from the Business Opportunities page of www.HACP.org. Questions or inquiries should be directed to:

James Harris Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Department 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-643-2915

A pre-submission meeting will be held via Zoom meeting; on February 21, 2023 at 9:00 AM. Please see meeting information below:

Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 827 3192 3924 Passcode: 798130 +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C)

The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh strongly encourages certified minority business enterprises and women business enterprises to respond to this solicitation. HACP has revised their website. As part of those revisions, vendors must now register and log-in, in order to view and download IFB/ RFPs documentation.

Caster D. Binion, Executive Director Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh HACP conducts business in accordance with all federal, state, and local civil rights laws, including but not limited to Title VII, the Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act, The PA Human Relations Act, etc. and does not discriminate against any individuals protected by these statutes.

ADVERTISEMENT

Sealed proposals will be received by the Borough of Avalon of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania through the Quest Construction Data Network (QuestCDN) at www.questcdn.com until 11:00 AM and opened at 11:00 AM prevailing time via virtual conference on April 4, 2023 for:

CONTRACT NO. 23-R01

2023 ROADWAY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM

Approximately 150 s.y. (Mill, 1 ½” Wearing)

All Bids must be in the hands of Jeff Schoeneman, Superintendent of Public Works, not later than 10:00 A.M., prevailing time, Wednesday, March 29, 2023, and will be publicly opened and read at that time in The Town of McCandless Public Works Building located at 9957 Grubbs Road, Wexford, PA 15090. Specifications may be obtained at the Town of McCandless, Department of Public Works Office, 9957 Grubbs Road, Wexford PA 15090. Bids shall be delivered in a sealed envelope and clearly marked on the outside with the words “Town of McCandless 2023 Paving Program.”

Bids to receive consideration must be accompanied by a Certified Check or Bidder’s Bond from a Surety Company authorized to do business in Pennsylvania, made to the order of THE TOWN OF McCANDLESS, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pennsylvania in an amount equal to ten percent (10%) of the total amount of the Bid as a guarantee that, if the Bid is accepted, the successful Bidder will enter into an Agreement within 15 days after Notice of the Award of the Contract.

All bidders must be PennDOT pre-qualified and meet the work classification codes of E, F, and F1. All bids submitted must have the Contractor’s valid pre-qualification certification attached to the outside of the bid or it will be rejected.

A Non-Collusion Affidavit must accompany each bid.

The Bids must be made to The Town of McCandless, and shall remain firm for a period of sixty (60) days. No Bidder may withdraw his Bid during the sixty (60) day period without forfeiting his Bid guarantee except as permitted by law.

Prevailing Wages are required to be paid on this project.

Performance and Labor and Material Payment Bonds, along with Public Liability and Property Damage Certificates of Insurance in the amounts specified and with the Town of McCandless identified as an additional insured, as well as Certificates of Workmen’s Compensation must be filed with the executed Agreement.

The Town reserves the right to reject any or all Bids, or any part thereof, for any reason, and also reserves the right to waive any informality therein.

Jeff Schoeneman Superintendent of Public Works

Scope of work generally consists of approximately 2,100 square yards of roadway milling/profiling; Superpave WMA binder course, 1½” Superpave WMA wearing course; base repair; structure adjustments; add alternates for additional roadway improvements; and all necessary appurtenances for said construction on various roadways in the Borough of Avalon.

All bidders are required to buy the Bid Documents in PDF format for a non-refundable deposit of $100.00 from QuestCDN using project number 8394397. Contact QuestCDN Customer Support regarding membership registration, downloading and working with digital project information at 952-233-1632 or info@questcdn.com. Any technical questions regarding the bid documents are to be directed to LSSE.

Pennsylvania prevailing wage rates apply. Proposals must be upon the forms furnished by the Borough. The bid must be accompanied by a certified check or bid bond in the amount of ten percent (10%) of the bid, made payable to Borough of Avalon.

The Borough reserves the right to reject any or all proposals and to waive any informalities in the bidding. No bid may be withdrawn for ninety (90) calendar days after the scheduled time for receipt of bids.

Attention is directed to the fact that procurement is subject to all requirements of the Pennsylvania “Steel Products Procurement Act, Act No. 1978-3” ; and for Contract value exceeding $25,000, the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act (Act of 1961 P.L. 987), and The Public Works Employment Verification Act (July 2012) apply. Borough of Avalon Lorraine Makatura, Manager

2023 City League Basketball Championships

Allderdice takes boys title; Obama wins girls title

ALLDERDICE BOYS...CHAMPS OF THE CITY LEAGUE! (PHOTO BY MERECEDES J. WILLIAMS)

OBAMA ACADEMY DEFEATED ALLDERDICE, FEB. 19, TO CLAIM THE GIRLS’ TITLE. (PHOTO BY WILLIAM MCBRIDE)

ALLDERDICE IS BACK ON TOP! WINNING THE CITY LEAGUE BOYS’ TITLE. (PHOTO BY WILLIAM MCBRIDE)

OBAMA ACADEMY DEFEATED ALLDERDICE, FEB. 19, TO CLAIM THE GIRLS’ TITLE. (LEFT PHOTO BY WILLIAM MCBRIDE, BOTTOM PHOTO BY MERECEDES J. WILLIAMS)