3.29.23 NPC

Michelle Gainey, other panelists offer ‘honest’ advice on navigating the workplace

by Rob Taylor Jr.

Courier Staff Writer

Oftentimes, being a woman in the workplace is tough.

People doubt your abilities. People want to pay you less. People don’t want to give you the promotion.

Pittsburgh’s Job Corps hosted a “Women at Work” open house and panel discussion on March 10, and the young women ages 1624 received a mighty dose of honesty from the women on the panel.

Those women included Pittsburgh’s First Lady, Michelle Gainey, who brought the realness.

“I’ve faced challenges in most places that I worked,” she told the students. “What I’ve learned is how to do me. What I’ve grown into is how to carry me and how to own me so I can go in a space, and sit at a table and hold my head high and use my voice so that you can still clearly hear me.

It’s not easy. Don’t always be quick to speak, but be quick to pay attention, watch with your eyes and listen with your ears, and take every experience, every interaction, and think about it, because that’s how we all grow.”

Gainey then told the students that she once worked a job, “where I had to go outside and walk around the building. I had to put my earphones in my ears and I had to get some gospel music going, and call my husband or my bestie, so I (wouldn’t) go back in my job and lose my mind.”

The Job Corps students were all ears after that story.

“But it took me a long time to get there,” Gainey added. “It took me a lot of watching other people make those mistakes and flip a table, cuss somebody out, lose their job...I watched a young lady get

Public art vs. property rights: Artist and property owner face off over a mural in Wilkinsburg

by Betul Tuncer

PublicSource

On a Sunday around September of last year, just as Erica Givner’s husband was getting ready to throw something into a dumpster, local muralist Kyle Holbrook parked in a clearing on the side of Givner’s property. According to Givner, Holbrook had paint in the back of his truck and was preparing to “tag” a mural on the side of her building, and told her husband that they couldn’t touch his artwork without his permission.

The encounter took place some time after Givner painted over one of Holbrook’s old murals

that was on her recently renovated building at the intersection of Wood and Franklin streets in Wilkinsburg.

Coincidentally, the police happened to pass by during the encounter and helped manage the dispute. The police took Holbrook’s information down and he left, saying that the property owners will be “getting papers in the mail.”

While the murals were painted more than a decade ago, Holbrook is citing the Visual Artists Rights Act and contending that the property owner can’t modify his murals in any way—even if it means

ERICA GIVNER stands in front of Vision Towards Peace, on Wood Street in Wilkinsburg on Feb. 15. By the time her renovations and exterior modifications were complete, much of the original mural on 613-619 Wood St. was damaged, so Givner decided to paint a fresh coat of paint on the building. (Photo by Amaya Lobato-Rivas/PublicSource)

This Week In Black History A Courier Staple

MARCH 29

1981—Dr. Eric Williams , prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, dies in Port of Spain at the age of 79. Williams was a historian and his classic work was “Capitalism and Slavery.”

• MARCH 30

Trump ramps up attack on Manhattan DA with violent imagery and call for ‘death’ and ‘destruction’

by Stacy M. Brown

NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

Former President Donald Trump has ramped up the rhetoric and the threats as potential criminal charges loom in New York, Georgia, and Washington.

Trump took to his Truth Social platform and posted a photo of him swinging a bat to the head of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

He also threatened that his anticipated arrest would lead to “death and destruction.”

“What kind of person can charge another person, in this case a former President of the United States, who got more votes than any sitting President in history, and leading candidate

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(by far!) for the Republican Party nomination, with a Crime, when it is known by all that NO Crime has been committed, & also known that potential death & destruction in such a false charge could be catastrophic for our Country? Why & who would do such a thing? Only a degenerate psychopath that truly hates the USA!” Trump wrote. Then in all capital letters, Trump continued his tirade:

“EVERYBODY KNOWS I’M 100% INNOCENT, INCLUDING BRAGG, BUT HE DOESN’T CARE. HE IS JUST CARRYING OUT THE PLANS OF THE RADICAL LEFT LUNATICS. OUR COUNTRY IS BEING DESTROYED, AS THEY TELL US TO BE PEACEFUL!”

A week before, Trump predicted that authorities from New York would arrest him, however, that never happened.

Bragg’s office said Trump simply misled the public about an imminent arrest.

“We will not be intimidated by attempts to undermine the justice process, nor will we let baseless accusations deter us from fairly applying the law,” Bragg said through a spokesperson. Bragg, 49, maintained that no one is above the law, and everyone receives equal treatment.

“In every prosecution, we follow the law without fear or favor to uncover the truth,” his statement continued.

“Our skilled, honest, and dedicated lawyers remain hard at work.”

Trump’s social media attack on Bragg could reveal the frustrations and even the concern he might possess over all of the legal problems he currently faces.

Bragg’s case, in which the former President allegedly paid hush money to porn star Stormy

Daniels and committed campaign finance crimes, is just the tip of the iceberg for the bombastic Trump.

Most legal experts believe Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fani Willis might have a more serious case.

A special grand jury disbanded in January after reportedly recommending charges that include obstruction, bribery, and interfering with a presidential election.

Additionally, a Special Counsel’s investigation into Trump allegedly mishandling classified documents at his Florida home has amped up with a federal judge ordering the former President’s lawyer to testify.

Finally, the Congressional committee that investigated the January 6 insurrection has recommended serious charges against Trump to the U.S. Department of Justice. Those charges could include treason.

“It would be a travesty of justice,” Mississippi Democratic Congressman Bennie Thompson said if Trump isn’t prosecuted by federal authorities for his role in the insurrection.

“Nobody is above the law, not even the President of the United States,” said Thompson, who chaired the commission.

“What we saw after interviewing more than 1,000 people – the majority of who identify with the Republican Party – we are convinced that whatever happened, happened because of one person. So, we are clear in our recommendation.”

1870—The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is ratifie d giving Blacks the right to vote. Actually, it gave Black males the right to vote. It would take the Suffrage Movement and another 50 years before women (Black and White) had full voting rights. But even in the case of Black males, the “right” to vote only lasted briefly. With the end of Reconstruction, “Jim Crow” laws were passed throughout the South, which in effect took away the right of Blacks to vote despite the Constitutional guarantee. African Americans did not achieve full voting rights in this country until the mid-1960s.

• MARCH 31

1741—Black rebellion hysteria grips New York. A series of mysterious fires and reports of slaves plotting rebellion sweep New York. The hysteria lasts through April. Thirty-one alleged slave plotters and five White sympathizers were hanged.

1931—Cab Calloway recorded “Minnie the Moocher”—the first jazz album to sell more than one million copies.

1948— Labor leader A. Phillip Randolph issues a threat before the Senate Armed Services Committee. He declares that unless more is done to end segregation and discrimination in the military, he would launch a campaign encouraging Black youth to employ civil disobedience to resist the draft. His threat helps to bring an end to a host of discriminatory practices in the U.S. armed forces.

1980— Olympic legend Jesse Owens dies at 66 in Tucson, Ariz. Owens won four track and field gold medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany, embarrassing German leader Adolph Hitler and undermining his ideology of White Aryan superiority.

• APRIL 1

1868—Hampton University is founded during Reconstruction in Hampton, Va. The school is now one of the leading Black educational institutions in America.

1950—Surgeon Charles Drew dies at 45 in an automobile accident near Burlington, N.C. Drew developed the concept of a blood bank for storing large amounts of plasma. Anyone who has ever received a blood transfusion is indebted to Dr. Drew. He had dedicated his life to insuring that increased scientific knowledge actually led to the betterment of human life. One of his most frequently repeated quotes: “There must always be the continuing struggle to make the increasing knowledge of the world bear fruit in [the form of] increased understanding and the production of human happiness.”

1984— Sensational, Washington, D.C., born R&B singer Marvin Gaye is shot and killed by his father during an argument. Gaye was 38— just one day short of his 39th birthday. The senior Gaye later died of pneumonia. Gaye helped to shape the sound of Motown Records in the 1960s with a string of hits, including “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)” and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”, and duet recordings with Mary Wells and Tammi Terrell, later earning the titles “Prince of Motown” and “Prince of Soul.”

• APRIL 2

1855—John Mercer Langston becomes the first African-American elected to public office when he wins the position of clerk of Brownhelm Township, in Ohio. Though not well known today, Langston was one of the foremost Black leaders of the 1800s. With the aid of his two brothers, he organized anti-slavery societies throughout Ohio. The Oberlin College graduate also became a lawyer and statesman for Black rights. After the Civil War, he organized the law department at Howard University in Washington, D.C. The town of Langston, Okla., is named in his honor. He died in 1897. 1932— World famous Black cow -

boy William “Bill” Picket dies on this day in Ponca, Okla., after being kicked in the head by a horse. He was 70. But during his heyday Picket was perhaps the best known and most celebrated cowboy in the world traveling with various “wild west” shows including the Millers Brothers’ Fabulous 101 Ranch. He invented the rodeo sport of bulldogging. Picket was of Black and Indian descent.

1939—Marvin Gaye is born on this day in Washington, D.C. He signs with Detroit’s Motown Records in 1962 and goes on to become one of the leading R&B male vocalists of the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s, with hits ranging from the socially conscious “What’s Going On” to the sexy “Let’s Get It On.” Gaye was shot to death by his father during an argument in 1984.

• APRIL 3

1930— Ras Tafari is proclaimed Emperor of Ethiopia—one of the only African nations to successfully resist European colonization. He is renamed Haile Selassie . Blacks in many parts of the world view him as a god-like figure. Indeed, Jamaicans form a religion in his honor. They call themselves Rastafarians. Selassie could trace his ancestry as far back as the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon of the Christian Bible.

1950—Carter G. Woodson , the father of Black History Month, dies at age 74 in Washington, D.C.

1961— Comedian-actor Eddie Murphy is born in Brooklyn, N.Y.

1968—Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his powerful and prophetic “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech in Memphis, Tenn. Many felt he used the speech to predict his own death. He was assassinated the very next day—at 6:01 p.m., April 4, 1968.

• APRIL 4

1915—Muddy Waters is born McKinley Morganfield in Rolling Fork, Miss. Walters would go on to become one of the primary shapers of that genre of music known as the blues. Indeed, he was easily one of the most influential musicians of the first half of the 20th century.

1928— Poet Maya Angelou is born Marguerite Johnson in St. Louis, Mo. Angelou now ranks as one of the greatest poets in America. But her talents have also been expressed as a playwright, author, producer, historian and civil rights activist.

1967— Civil rights legend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. formally announces his opposition to America’s war in Vietnam during a speech before the Overseas Press Club in New York City. The speech brought King even greater opposition from the federal government, especially then-FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover. It also alienated some Black leaders who felt it was a mistake to mix domestic civil rights issues with foreign policy issues. But King charged that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

1968—Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated while standing on a hotel balcony in Memphis, Tenn., as he had embarked on a campaign to focus the Civil Rights Movement on economic and financial betterment issues for Blacks. Riots or urban rebellions broke out in over 100 U.S. cities. At least 50 people are killed as over 20,000 federal troops and 34,000 National Guardsmen are mobilized to put down the disturbances. The official finding was that a lone White gunman, James Earl Ray, was responsible for the assassination. However, suspicions remain until this day that the FBI, led by arch-conservative J. Edgar Hoover, was somehow involved in the killing.

THE COURIER ISN’T JUST A NEWSPAPER. IT’S BLACK HISTORY.

‘A Thousand and One’ gives somber reminder that Black women deserve peace

by Merecedes J. Williams

For New Pittsburgh Courier

A Harlem mother is forced to take matters into her own hands when she is fresh out of jail and longing to reunite with her 6-year-old son, Terry.

The ruggedness of society reintegration in America’s most populous city pro-

the icing on the cake. A Harlem native herself, Teyana Taylor returned home and completely bodied this gig as leading lady. One thing Teyana Taylor’s character consistently lacked was peace. In my opinion, peace is a form of happiness and self-care. Black women, as this nation’s caregiver, deserve peace—warranted and uninterrupted.

vides difficulties for Inez (Teyana Taylor) and her young tot.

“A Thousand and One” has a quiet, yet talented cast including William Catlett, Terri Abney, and three newcomers who all portrayed Terry at different ages, Aaron Kingsley Adetola, Aven Courtney and Josiah Cross.

The previews do not do this movie any justice. We get “Losing Isaiah” vibes from the trailer when “A Thousand and One” is so much deeper than that. It has the warmness of “Crooklyn,” the ups and downs of “He Got Game,” and the custodial complexity of “Precious” (minus the sexual exploitation of minors).

Teyana Taylor’s acting career truly begins with this film, defining the intricacy of this role and confirming her ability to morph seamlessly. She is every woman who ever dared to share her body with another human being for nine months, who stepped up to care of someone else’s child, and who stumbled in those efforts.

“A Thousand and One” was made for Teyana Taylor. The 33-year-old has seen success in love, marriage, kids and many different professions. This cinematic delight was just

Inez and Terry’s relationship is dynamic. The unconventional pairing as mother and son is a soft reminder that parenting is not so gentle and young motherhood often looks a lot like friendship.

Please be prepared for the waterworks, the Vivian Green Emotional Roller Coaster, and character reliability. It tugs every heartstring. I cried for the last 25 minutes.

This is a film for those who are battered, bruised, scorned and struggling. But it is also for those who have triumphed, are vindicated, and surviving.

“A Thousand and One” is more than a Sundance Film Festival favorite, but a trigger warning for every mother and son, every New Yorker forced to couch surf due to gentrification, and every couple fighting to love.

My only complaint is that I would have been willing to sit there another two hours just to get to answers to so many concluding questions.

While the box office is stuffed with action-packed, superhero ballots, “A Thousand and One” shakes everything up with NYC’s grit and grace. The film hits theaters on Friday, March 31.

TEYANA TAYLOR and Aaron Kingsley Adetola in "A Thousand and One," which opens in theatres on March 31. (Photo courtesy Focus Features/Sundance Institute)

‘It tugs at every heartstring. I cried for the last 25 minutes.’

Michelle Gainey, other panelists offer

escorted out a building and then they packed up her stuff and left it with security. Don’t do that. And the thing you want to know is, yourself is far more valuable than getting into it with somebody at your job. Your mental, your emotional is far more precious than to be on a job screaming and acting out. Just take your time, talk to your bestie...work it out, get some suggestions, always document, who was there, who heard, what happened, what time, what was going on, and just listen and watch. If you don’t have the experiences, you don’t get to grow, and that’s necessary.”

A point often made during the discussion was that the adult women on the panel were once young students, trying to figure life out,

Courier ‘Woman of Excellence’ among new TIP board members

Trade Institute of Pittsburgh Board Chair janera solomon announced the addition of Andrea Clark Smith and Adam Harris to the TIP Board of Directors. The announcement was made, March 17.

Andrea Clark Smith is an Associate Chief Legal Officer and Senior Vice President Employment Law, Labor Relations & Physician Contracting for UPMC. At UPMC, Smith leads a team of employment, labor, immigration, HR compliance and physician/ health law specialists. Her law practice focuses on nearly every element of the employee/ employer experience.

In addition to her legal practice, Smith has led significant diversity and inclusion efforts including serving as Manager of both UPMC’s and American Airlines’ Minority Counsel Programs, serving on the UPMC Corporate/International Executive Employee Experience team

from high school, he immediately went to work for the family business as a laborer, where he carried brick and block, mixed mortar, operated equipment and built

and serving as Co-Executive Sponsor for UPMC’s Employees of Color Employee Resources Group. Smith completed her undergraduate work at Spelman College and received her law degree from Emory University School of Law. In 2019, she was identified by Savoy magazine as one of the Most Influential Women in Corporate America. In 2021, Andrea was inducted into the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and in 2022 Smith was honored as a Diversity and Inclusion champion by PA Women Work and inducted into the New Pittsburgh Courier’s “Women of Excellence”—Class of 2022.

Brick and mortar has been in Adam Harris’ DNA since he was a boy, spending summers in the warehouse of his family’s masonry business. After graduating

scaffolding. Five years later, Harris transitioned from the field to the office, trading in his hammer and gloves for a pencil and a scale rule. He performed as an estimator, reading blueprints and bidding projects. He then went on to become a project manager. After several years wearing many hats, Harris became more integral with the day-today of the company and, as his dad would say, he began “overseeing the entire shoe store, not just the individual shoe box.” Harris was recently promoted to President of Harris Masonry Inc. Harris believes that the trades are a great career path, and he is committed to champion -

JANERA SOLOMON

ing the building trades. He serves on the Construction Advancement Program of Western PA, the Builders Guild of Western PA, and he is involved with numerous high school career technical centers.

ADAM HARRIS

ANDREA CLARK SMITH

SOME OF THE PANELISTS INCLUDED MICHELLE GAINEY, FAR LEFT, THERESA MONROE, SECOND FROM RIGHT, AND MELISSA CAMERON, FAR RIGHT.

trying to learn the art of interpersonal relationships, trying to obtain the work and soft skills needed for the workplace.

“My husband (Ed Gainey) didn’t get to the point to where he could be mayor without skinning his knees,” Michelle Gainey told the students. “I wasn’t prepared to be the First Lady of the city without skinning mine. We both had to walk, we had to have the experiences, we had to pray, we had to breathe before we got here.”

The Pittsburgh Job Corps is a U.S. Department of Labor career technical training program that is located in Lincoln-Lemington, off Washington Boulevard. Students either live on campus or commute, and the Pittsburgh campus offers 11 career training areas, such as security and protective services, culinary arts, electrical, nursing and certified medical assistant, and HVAC.

Students were able to ask a variety of questions to the panelists, which, in addition to Gainey, included Becky Flaherty, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh; Theresa Monroe, an artist and former Job Corps student; and Melissa Cameron, a Department of Corrections officer and Job Corps alumna. The event was moderated by Beth Caldwell, CEO of Professional Pittsburgh Women. She toured around the country with comedian and

advice on navigating the workplace

host Steve Harvey for four years (2014-2018), speaking to audiences on success skills and how to start businesses.

Students were particularly interested in how to make it at a job that’s male-dominated. Enter Cameron, the corrections officer, who admitted that at the beginning, she was “very frustrated” as a female working inside a male prison. But her lieutenant told her to just “be you,” and from that point on, Cameron excelled.

“Be you and embrace who you are, because people are going to see that magic,” Cameron told the students. “I used to have people come up to me and compliment me on my work. Just always be you in the workplace and show everybody the skills you bring to the table.”

Gainey told the students that when you get that first job, understand that “you’re perfect as you are.” But, don’t forget to seek out mentors at the job. Gainey said she didn’t know early on to seek out the mentors. “Someone who I got to know one-on-one very closely or someone who I just watched from a distance, to see how they came to work, how they dressed for work, what time they got there, how they carried themselves, how they handled conflict...,” she said. She encouraged the students to be open to learn on the job. Learn from your mistakes, your successes, pay attention to the environment.

“You’re going to make

mistakes and that is OK,” Gainey said, “because those mistakes are the experiences you have to have so that you can learn and grow.”

The four panelists told the students that it’s important to save money as a woman in society, because one never knows the unexpected financial issues that could come up. They also emphasized creating a support system in the workplace and outside of work, because leaning on others

with similar experiences can help the entire group cope and recover in a positive manner. And they stressed to the students the art of having confidence in yourself, at all times. Theresa Monroe, the artist and former Job Corps student, told the students how passionate she was when she started writing her first children’s book, some 18 years ago. “I would work on it every other day, and then all of a sudden I got dis -

couraged,” Monroe said. “I put it down, wouldn’t work on it...years went on, I had my first daughter, and then my second daughter...”

Last year, her family urged her to finish her book.

“It took me 17 years to write a book, but it took me two hours to finish it,” Monroe said. “There are going to be challenges, you’re going to run into obstacles, you’re going to feel like giving up, like you can’t do it.

But that is your decision, and you have to be open and keep a belief in yourself.”

Pittsburgh Penguins hold annual Black Hockey History Game

The Pittsburgh Penguins held their annual Black Hockey History Game on Saturday, February 18, and celebrated with a number of activities for nearly 20,000 fans at PPG Paints Arena. Penguins players wore special warm-up jerseys in traditional colors of red, black and green as well as Penguins gold to represent the spirit and rich history of the Black community, and used similar warm-up pucks. All were auctioned off to benefit youth hockey di -

versity initiatives at the Highmark Hunt Armory Ice Rink in Shadyside.

All fans in attendance for the Black Hockey History Game received a rally towel presented by CNX, and "Hockey is for Everyone—I Play For" signs were available for fans to sign and take photos.

The game included the Mt. Ararat Baptist Church Choir singing the Black National Anthem; a networking event with the Black Girl Hockey Club; the unveiling of a painting

by accomplished local artist Brandon Jennings of Penguins player P.O Joseph; and activation tables where all fans were invited to connect with diverse organizations.

In addition to the game, through February the Penguins hosted a series of virtual panels to honor and celebrate Black History Month, including the panel discussion Black Women Making an Impact On and Off the Ice presented by UPMC.

BRANDON JENNINGS AND TRACEY MCCANTS LEWIS, NEXT TO A PORTRAIT OF P.O. JOSEPH, WHO IS THE ONLY PLAYER OF COLOR ON THE TEAM. JOSEPH, WHO IS CANADIAN, WAS BORN TO A WHITE MOTHER AND HAITIAN FATHER. (PHOTOS BY J.L. MARTELLO)

GENE WALKER IN MIDDLE, AND THE CREW FROM CAFE MOMENTUM

ALANA DORSEY, RICHARD PAYNE JR., ATHLETES IN PITTSBURGH ICE

SHAWN HICKS,

LEIGH SOLOMON PUGLIANO, FROM EQUITY IMPACT CENTER

THEIR FIRST HOCKEY GAME—KAELYN O’KELLY, 8, AND JOELLEN O’KELLY, 6

RENEE HESS, FROM BLACK GIRL HOCKEY CLUB

DELVINA MORROW, FAR LEFT, AND ARDANA JEFFERSON, FAR RIGHT, AMONG THOSE AT THE BLACK HOCKEY HISTORY GAME

Sandstone Quarry Apartments honors the Freedom House Ambulance Service

Sandstone Quarry Apartments, on the North Side, celebrated Black History Month in February with an event honoring the Freedom Ambulance House. Organizers of the event, upon its creation, learned that a resident’s uncle, George McCary III, was an original member of the Freedom House Ambulance Service, and he spoke at the event, Feb. 28. McCary and others discussed the importance of sharing knowledge and the preservation of history within the Black community. The Freedom House Ambulance was the first emergency medical service in the country staffed by paramedics with medical training beyond basic first aid. It was founded in 1967 to serve those in the Hill District, and it was staffed by African Americans.

2, 2023

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

“Saying, Blessed be the King that comes in the name of the Lord: peace in Heaven, and glory in the highest. And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy Disciples. And He answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the STONES WOULD IMMEDIATELY CRY OUT.”

- St. Luke 19:38-40

REV. WALKER SAYS: Let the redeemed of the Lord Say So. PRAISE, PRAISE, PRAISE THE LORD!! DON’T STOP PRAISING THE LORD!!!

GEORGE MCCARY III, an original member of the Freedom House Ambulance Service, talks about his experience as young children from Sandstone Quarry Apartments listen in. (Photos by Gail Manker)

GEORGE MCCARY III demonstrates life-saving techniques he was taught as a member of the Freedom House Ambulance Service.

JO SIMMONS

CHAR LESANE

Public art vs. property rights: Artist and property owner face off over a mural in Wilkinsburg

bringing the building up to occupancy standards to provide services to the community.

Givner received a cease and desist letter from Holbrook’s lawyer, Andrew Rozynski, in December.

Addressed to Givner and her colleague Felicia Robinson, the letter notes that Holbrook has rights to the murals on 620 and 613-619 Wood St., and by “destructing” the murals, the property owners have violated the Visual Artists Rights Act [VARA]. The letter also called for a halt to any “additional destruction” and for Holbrook to receive, “monetary compensation for his emotional and reputational damage caused by your destruction, mutilation, and modification of his Murals.”

Meant to educate and inspire, murals faded Holbrook, a Pittsburgh-born muralist with artwork around the city and the world, in 2002 founded the Moving the Lives of Kids [MLK] Mural Project with a vision to engage youth of different backgrounds by working with them to create vibrant public art. For Wilkinsburg especially, the project initially aimed to provide safe spaces for young people who may otherwise engage in gang activity.

In the summer of 2007, youth and community members gathered together to paint the collection of murals on Wood Street in Wilkinsburg. Created through the Community Mural Project, the colorful murals depicted the faces of young people and historical figures.

That summer, the mural project also had community members paint a collection of murals along the Wilkinsburg busway. When painting of the murals wrapped up, the project hosted an unveiling event by an outdoor gazebo at 613-619 Wood St., which government officials and community leaders attended.

While the murals at the intersection of Wood and Franklin were once vibrant and bold, by the time the current property owner, Givner, bought the buildings in 2015 and 2017, they had faced much wear from time. The buildings were in uninhabitable states, according to Givner—with the windows and doors boarded up, damaged bricks and chipped paint.

Now a section of one mural is completely painted over while the other is partially modified as a result of exterior changes to the building.

Murals as community expression

Thomas Mitchell, the vice president of the Wilkins-

burg Sanctuary Project for Peace, didn’t know much about the murals created in 2007, but noted the benefits of projects like the MLK Mural Project, including offering young people safe and legal ways to express themselves. He added that the Sanctuary Project, which aims to end youth and gun violence in Wilkinsburg, has worked with the mural project several times to offer summer programs to young people.

“The young people can express themselves in different ways. They can express their artwork more legally,” said Mitchell. Holbrook said one reason he founded the MLK Community Mural Project was to allow youth to express themselves and to reduce gang graffiti in the neighborhood.

“[In] Wilkinsburg, where I grew up, all the walls where there’s murals now used to be gang graffiti, and none of them … have ever been tagged [since the murals were painted] and so I think it’s a way to enhance communities, and to be a voice for the voiceless.”

Public artwork like murals also often raise awareness for issues that a community may be facing.

“Most of my childhood friends … are in jail. A couple are doing life, but most of them have been victims of gun violence. And I’ve been shot at myself several times,” said Holbrook. “I feel like, because of the circumstances in the life that I’ve seen, I think it’s my duty as an artist and a public artist, to share the importance in this epidemic that’s going around all around the country.”

Even for community members who may not know a particular artist’s inspiration, public art still has the ability to engage and contextualize communities.

“A couple of the faces [in Wilkinsburg’s murals] remind me of people I know. I think it looks great. And now it puts the community in context as well,” said Ruth Kittner, executive director of the Wilkinsburg Community Ministry, a nonprofit food provider located on Wood Street.

“There’s so many of these buildings, the paint is peeling and the brick is shredding and it’s just, it looks decrepit and dilapidated,” Kittner said, “and by putting the murals on, it gives the community an expression of its colors, art … It puts a different value on the place and it makes the built environment look less worn down.”

Do renovations collide with federal art law?

Givner bought 620 Wood St. back in 2015 and completely gutted and renovated the building over the course of four years. After the building met the

borough’s occupancy standards, Givner and Robinson started running the nonprofit organization, A Peace of Mind, in it. Founded in 2014, the nonprofit aims to improve community wellness through programs like yoga classes and hip-hop aerobics, and provides 20-hour-per-day childcare services.

After finishing work on 620, Givner began renovating 613-619—a process that took over three years and was slowed by the pandemic. While exterior renovations on 620 only partially modified the murals on the building, that wasn’t the case with the 613-619 as Givner had to replace many bricks, windows and doors and then point the brick on the exterior walls.

By the time renovations and exterior modifications were complete, much of the original mural on 613619 Wood St. was damaged from mortar pointing, so Givner decided to just put a fresh coat of paint on the building. Givner now operates Vision Towards Peace out of the newly renovated building, where she provides mental health and counseling services.

Prior to her husband’s encounter with Holbrook and receipt of the cease and desist letter, Givner knew no reason she wouldn’t be able to paint over the murals. But according to the federal statute that Hobrook is using as his main argument, artists sometimes have certain rights over how their public-facing work can be touched or modified.

The Visual Artists Rights Act was enacted in 1990 and aims to protect the rights of artists for “visual art” meant for public display, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, photographs and—if they meet certain requirements—murals.

Holbrook also cited VARA in 2018 when he sued the City of Pittsburgh and a developer after they destroyed a mural the city earlier commissioned him to paint. The case ended in a settlement in 2021, and Holbrook declined to comment on the matter.

“In American law, the VARA is a very limited, narrow form of moral rights,” said Michael Madison, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law who focuses on copyright and intellectual property law.

“So these rights to prevent damage and destruction, the right to get appropriate credit, only applies to a very small category of creative things.”

Madison noted that in order for a piece of art, especially a mural, to fall under the VARA’s protection, it must meet certain criteria.

“The right to prevent it

from being destroyed only applies if the visual work is a work of recognized stature. So this right to prevent something from being destroyed does not apply to every artwork, does not apply to every painting, does not apply to every mural, it only applies to a very small number of things that meet this legal phrase,” said Madison.

Holbrook’s cease and desist letter argues that the artist has a “notable prominence” in the Wilkinsburg community as a muralist and his murals have gained recognition from “noteworthy” individuals including other muralists, the former U.S. Secretary of Housing Alphonso Jackson and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum. It also notes that the late Pittsburgh-born rapper Mac Miller did a photoshoot in front of the murals on Wood Street.

“This is where things get very, very tricky and they get very, very difficult for the artist: This right to prevent something from being destroyed, where the physical object is owned by somebody else.”

Madison said most murals in Pittsburgh likely do not meet the criteria to be considered a “work of recognized stature.” He said it’s hard to claim that a work is of recognized stature if it’s not well known in the art world “beyond Pittsburgh, even if they’re known beyond the neighborhood.”

Madison said that applying VARA raises questions about the relative weights of the artist’s copyright and the owner’s rights.

One case from 2018 suggests that public art on a building can have recognized stature. The 5Pointz case from New York, which Holbrook’s lawyer cites in the cease and desist letter, involved a collection of murals and graffiti art that was on several

buildings owned by the same property owner. The artworks were done by a group of artists, and were internationally recognized by the art world. After a developer bought and demolished the building, the artists sued the developer under VARA. A court ruled in favor of the artists, and the developer had to pay the group of artists $6.75 million.

Madison noted that the New York case is different from any case that may exist in Pittsburgh.

“Everybody in the art world, and especially everybody in the graffiti world in New York, knew about 5Pointz,” Madison said. That isn’t likely to be true of Pittsburgh-area murals, he said.

While declining to comment on the situation with Givner, Holbrook said that even though some of his murals in Wilkinsburg are decades old, his past work becomes more valuable as he becomes better known in the art world.

“The murals are worth more than the buildings they’re on,” said Holbrook.

Why is VARA emerging now?

While VARA does protect the rights of artists up until their death, Givner wondered why Holbrook decided to take claim to the artworks only years after she had started exterior work on the buildings, and when she had already painted over one of them.

“Both buildings had been worked on for literally this last seven years and permits had to be issued. And all of a sudden he pops up and has this type of ownership,” said Givner.

Holbrook said he wants more people to be aware of artists’ rights, especially property owners who may buy buildings with murals on them but don’t know about the federal statute.

“I’m doing this really because I have some notori-

ety and especially in the field of public art, where I can be the person to draw attention for the rights of all artists,” said Holbrook.

Givner agrees with Holbrook on one thing: That there’s not universal awareness of VARA.

She said property owners may buy buildings with murals on them not knowing that the artist could potentially make a claim.

“It could financially harm or ruin a business that’s really trying to make an impact to a vulnerable population,” said Givner.

She said she “would have never thought it was a problem,” given that the previous owner never mentioned the mural when she bought it, and there were no notes about the artist’s rights in any of the sale documents.

Givner called for state legislation that would require commissioned murals and the artists’ rights to be noted in property documents.

Givner said that while she sees value in art curbing violence and bridging communities, she wishes she had known about VARA and what it might mean for her property earlier.

“And as you can tell, I wouldn’t have painted it, because I’ve got the other buildings, I only did what I needed to do to bring the building up to occupancy and build it up to code and … to be able to provide such a needed service in the community.”

(Betul Tuncer is an editorial intern at PublicSource and can be reached at betul@publicsource.org.)

SHAWN FEATHERSTONE, JO SIMMONS, JEROME JOHNSON, CHAR LESANE

MARLENE MURPHY, GEORGE MCCARY III, FRANCINE WILLIAMS

A MURAL, designed by artist Kyle Holbrook, on the side of 613-619 Wood St. The mural was painted as a part of the MLK Mural Project, but has since been painted over by new property owner Erica Givner. (Image courtesy of Kyle Holbrook)

PROPERTY IS POWER!

FHA

insurance rate cuts provide more opportunities for Black homeownership

I am pleased to share the news about an exciting decrease in mortgage insurance premiums.

Starting on March 20, 2023, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) will reduce annual mortgage insurance premiums by 0.3 percentage points from 0.85 percent to 0.55 percent for most new borrowers.

Mortgage insurance premium (MIP) payments are required on all FHA loans, regardless of down payment, to allow for more flexible qualification requirements, like a lower credit score. There are two types of MIP: an upfront MIP, paid at closing, and an ongoing MIP paid monthly as part of your mortgage payment. The monthly MIP adjusts down annually based on your remaining principal balance. the FHA is reducing the cost of the annual MIP. Reducing the MIP rates will help new homebuyers with FHAbacked mortgages save an average of $800 a year and lower bousing costs for more than 900,000 Americans, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Whom will this affect?

The MIP rate change will impact new borrowers who apply for FHA loans. These loans are backed by the federal government, designed to help low- to moderate-income families purchase a home, and are especially popular among first -time buyers. FHA loans have a lower down payment requirement, allowing individuals with lower credit scores to secure a home loan. Because of this, the government takes on greater risk with FHA borrowers. To cover this risk, FHA re-

quires that all borrowers enroll in FHA mortgage insurance. How much will homebuyers save?

It depends on the price of the home, as the cost of ongoing MIP is a percentage of the loan balance. Currently, borrowers pay 0.8 percent-0.85 percent of the loan balance (the most common MIP cost) buy beginning on March 20, 2023, new borrowers will pay 0.5 percent-0.55 percent instead. For example, a borrower in a

by Sherri Kolade

Chronicle

Michigan

It was 158 years ago, in 1865, upon the passage and ratification of the 13th amendment to the Constitution, that slavery was finally ended.

day.

Following fatal workplace incidents, worker strikes, and White House support, the 40-hour workweek was eventually implemented as part of FDR’s New Deal, according to NBC.

typical Monday-to Friday-workflow, particularly as competing personal responsibilities grew.

work, I come home with tremendous energy. It actually is a circle; it’s not a balance.”

$265,000 home will save about $800 annually. According to HUD, a borrower with a $467,700 home, the national median home price in December 2022, will save more than $1,400 annually. What’s the big picture?

Lower mortgage insurance premiums will help expand homeownership opportunities for thousands of families across the United States. During the pandemic, home prices and mortgage rates skyrocketed, making it difficult for many low- and medium-income borrowers to purchase a home. According to the White House, first-generation

SEE INSURANCE RATES B2

And just 25 years later, the U.S. government was beginning to get the knack of keeping track of employees’ hours just as Black people in the nation were beginning to stand their ground despite the harsh reality and circumstances that followed slavery. According to https:// sociable.co/, statistics show that the average manufacturing worker put in roughly 100 hours of labor a week.

That averaged 20 hours a day, for a five-day workweek, which is inconceivable, to some, in the context of the existing regular workweek.

Overworking staff became a thing of the past as time went on thanks to the precautions that were put in place. The adoption of Ford Motor Company’s five-day, 40-hour workweek in 1926 was a significant step in the right direction, even though it was implemented so as to run the factory 24 hours a

The work week that is even in place today is one that hundreds of thousands of companies across the country and internationally use as standard practice.

Yet, many professionals

BambooHR reports that other options are available such as a four-day work week, which reportedly improves productivity in the timeframe.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said to CEO Mathias Döpfner, the CEO of media group Axel Springer, that work-life balance is not solely about balance.

“My view is, that’s a de-

Ascend Staffing said, “not so fast,” as there are some advantages to working 40 hours a week such as the ability to maintain a routine.

Cherri Harris, CEO and founder of Swint Logistics Group, Inc., which specializes in trucking/hauling and consulting services, told the Michigan Chronicle recently that her work is anything but routine, especially in the past roughly 15 years when she was a trucker working long hours—well beyond the 40-hour mark.

have called it into question—saying that it is antiquated, especially as the pandemic forced many white-collar employees to work from home disrupting the status quo of the

bilitating phrase because it implies there’s a strict trade-off,” he said. “And the reality is, if I am happy at home, I come into the office with tremendous energy. And if I am happy at

Harris, who wouldn’t have it any other way, said that before working in this industry she was in health care and worked odd hours, sometimes going beyond the standard 40. “I have never been conditioned to a 40-hour work week probably since the ‘90s,” she said, adding that sometimes 40 hours isn’t enough and sometimes it’s too much. “Some weeks 40 hours just won’t do depending on goals and

SEE 40-HOUR A4

You might be ‘Broke’ or end up ‘Broke’ if…

I liken social media to stand-up comedy. You can test various jokes or ideas and get instant feedback. When I returned to writing, my first published article was, “How can you be Bored and Broke.” I shared the article on social media. Article did numbers. I’ve shared several articles and memes since then. I have yet to duplicate those numbers. Recently I shared a meme on social media. It was titled, “Why some people stay Broke.” This meme did so well and sparked so much conversation within a group of 78,000 members, they took it down. This experience made me look back at various subject matters that I posted on social media. I notice, every time I mention the work “Broke” it generated massive feedback—both positive and negative. What’s a writer to do? “Double-Up and Double Down!” I mentioned the word “Broke” twice in the title of this article. When I was a kid, we use to joke around saying, you might be ghetto if….. We’d name something funny we’ve observed that you can only appreciate in the hood. We’re going to do something similar in this article. But first, let’s define “Broke” and distinguish it from “Poor.”

Ric Edelman said “Broke” is a matter of the wallet. “Poor” is a matter of the mind. You can fix Broke. Poor? Not so much. To be broke is to be completely out of money. You can earn a high income, spend it all and be broke. Being in debt is worse than being broke. When you’re broke, you simply need money. When you’re in debt, you need money to pay the debt only to end up broke. Regardless of your income level, if you’re a non-saver you’re going to eventually end up BROKE. Saving is the cornerstone of financial stability. Not

saving is stupid. You cannot earn stupidity. That should be obvious, but it’s not. So, we’ll delve deeper. You might be broke or end up broke if you don’t identify and fix what I’m about to list below.

Myopic Perspective—Woe it’s me! The little man can’t get ahead. Nobody wants to see me win. Poor is a state of mind. You have to fix your “stinking-thinking.” You are what you think. If you think that you’ll be broke and miserable the rest of your life, you’re right. You’ve accepted status quo and refused to do anything about it.

Too lazy to work—You don’t work, you don’t eat—so says the Bible. If you’re of sound mind and able body and you refuse to work because you don’t feel like it, WOE!

It’s YOU! Your ability to work is your greatest asset. Your income generated from working is your largest wealth-building tool. If you’re avoiding working because you don’t want to pay child support or you think some captain save a chick is going to rescue you, apply for Social Security Disability, you’re mentally unstable. Good luck with getting approved.

Fishing for compliments—You go girl! You’re the man! We all love compliments. Are compliments worth our financial stability? Suze Orman said, people spend more than because they feel less than. There’s nothing wrong with having

nice stuff as long as you act your wage and ensure there’s money left over to save after you pay your bills.

Dreads the B-word—People think they’re limited and restricted by budgets. What limits and restricts you is your income, not your budget. A budget is a spending, saving and investment plan. If you want to spend more, save more, and invest more, you need to earn more. Easier said than done, right? It requires less effort, blood, sweat and tears to reduce expenses than it does to increase income.

A budget allows you to prioritize your money, life, and time. Saving isn’t a priority—Money you save today is either your future goals, future lifeline, or future paycheck. Money talking... “If you save me today, I’ll save your tomorrow.” Yet the average person saves less than five cents for every dollar earned. No savings equals no financial stability. Low savings equals no financial security. Inability to save means you’re doomed to financial ruin.

Debt is hazardous to your wealth

Credit increases your purchasing power but reduces both your standard of living and your net worth. When you use credit, you pay more because of interest. When you use credit, you allocate a portion of your income to payments for an extended period of time. Hard to save when you owe. Use credit wisely? NO! Use credit only when absolutely necessary! Broke people consistently pay interest. Wealthy

people consistently earn interest. You may think they’re wealthy. They should earn interest. They became wealthy by avoiding debt and saving money earning compounded interest instead of subjecting their hard-earned income to a lifetime of payments.

Those are the major keys to staying broke or ending up broke. Following are other reasons you might be broke if:

• You own a car you can’t afford

• You own a house you can’t afford

• You don’t invest in yourself

• You don’t have any goals

• You’re an impulsive shopper

• You buy liabilities instead of assets

• You don’t have an emergency fund

• You blame others for your financial demise

• You purchase financial products you don’t understand

• You don’t separate wants for needs

• You have poor spending habits

• You don’t seek to understand personal finance

• You spend more than you earn

• You don’t consistently save or invest

• Your money seems to magically disappear with nothing to show for it

• You make emotional purchases and confuse fun for happiness

Who wants to be broke? Nobody! Heed the advice. Identify areas where you may be falling short and fix it. Those of us who are 40 and over, we made our fair share of financial mistakes. Our working years are numbered. We don’t have time to keep repeating these mistakes and expecting our mistakes to fix themselves.

ANTHONY O. KELLUM

The work week that is even in place today is one that hundreds of thousands of companies across the country and internationally use as standard practice.

FHA makes housing more affordable for 850,000 borrowers

Savings tied to median market home prices

by Charlene Crowell

Beginning March 20, a recent move by the Biden Administration will make owning a home more affordable for current and prospective homebuyers. Arriving just in time for the spring buying season, 850,000 mortgage borrowers who used FHA-financing for their homes as well as families choosing this popular mortgage program will benefit from lowered mortgage insurance premiums.

This monthly fee, paid along with principal and interest owed will be cut by 0.3 percentage points, thereby lowering regular monthly costs. The cut is also reflected in President Biden’s new budget proposal. With housing affordability straining many efforts to become homeowners, the lowered costs triggered by the insurance premium deduction can be an important difference.

“For this country to truly succeed, all Americans must have access to opportunity. That means expanding access to wealth-building and home ownership,” said HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge in a recent interview. “Today, we are building on the steps we’ve taken to make homeownership more affordable, and HUD is acting to ensure people feel comfortable purchasing

a home as they build toward their future. As we reduce housing costs for people with FHA mortgages, we continue our work to address longstanding disparities in homeownership.”

Although actual dollar savings will vary by market and locale, families who borrowed at the national median price of $270,000 for their home will see an annual savings of approximately $800. In markets where median prices are higher, higher dollar savings will apply. Conversely, in area where median home prices are lower than the national one, savings will be smaller.

For example, in Detroit where the median priced home is $200K, the annual savings for FHA borrowers will be approximately $600. By contrast, FHA borrowers in Prince George’s County, MD, where the average home price is $300K, annual mortgage premium insurance savings will rise to $900 each year. FHA borrowers in Austin, TX can look forward to an estimated $1,500 in yearly savings on the market’s homes valued at $500K. In Boston, Los Angeles, and New York, where the median price of homes is even higher, so too will be those borrowers’ savings.

The program’s cost-cutting is made possible by

the growth in recent years in the fund’s accumulated reserves, now five times the amount required by Congress. This financial heft strengthens the program’s financial stability and was accomplished by multiple factors.

Administratively, HUD updated underwriting policies that enabled lenders to include both rental history and student loan debt in determining mortgage applicants’ creditworthiness. Also, HUD’s mortgage loan modification practices resolved delinquencies for financially-challenged borrowers, allowing them to keep their homes. Yet another policy change offered expanded housing counseling that prepares first-time buyers with knowledge and information gleaned from 4,000 HUD-certified counselors working in 1,500

HUD-approved community agencies across the country.    These reforms, combined with key market measures like stable home appreciation, low foreclosure rates, and significant refinance volume, generated improved loan performance and savings that could be passed on to consumers.       For low-to-moderate income consumers, these developments ensure that this long-standing federally-insured program will remain an available, affordable, and sustainable path to homeownership. More than 80 percent of first-time homebuyers and 25 percent of buyers of color who secured these government-backed loans will benefit from the lowered fees.     In its recap of 2021 FHA lending to Blacks, the National Association of Real Estate Brokers found

that 40 percent of Black mortgage borrowers were FHA-insured, including 42 percent of Black millennials.

Public and private sector housing stakeholders applauded the action.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is providing needed breathing room in the tight budgets of families who use FHA mortgages, many of whom are firsttime homebuyers, people of color, or individuals with lower-incomes,” said Mitria Spotser, vice president and federal policy director at the Center for Responsible Lending. “By reducing the cost of mortgage insurance premiums, the Administration is putting money back into people’s pockets. This move helps families strengthen their financial backstop and manage unexpected financial events

while maintaining homeownership. The Administration has been working to make our housing system more equitable, sustainable, and healthier and this is an important step in that journey.”    “Mortgage rates have doubled over the past yearand home prices have increased more than 30 percent in some counties. In this competitive market, new and low- to moderate-income buyers are often left behind,” said Kenny Parcell, President of the National Association of Realtors. “This reduction will help alleviate some of the financial stress those potential buyers encounter when purchasing a home.”    (Charlene Crowell is a senior fellow with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at Charlene.crowell@responsiblelending.org.)

Create a career that fuels your dream lifestyle

(NewsUSA)—When will you break away from your 9-to-5 job so you can embrace the lifestyle of your dreams? “Hindsight 2020”

author Kyle Corbett is motivating would-be entrepreneurs who are still in their 20s to make the leap now, before the economy tanks and life traps them at their desk jobs.

At just 38, Corbett owns and runs several businesses but doesn’t consider any of them to be jobs.

He started his first of several entrepreneurial efforts with $6,500. That business now grosses upwards of $650,000 a year.

He runs sailing tours. He operates an ocean conservation and eco-tour business. He surfs, travels and lives his dream lifestyle. His book teaches others the skills to do the same.

“Anyone can do the stuff

I do. The tools are right there in front of us,” he confirms. “You can travel the world. You’re just used to telling yourself that you can’t. It’s often easier to hang onto your career as your security blanket. You pursue the American dream: a mortgage and white picket fence. Before you know it, you can’t quit your job because you’ve taken on financial obligations you can’t get out of.

Even if you’re capable of changing, you may be too afraid.”

Corbett stresses having what you want means believing in yourself. “I often ask my consultation clients: What are you waiting for? Find that one thing that you are truly passionate about and you will not be able to see any barriers. Then educate yourself and set yourself up for success. From the time your eyes open in the morning to the time they close at night, you are in school.”

His book describes how being in constant learning mode gave Corbett the tools to do more than stay financially afloat despite operating within the tourist industry during the pandemic. This enabled him to pivot, thrive and discover fresh ways to pursue his passions.

Here is where you can start, if you want to empower your dream lifestyle.

Manifest your mentors

Think of yourself as a university with one student: you. Mentors are all around you.

Someone who lives down the street can teach you more important lessons than what you might

learn in a classroom.

“Those who manifest their mentors go the farthest in life. Talk with people in the field you are considering. We are all storytellers. As humans, we always want to share information with others that we think will help them,” advises Corbett, adding that his ‘baker story’ often creates epiphanies for would-be entrepreneurs.

“Maybe your dream is to

own a small business. You have a relationship with Bob, the man who owns the bakery on the corner, and decide to make him a mentor. One morning, you arrive five minutes early and help him carry in inventory. You ask him about his business. You can get a life lesson in five minutes.” What are you looking for in life? Do you want to be your own boss and exchange

the employee badge for one that says ‘owner’? You can. “If you stay stuck, the worst-case scenario is that you’ll be in the exact same chair five years from now, and you still won’t want to be there,” cautions Corbett. “The best thing you can do for yourself, and your family may be to start creating your dream career and lifestyle right now.”

Find what will keep you motivated, then go

for it!

“The world needs small business people who are willing to get up in the morning and go to work.”

He concludes, “If you want to set yourself up for success and keep your motivation high even during hard times, “Hindsight 2020: An Inspiring Change” is the book to read right now.” Today is the day to start making your dream a reality.

Plan your retirement with Social Security

by Josh Grant

For New Pittsburgh Courier

Social Security benefits factor into the retirement plan of almost every American worker.  If you are covered under Social Security, you should know how much you might receive in future benefits.  These monthly payments are likely to be an important part of your retirement income.

We base your benefit payment on how much you earned during your working career.  Higher lifetime earnings result in higher benefits.  If

there were some years you didn’t work or had low earnings, your benefit amount may be lower than if you had worked steadily or had higher earnings.  Even if you never worked and did not pay Social Security taxes, you may be eligible for benefits from a spouse’s record. You must be at least 62 years old, and your spouse must already be receiving retirement or disability benefits.

Our Retirement page at www.ssa.gov/retirement is a great place to start mapping out your retirement plan.  For example, have you

considered:

•         When is the right time for you to start receiving your retirement benefits?

•         What documents you may need to provide Social Security for your retirement application?

•         Which factors may affect your retirement benefits?

You can use your personal my Social Security account at www.ssa. gov/myaccount to get an instant estimate of your future retirement benefits.  You can also see the effects of starting your retirement benefits at different ages.

You may also be wondering about:

•         Benefits for a spouse or children.

•         How work affects your benefits.

•         If you will have to pay taxes on your benefits.

•         Medicare. You can learn more at www.ssa.gov/retirement.  Please share this information with your loved ones to help them prepare for their retirement.

(Josh Grant is Social Security District Manager in Pittsburgh, Pa.)

Savoy Magazine unveils the Most Influential Executives in Diversity & Inclusion

ATLANTA, March 7, 2023 / PRNewswire/—Savoy Magazine has announced the 2023 Most Influential Executives in Diversity & Inclusion, recognizing professionals who have driven positive change within their organizations and the corporate world. These executives have implemented innovative diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies to recruit, retain, elevate, and embrace diverse talent.

“We’re thrilled to showcase exceptional individuals driving positive change in their organizations and beyond.”

The spring issue of Savoy Magazine features a cover story on Michael C. Hyter, President and CEO of The Executive Leadership Council. In addition, the magazine contains three other special sections: Corporate Diversity Matters, Diversity in Higher Education, and Legal Diversity Matters. Corporate Diversity Matters, features contributions from some of the largest companies in the coun-

try, highlighting their efforts to promote diversity within their organizations. Diversity in Higher Education and Legal Diversity Matters sections discuss the diversity initiatives of multiple universities and law firms, respectively.

L.P. Green, II, Publisher of Savoy Magazine, expressed excitement at the opportunity to recognize these exceptional executives in the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion. “We are thrilled to showcase the achievements of these outstanding individuals who have made a significant impact on their organizations and in the broader corporate world. Their unwavering commitment to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion is an inspiration to us all,” said Green. The full 2023 Most Influential Executives in Diversity & Inclusion list, as well as Corporate Diversity Matters, Diversity in Higher Education, and Legal Diversity Matters sections, are available online exclusively at savoynetwork.com as of March 7, 2023. For those who prefer a print edition, the summer issue of Savoy magazine is available for purchase online through Amazon and savoynetwork.com/shop. Savoy Magazine celebrates the

power, substance, and style of African American lifestyle, serving as a cultural catalyst for the community and driving positive

dialogue on Black culture. The magazine is published quarterly and distributed worldwide via subscriptions and newsstands.

FHA insurance rates

homebuyers and first-time buyers of color were particularly affected by pandemic-era price increases. The newly announced MIP rate decrease

will help remove some barriers to owning a home. Owning a home is one of the best ways to build generational wealth, and I celebrate the opportunity to make homeownership more attainable.

The 40-hour work week

40-HOUR FROM A1

Harris says that as a small business owner she does not necessarily take things for granted even with a 40-hourwork week, or one can poten-

tially look for other opportunities more in line with one’s desired schedule.

“Truck drivers by law are allowed to work 70 hours a week and that’s just a regular work week,” Harris said, to put things in perspective.

MICHAEL C. HYTER

Guest Editorial

Misogynoir in Black communities

As we continue to experience Women’s History Month, it is good to take the time to understand some of the trials and tribulations historically faced by women. Ironically, many of these have their origin with women themselves, who are often the greatest critics and haters of other women. The trend seems to be that when a man and a woman are involved in a challenging situation, almost always the blame is laid right at the feet of the woman involved, no matter the circumstances. This is clearly misogynoir, i.e., sexism and racism against Black women.

This situation does not seem to be limited by race; it seems that both Black, White, and other women share the trait of holding women more accountable for almost any situation.

There does seem to be, in fact, a growing hatred of women; a cacophony of shrill accusations arises against women all too often. This may have something to do with the fact that we exist in a patriarchy. Though women have achieved the right to vote and to purchase property, there is still the notion that a man should be in control of a woman no matter what the differences in economic status may be.

Regarding African American women in particular, there is an almost hysterical need for some women to hold onto traditional roles in an attempt to keep women in their place. An extreme example were the responses to the singer Rihanna who, pregnant again, was out on the town with her partner and father of her child, A$AP Rocky. A photograph showed them holding hands and walking, but she was in front of A$AP. A lot of women seemingly lost their minds; they were quite bothered by the fact that Rihanna was in front in this particular photo and opined that she was leading him and emasculating him.

On another note, there is still the traditional misogyny demonstrated by a lot of Black men. It has been pointed out that Megan Thee Stallion was allegedly shot in the foot by Tory Lanez. Though a jury convicted Lanez of doing the deed, there has been a venomous backlash against Megan, who it seems gets all of the blame for the situation, even though she did not shoot herself. People are angry with her for being shot!

One of the most egregious demonstrations of wanton misogyny against Black women was Chris Rock’s recent Netflix comedy special rant. It was the first time he had an opportunity to address “the slap” that took place a year ago when he was hosting the Oscars. It is a curious thing that though Will Smith was the one who lost control, went to the stage and slapped Chris Rock for talking about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, she is the one receiving most of the fallout for the event!

Chris Rock didn’t hold back, and with a great deal of venom he called Jada a b!tch several times. And on a similar note, Meghan Markle, the wife of Prince Harry of Britain, is being accused of poisoning Harry’s relationship with the royal family. She is being blamed for the apparent racism they are experiencing.

Another case of senseless misogyny is connected with Venus and Serena Williams. There was a photo of the sisters at a public event, which drew negative reactions from some of the Black male observers. Even though the sisters looked beautiful as they posed for the cameras, several males commented they should have chosen Black mates.

This was a veiled aspersion cast toward Serena, who is married to a White man. But they lumped Venus in the equation, even though there is no evidence she has a White mate. Moreover, there was a time when a lot of Black men actually made unkind remarks about the sisters, making it very clear that they did not find them attractive.

Ultimately, Black women have had a very difficult time. They have been blamed for all of the dysfunction in the Black community; they have been accused of being too masculine, and of emasculating Black men. They are blamed for the breakup of Black families and for the dire economic circumstances of those families.

Furthermore, women who have met with economic success and have educated themselves are being accused of taking jobs away from men!

Common sense dictates that Black women AND men are bound by destiny and need to come to their senses and work to heal our communities. We MUST learn to love each other! A Luta Continua.

(Reprinted from The Chicago Crusader)

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—The one thing I will not accept or acknowledge is that age has rendered me incompetent.  I do admit that, like the other body parts among the aging, circumstances affecting individuals exist which impact their cognitive acuity.  Now, unlike the thoughts of many, age has not rendered ALL elders mentally deficient.  I consider any manifestation or act against my personhood that supports that thought as character assassination.

The fact that elders are frequently targeted by unprincipled and unscrupulous scam artists is well known.  Incalculable amounts of money and personal property are swindled from elders each year.  Right-thinking individuals condemn these acts and wonder how people can live with themselves after such contemptible behavior.  It should be emphasized that although acts against the elders are, seemingly, more well-publicized, young people fall victim to scam artists as well.  I can only guess that fact is omitted because it flies in the face of the belief that the young, like Superman, possess invulnerability commensurate with their youth.

You may wonder why I use this article to address the issue of scamming.  I do so because I was recently the target of a scam.  I did not lose any money or property, but I was inconvenienced by having to adjust personal financial accounts and the loss of the time it took to resolve those issues.  From the perspective of a non-professional, I want to remind my readers of the pitfalls of

conducting personal/financial business in the ever-changing and wide-open digital environment.

Rather than begin my thoughts in the digital landscape, I want to address the mind—our own minds—their strengths and the hazards they open for us.  Our greatest strength rests in attention to detail, emotional self-control, the acknowledgment that we live in an environment where scamming has become more of a norm, and, most importantly, the recognition that the scam CAN HAPPEN TO US.

I have noticed an increasing number of tempting online offers (scams) that come from those presenting themselves as reputable businesses.  These offers include logos and images we associate with legitimacy and present no immediate reason for caution.  For all electronic communication, I have learned to look first at the correspondence’s originating address.  If the address suggests a source other than that which is represented, I immediately delete it.  Moving further, except for fine detail, some images look so authentic that the casual observer can be, and is often, fooled.   Scammers cast wide nets.  I cannot count the number of times I have been

asked to reconcile accounts with banks or businesses I have no connection with.  You might be asked to verify an existing account number.  You may be encouraged to renew an “expired” subscription.  Scammers depend upon extracting bits and pieces to help them complete a puzzle.

Key to THE SCAM is the emotional “hook.”  Common to the “questionable” correspondence I have received are appeals to fear, greed, and the loss of opportunity.  I am sure there are more “hooks,” but those stand out.  The scammer relies on catching you off-guard and receiving an immediate emotional response.  Commonalities exist among humans.  Many are delinquent with debts or other obligations and fearful of the consequence.  Some cannot resist the idea of getting something for nothing.  Others cannot pass up “a deal” that is available for only a short period of time—deals too good to miss.  You can experience these “hooks” separately or in tandem, and their messages will be so general as to fool many.

Key to our emotional and financial security is the understanding that real privacy is a thing of the past—we must acknowledge potential vulnerability.  The scammer relies on a lack of awareness, over-confidence, and self-indulged arrogance to succeed.  Be aware of schemes!

(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)

election workers.

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—“An indictment of the former president, followed by orderly due process, would show that no one is immune to following the law simply because he is famous, wealthy, politically powerful, willing to threaten the justice system, or possessed of intemperate and powerful followers such as Representative Andy Biggs. Biggs has accidentally stumbled on the secret of rule of law, in which no one is above accountability.”—David A. Graham

It’s meant to be a dire warning—a call to arms for the MAGA army: “Remember, if they can do this to me, they can do it to anyone!” Donald Trump howls.

Trump’s lieutenants, like Rep. Biggs —an election denier who refused to denounce White supremacy—dutifully parrot this line.

They are of course, absolutely correct, although they got it somewhat backward. If “they”—meaning duly-elected or appointed prosecutors following the law—can do it to anyone, “they” can do it to Trump.

It must be said, however, that Trump clearly means something different when he says “they.”

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fani Willis, and New York State Attorney General Letitia James are Black. Trump never misses an opportunity to stoke the flame of the racial resentment at the heart of his political appeal.

“One of the impacts of this rhetoric of anti-White racism is that it invites everyday Americans to see themselves as victims of a Black takeover,” Tayo Bero wrote in The Guardian. “This isn’t just absurd, it also lends credence to the far-right “White replacement theory” that underpins Trump’s political strategy.” Deplorable though his appeals to racism may be, they are an undeniably

Rod Doss Editor & Publisher

A. Broadus Assistant to the Publisher

Whether it’s protecting the planet or preserving our democracy, it can seem at times that our individual actions fall short against the biggest challenges. Let me tell you why that isn’t true. We tend to overlook that issues like these arise in the first place because of the sum of a lot of individual actions. If one by one, half of us switched to powering our homes and cars with solar and wind energy, emissions and fossil fuel extraction would drop precipitously.

It’s the paradox of the aggregate. One of us doing something has a minimal impact, a lot of us doing the same thing moves the needle—for the good or the bad.

Voting is no different. I’ve spent a good part of my career fighting to ensure people can vote and encouraging them to get out and do it.

Manager

Next week, on April 4, Wisconsin will hold a spring election, mainly for local races. It’s the kind of election that historically voters across the country skip. Voter turnout in the Wisconsin primaries last month was 21 percent, and that was a four-point improvement. Badger State voters

effective tactic in a broader strategy to divert attention from the crimes alleged in the myriad of cases against him.  They are historic in their scope and gravity: Inciting an insurrection. Conspiracy to defraud the United States. Obstructing Congress. Racketeering. Falsifying documents. Violating the Espionage Act. Obstruction of justice. Removing and concealing federal records.

Altogether, Trump stands credibly suspected of at least nine state and federal crimes that carry a total maximum penalty of nearly 70 years in prison. Bragg, whose case is receiving the most attention this week, is investigating whether Trump falsified business records with the intent to conceal a violation of election law when he bribed a porn star to keep silent about their alleged affair.

James has accused Trump in a civil case of defrauding lenders and insurers by overvaluing his assets by billions of dollars.

Willis is weighing criminal charges in connection with Trump’s attempted coercion of Georgia’s Secretary of State to falsify election results, as well as false claims of election fraud to state lawmakers, a scheme to submit fake pro-Trump electors to Congress, efforts by unauthorized individuals to access voting machines in one Georgia county and threats and harassment against

Jealous

should see this election differently.

This election will pick the swing vote on the state’s Supreme Court, which is dominated by a far-right majority that’s ruled against everything from broad use of ballot drop boxes to make voting more convenient to the right of citizens’ groups to challenge environmental permits (the dissenting justices said that decision “slam shut the courthouse doors” to Wisconsinites).

The Wisconsin race may even decide the next Presidential election. Those justices may well be called on in 2024 to rule on election challenges in a state whose 10 electoral votes have decided presidential elections. It happened that way in 2020, and the conservative in this year’s race advised the national and state Republican parties and those who sought

In an unprecedented moment in American history, the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 insurrection unanimously referred Trump to the U.S. Department of Justice for criminal prosecution on charges of insurrection, obstructing Congress, making false statements to the federal government, and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Attorney General Merrick Garland has appointed a special counsel to investigate Trump’s efforts to overturn the election.

The special counsel also is conducting a criminal investigation of Trump’s handling of sensitive documents after he left office.

These are crimes, not political differences. We, the people, are the victims. Impartial administration of justice is a universal principle of the rule of law.

In his reckless rant against the lawful pursuit of justice, Trump sycophant Rep. Biggs declared, “This type of stuff only occurs in third world authoritarian nations.” Setting aside the outdated and disrespectful reference to economically developing countries, the impartial administration of justice is precisely what does not occur under authoritarian rule.

What Trump and his henchmen are advocating is textbook autocracy: the concentration of supreme political power in the hands one person who is exempt from legal restraints and the will of the people.

Trump isn’t whipping up his MAGA army to take to the streets against his looming indictments because he believes he’s innocent. He’s not doing it because he believes the prosecutors are politically motivated. He’s doing it because he believes he’s above the law.

Until and unless we abandon the bedrock constitutional principles that define us as a nation, he is not.

to submit fake paperwork for Donald Trump electors after he lost the 2020 race.

A few more people stepping up to vote could decide this race. Statewide contests in the Dairy State often turn on razor thin margins. Wisconsin has 72 counties. If 140 more people in each one chooses to vote for the same candidate in the supreme court race, that’s one percentage point in the typical voter turnout in April. If more 500 people in each county go vote for that person, that’s nearly four points. And even with that boost in turnout, a majority of voters would still have stayed home.

So Wisconsin voters can do a lot to save the country and protect the planet if they cast their ballots. Judging by past races, most Wisconsinites plan to skip this election. The rest of us can do something by texting anyone we know in Wisconsin to let them know how important this election may be. Their State Supreme Court may end up deciding the next President.

(Ben Jealous is executive director of the Sierra Club.)

(BlackPressUSA)—When President Joe Biden took office, the economy was in crisis, millions of Americans were out of work, and Main Streets were shuttered. Two years later, it’s clear that his economic plan is working. The Biden administration has created over 12.4 million jobs during his presidency. Our nation’s unemployment rate is at the lowest since 1969 and the deficit has fallen by $1.7 trillion. That success is due in part to the transformational American Rescue Plan.

Enacted just 50 days into his term, the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan was the first step in President Biden’s strategy to stabilize families, reopen schools, make COVID-19 vaccines readily available, and get people back to work. Saturday, March 11 marks two years since the enactment. Its success could not be more apparent than in our progress in expanding access to health care, reducing childhood poverty, and closing the digital divide.

President Theodore Roosevelt was the first president to call for health care reform over 100 years ago. President Barack Obama sought to meet that call with the introduction of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACA provided subsidies for private health insurance for many low- and middle-income Americans, while strongly incentivizing states to expand Medicaid to provide coverage for those with lower incomes.

The ACA was just the first step toward making health care accessible and affordable for all Americans. The American Rescue Plan was the next one. The American Rescue Plan temporarily enhanced ACA health insurance subsidies to make coverage more affordable, resulting in millions more Americans signing up. Over 31 million Americans now have access to affordable, quality health insurance through the ACA and the average family is saving $2,400 a year on their premiums. The enhancements in the ARP have since been extended by the Inflation Reduction Act.

Does lack of investment explain failing schools?

In a recent interview, Black theoretical physicist Sylvester James Gates was asked why Black students don’t do as well on standardized tests. Gates stated that test scores measure the intrinsic capacity for students to excel, but test scores also measure the investment a society has made in those students.

Then Gates told the story of when he realized the differences in investment.

Gates attended a segregated high school in Florida in the 1960s. When his Black chess club competed against neighboring White schools, Gates realized the White schools had better facilities and the latest equipment to assist student achievement. Gates saw that his state invested more in developing White students than Black students.

It’s understandable why that tale of segregation stuck with Gates, but in the 21st century, is Gates’ answer still valid?

In recent years, only a handful of Black students were able to pass entrance exams to New York City’s elite specialized schools, but New York has the highest per-pupil spending of all 50 states. On the flip side, a WalletHub study ranked Utah schools as 13th in the nation, with high marks for educational quality, campus safety, and SAT scores, but Utah is last in the nation as far as per-pupil spending.

That shows the problem isn’t necessarily money; it’s how the money is used.

In 2022, Jovoni and Shawana Patterson filed a lawsuit against the Baltimore City School Board of Commissioners, the Baltimore City Council, and Mayor Brandon Scott. The plaintiffs accused Baltimore City Public Schools of spending billions of dollars in taxpayer money while failing to properly educate Baltimore City’s children. The lawsuit stated that in 2020-21

J. Pharoah Doss

Baltimore City Public Schools spent 25.2 percent above the national average, while its students are performing worse than most school districts in the nation.

That school year can be excused as an anomaly due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

However, the lawsuit points out that the school system was failing its students before the pandemic. The results of 2019’s statewide test revealed that only 19.7 percent of Baltimore City Public School students in grades 3 through 10 were proficient in English and only 14.1 percent in math.

These were the lowest numbers since 2015.

Since low scores on statewide tests are linked to students dropping out of high school, the lawsuit focused on the fact that Baltimore City Schools’ graduation rates “show that students can never catch up when the school system fails them early on.” It is sad to say that out of the Baltimore City School students who graduate and go on to a public university in Maryland, 70 percent must take remedial reading and math classes.

The plaintiffs also said that the waste of taxpayer money in Baltimore City Public Schools doesn’t end with spending hundreds of millions of dollars without teaching students. The school system has

acknowledged a history of committing fraud by misrepresenting enrollment data, which is directly linked to the amount of funding it receives for its annual budget.

“In 2014, the school system overreported its enrollment data by 978 students and was required to return $2.9 million in funding from Baltimore City. Only two years later, the school system misreported its enrollment data again, this time inflating its enrollment by 1,900 students.

In that case, the school system’s failure to accurately report enrollment data forced the school system to return $25 million in city funds.”

The plaintiffs added, “Without a proper education, as adults, many of these children cannot find jobs that are both personally rewarding and adequate to support themselves and their families. As such, all too often, as adults, these children require public assistance, and many become involved in the criminal justice system, creating additional burdens for taxpayers in Maryland and Baltimore City.”

Has there been any improvement since the lawsuit was filed?

In February 2023, the Maryland State Department of Education released the results of the previous year’s statewide test, and no student across 23 Baltimore City Public Schools was proficient in math. Parents with children in these 23 schools want to know how other counties in Maryland have thriving school systems, but Baltimore City Public Schools systemically fail their students year after year.

Now, if the renowned theoretical physicist Sylvester James Gates told these parents their school system was failing due to a lack of investment, these parents would accuse Gates of making excuses for a culture of corruption.

The unequal cost of protesting

Commentary

The American Rescue Plan also enhanced the incentive to expand Medicaid for the 12 states that had yet to do so. Since then, two of these states, South Dakota and North Carolina, have decided to move forward, which will expand coverage to more than 300,000 uninsured Americans living in poverty. Nearly 2 million Americans in the 10 remaining non-expansion states, including more than 100,000 in my home state of South Carolina, still find themselves in the so-called coverage gap without any assistance. I urge these states to take advantage of the ARP’s incentives to expand, which will not only provide many low-income families with access to health care, but it will also help support our rural hospitals and create jobs.

The American Rescue Plan’s financial lifelines include the expansion of the Child Tax Credit. The expanded Child Tax Credit, paid monthly, increased per-year payments from $2,000 to $3,000 per child and provided an additional $600 per child under the age of 6. This became a lifeline for hardworking families throughout the pandemic. Nearly 4 million children were lifted out of poverty and the child poverty rate declined by 46 percent in one year.

Although the expansion expired at the end of 2021, it should be reinstituted and made permanent. U.S. Census surveys show that families used the Child Tax Credit to afford basic life necessities such as childcare, food, and medicine. Making this assistance permanent would help ensure our most vulnerable have the means to provide for their families. Families’ success in the 21st century is also dependent upon access to affordable, high-speed broadband. The American Rescue Plan included $350 billion to help state, local, and tribal governments fight the pandemic and build a strong and equitable recovery through investment in long-term growth and opportunity.

These funds have created a pathway to making high-speed internet service both accessible and affordable for every South Carolinian.

The state was recently awarded $185.8 million from the American Rescue Plan’s Capital Projects Fund for high-speed broadband deployment, and the state has already set aside another $214.2 million of their allocation from the American Rescue Plan’s State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to further expand affordable, high-speed internet service.

Taken together with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other federal funding programs, South Carolina now has the $600 million needed to bring universal access to high-speed, affordable Internet service by 2026. This will connect our children to education. It will ensure our rural communities have access to telehealth and job opportunities. Most importantly, it will open a world of possibilities to every South Carolinian, no matter where they live.

I often say the 117th Congress was the most productive since President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society. President Johnson admonished that the “…Great Society is not a safe harbor, a resting place, a final objective, a finished work. It is a challenge constantly renewed, beckoning us toward a destiny where the meaning of our lives matches the marvelous products of our labor.”

After the gross negligence of the previous Administration, the American Rescue Plan put us back on track. Two years after its enactment, it continues to be the linchpin of President Joe Biden’s progress toward making our nation’s greatness accessible and affordable for all.

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—The 45th President is in the news again, facing indictments in New York and Georgia for criminal behavior regarding illegally paying a porn star (New York) and election tampering (Georgia). While the former President has not yet been indicted, he has already wallowed in his victimhood, describing the legal proceedings as “political” and biased.

His attorneys have attempted to slow the process in Georgia by lobbing accusations against Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who happens to be a Black woman. She is biased, they say, incapable of prosecuting. As usual, the 45th President and his ilk have it all wrong. And as he has done for the past 50 years, the Orange Man attempts to wiggle out of his legal challenges.

The former President has attempted to rally his troops, just as he did on January 6, 2021. Fewer may be inclined to take it to the streets, given that about a thousand insurrectionists have been charged for disorderly and disruptive conduct and more. The average sentence for these miscreants was 16 months, but so far, at least five have been sentenced to more than seven years. Some were found not guilty, and many received minor sentences.

Contrast the treatment of traitorous criminals with the treatment of Brittany Martin, a South Carolina woman who participated in a May 2020 protest against police brutality and the murder of George Floyd. She was vocal with a police officer, shouting “no justice, no peace,” and, allegedly, “I’m willing to die for the Black, are you willing to die for the Blue?

This is just a job for you; this is my life.”

Her comments were perceived as “threats” (she had no weapon), and she

Julianne Malveaux

News Analysis

was charged with aggravated breach of peace, instigating a riot, and five counts of threatening police officers. She was grossly overcharged for her verbal reaction to police violence and was sentenced, in May 2022, to four years in jail. Appeals to shorten her sentence were unsuccessful, and there is evidence that she was brutally treated in jail. She was disciplined because she refused to cut her dreadlocks for religious reasons.

Brittany Martin got a sentence of four years for yelling at a police officer. Most insurrectionists on January 6 got less than a year and a half. If everyone who shouted “no justice, no peace” at a rally were sent to jail, the jails would overflow. Why was she electively prosecuted?

Brittany Martin was harshly treated and given an unfairly lengthy sentence because she was a Black woman who chose to stand up for her rights, including her right to protest. Perhaps the judge in the case decided to make an example of her. But as the former President attempts to get the misguided morons who support him out to protest, I am reminded of the unequal ways “justice” (or should we call it just-us) is meted out. Rabid White men assaulted capitol police officers. Many escaped judgment. Others were given a slap

on the wrist. A Black woman fighting for Black people gets an unreasonably long sentence, and her pregnancy is imperiled. She gave birth in November 2022 while incarcerated, receiving neither justice nor mercy.

Brittany Martin has given birth to seven children, losing one to SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and another to gun violence. Before her latest birth, there were four surviving children, and now five children are missing their mother, including an infant who has had no time to bond with her. South Carolina incarcerated a mother for four long years for yelling at a police officer. Federal courts are sentencing insurrectionists to much less time. In some ways, comparing federal courts to state ones is like comparing apples to oranges. Still, the contrast between Brittany’s sentence and those who have done far worse is instructive.

The prior President may or may not get indicted or convicted, and he may or may not be forced to don a jumpsuit the same color as his hair used to be. But those of us who watch the so-called justice system are almost certain that he’ll get a break, just like his supporters, the January 6 insurrectionists are getting.

Yelling is not the same as breaking into a federal building, assaulting Capitol police officers, breaking windows, and busting into Speaker Pelosi’s office. The insurrectionists excuse their lawlessness by leaning on “free speech” rights. Where are the rights of Brittany Martin and the other fearless freedom fighters treated shabbily by the courts?

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

Conservative groups don’t speak for all moms

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—As

Women’s History Month comes to a close, I’ve been thinking about moms and honoring motherhood. I’ve written before about how my mom instilled values in me, including respect for everyone’s rights—not just my own.  Mom also worked multiple jobs to support our family through some very hard times. She represents my ideal of what a mother should be, without a doubt.

And maybe she would represent yours too, or my neighbor’s. I certainly think so —but the truth is I can’t say for sure, and I can’t insist on it.

Unfortunately, that is exactly what some on the Right are trying to do by claiming to speak for all mothers and even all parents. This effort to steal the moral authority of motherhood only for themselves is wrong, and it has to be stopped.

The far-right group Moms for Liberty is a marquee example with an especially insidious name. The group is behind book banning efforts in numerous states. Its main targets are books and materials that address race, racism, and gender and gender identity issues.  It supports a bill that is coming to the floor of the U.S. House as I write this, called the Parents’ Bill of Rights.  This House bill would more accurately be called a bill of rights for some parents. Moms—and dads, like myself—who oppose the bill see it for what it is: a vehicle that opens the door to more book censorship

and book bans, not to mention bullying and discrimination.  Instead of creating a school environment where children are challenged and thrive and all parents are treated as partners, this bill prevents students from learning and teachers from teaching. In fact, supporters of the bill rejected amendments to fund Statewide Family Engagement Centers and to designate a parent coordinator at every school.

Fortunately, the bill has little chance of passage in the Senate. But it mirrors “parental rights bills” that are passing in state after state.  Moms for Liberty is often behind these efforts. Of course, it’s not hard to see that what this “pro-liberty” group is actually doing is infringing on your liberty —specifically, what political scientists call your negative liberty. That’s your right to pursue your interests free from interference from others.

But interference with your choices is what Moms for Liberty is all about.  What they and other groups like them are claiming is their prerogative to decide what is right not just for their kids, but for your

kids. The rights of moms, and all parents, with a different view do not enter into the equation.

That’s why it’s so important to speak up if we are parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, guardians or others responsible for raising and nurturing young people.

Far-right groups like Moms for Liberty are well-funded, well-connected and well-organized. They have a head start. There is an urgent need to push back against the wave of censorship and repression that they have set in motion. I feel especially strongly about this as a Black parent, because so much of the censorship is aimed at Black history and studies. The list of states that have either banned the AP African American Studies course or put it on the back burner for “review” is up to six, and growing.

For those who want to be part of the fight for inclusive education and against censorship, the American Library Association’s Unite Against Book Bans campaign website is a good place to start.  It includes upto-date information and a toolkit.  Attending school board meetings and speaking out are also really important.

As I said, I can think of no better role model, moral guide and inspiration than my mom.  But I will always respect your right to feel the same way about yours. Groups like Moms for Liberty just won’t.

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

Rep. James Clyburn

Estate of VIVIAN L. COLLIER, Deceased of Bridgeville, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Estate No. 02-23-01641 John J. Collier, Executor, 230 Policz Road, Waynesburg, PA 15370 or to TODD A. FULLER, ATTY; BRENLOVE & FULLER, LLC., 401 Washington Avenue, Bridgeville, PA 15017

Estate of MAGGIE MAY GRIFFIN, Deceased

Late of Allegheny County, Estate No. 022300327, Letters of Administration upon the above estate having been granted to the undersigned all person having claims against the estate are requested to make known the same to the undersigned or her attorney and all persons indebted to decedent are requested to make payment to the undersigned without delay, Administratrix: Terri L. Griffin, 1414 Liverpool Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15233, Attorney: Roger J. Gaydos, Esquire, 407 Oak Spring Road, Canonsburg, PA 15317

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

In re: Michael J. O’Hara, Deceased, Orphan’s Court Division, 02-23-01613 DECREE NISI

AND NOW, this 16th day of March, 2023, after consideration of the Petition filed by RE Servicing, LLC to Establish Title to Decedent’s Real Estate Pursuant to 20 Pa.C.S. §3546, it is hereby Ordered and DECREED NISI that title to all the interest Michael J. O’Hara, Deceased, in the Real Estate known as 1107 Linden Place, Pittsburgh, PA 152132 and designated as Block 23-M, Lot 108, is adjudged to be fully in RE Servicing, LLC.

Notice of this Decree shall be given to all known Creditors and parties in interest by US Mail and by publication in the Pittsburgh Legal Journal and in one newspaper of general circulation in Allegheny County. Proof of publication and a Certificate of Service shall be filed of record in this matter.

If no exception to this Decree is filed within three months, it shall be confirmed absolute. A certified copy shall be recorded in the Office of the Department of Real Estate of Allegheny County, which shall be indexed under the name of the Decedent and in the name of the Grantee, Penn Pioneer Enterprises, LLC.

By the Court, Michael Marmo. J.

OFFICIAL NOTICE

BOROUGH OF AVALON

ZONING HEARING BOARD NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT A PUBLIC HEARING WILL BE CONDUCTED ON MONDAY, APRIL 10, 2023, AT 6:00 PM AT THE AVALON BOROUGH ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, 640 CALIFORNIA AVE, PITTSBURGH, PA 15202.

The Zoning Hearing Board of Avalon Borough, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania will hold a Hearing on Monday, April 10, 2023, at 6:00 pm on the Zoning Hearing Board

Application for property located at 932 Clive St., Lot and Block No. 160-E-121, and 936 Clive St., Lot and Block No. 160-E-119, in the R-H: High Density Residential district.

Applicant is appealing from the Zoning Officer’s denial of an application to construct a single-car parking pad in the front yard of each unit. Alternately, Application is seeking a variance from relief from Section 2000-800[B](2) of the Tri-Boroughs Joint Zoning Ordinance, as amended by Ordinance No. 1386, which states:

Article 2000-800 [B](2): Parking

Outside of the Curb Lines – All required parking in any “R” Zoning District must be outside of the front yard in any “R” District. No singlefamily, duplex, or two family lots shall have more than twenty-five (25) percent of the front yard used for driveway purposes.

Members of the public are invited to attend. Attendance at the meeting is a prerequisite to the right to take any subsequent appeal of the Zoning Hearing Board Decision.

All documents relative to this application are available for review in the Borough Administrative Office during normal business hours. Please contact Assistant Manager Leanne McLaughlin at 412-7615820 with any questions.

Leanne McLaughlin Assistant Borough Manager

LEGAL ADVERTISING Bids/Proposals

LEGAL ADVERTISING Bids/Proposals

CITY OF PITTSBURGH

OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET

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Separate and sealed Bid Proposals will be received electronically starting on Tuesday, March 22, 2023 for:

2023-RFP-058

–The City of Pittsburgh Three River Heritage Trail Maintenance & Management Plan

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:

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 certific ations 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.

ADVERTISEMENT

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

RFP 3142 – Photovoltaic Design, Engineering, Procurement, Installation, and PPA Financing – West Hills Center

Due date: 2:00 P.M. Prevailing

Time on Thursday April 20, 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.

To place a display ad in the New Pittsburgh Courier call 412-481-8302 ext. 128

ALLEGHENY COUNTY AIRPORT AUTHORITY LETTERS-OF-INTEREST FOR PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING SERVICES

March 29, 2023

Letters-of-Interest (LOI) with current Form SF330, for professional design engineering services, will be received through the platform Submittable at www.acaacapitalprograms.submittable.com. The Letter of Interest (LOI) must be uploaded to Submittable by 12:00 PM on May 19, 2023 (late submissions will not be accepted), for the following:

A. General Professional Design Engineering Services:

The ACAA will typically utilize a professional design engineering firm on each of the projects listed below at Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) and Allegheny County Airport (AGC) which requires engineering services. Specific responsibilities will include all aspects of design engineering required for new construction, rehabilitation, repairs, maintenance and permitting of airfield pavements, roadways, land development, erosion and sediment control, stormwater management, drainage systems, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, roof replacements, and other structures for the ACAA. Engineering firms will be required to provide, but not limited to, design, geotechnical investigations, surveying, permitting, preparation of bidding documents, construction administration, construction cost estimating, value engineering, and maintain all records as required by the FAA, PennDOT, PADEP, Findlay and Moon Townships, the ACAA or other entities as required.

1. Asphalt and Concrete Repair and Replacement

Work will include miscellaneous repairs and replacement of cracked and deteriorated pavement on roads, shoulders, sidewalks, curbs, parking lots, runways, taxiways, aprons and ramps.

2. Airfield Pavement Rehabilitation, Signage, and Electrical Upgrades

Work may consist of partial or full keel section replacement, isolated concrete slab work, joint and crack repair, trench drain repair, asphalt shoulder work, lighting upgrades, signage improvements, and pavement marking. Typical projects may include:

a. Airfield signage and sign bases

b. Airfield apron and trench drains

c. Runways, aprons and taxiways

d. Joint sealant and spall repairs

e. Airfield lighting upgrades/replacements

3. Infrastructure Development, Repair and Replacement

Work may consist of permitting, surveying, geotechnical investigations, site grading, drainage, roadways, aprons, taxiways, sanitary and storm sewers, potable and fire protection water, electrical, HVAC, telephone and gas lines.

4. Building Rehabilitation, Replacement and Upgrades

Work may consist of miscellaneous mechanical, electrical or structural repairs, roof replacement, brick work, caulking, sealing, painting, baggage system upgrades and security upgrades on the Landside and Airside Buildings, and other miscellaneous buildings as required.

B. Professional Design Engineering On-Call Services:

The ACAA has a need for separate contracts to provide professional design engineering services on an on-call, as-needed basis to provide design, assessments, capital cost estimates, emergency evaluations and repairs, and other special needs for various projects that may arise. Engineering firms must be qualified and be prepared to respond on very short notice to various issues which may arise at any time of day, seven days a week. Experienced and qualified staff members must be on-call and available on a 24/7 basis. Areas of expertise must also include familiarity with FAA Advisory Circulars; and PennDOT and PADEP permitting requirements. Submittal Procedure and Requirements:

If interested in providing any of the aforementioned services, design engineering firms are required to submit a Letter-of-Interest (LOI) and current Form SF330, identifying the specific service area(s) of interest with emphasis on main area(s) of competence. The ACAA encourages responses from small firms, minority, and women’s business firms, and firms that have not previously worked for the ACAA. The ACAA will use Form SF330 to evaluate and prequalify firms to be part of a highly qualified short-list, which will then be requested to submit comprehensive proposals. Comprehensive proposals will include the following at a minimum: Project understanding, project experience, project team identification, organization chart and resumes; approach to major tasks such as scope and schedule management, techniques for cost control, approach to capital cost estimating, scope creep and change order management, and identification of Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Firms with description and quantity of work they will perform to meet or exceed FAA and ACAA DBE requirements, which is currently 14.9%. Note: Do not include company brochures and limit the LOI to no more than three typewritten pages (8.5” x 11”, 11 pt. font) in addition to Standard Form 330. Additionally, Section H. Additional Information of the Standard Form 330 is limited to two typewritten pages. A link to obtain SF330 can be found by going to the following website: https://www.gsa.gov/forms-library/architect-engineer-qualifications

Submissions will be received in PDF format as one file only through the platform Submittable at www.acaacapitalprograms.submittable.com. Do NOT mail or deliver hard copies as they will be considered rejected and will be returned to the respondent unopened. Please note that Submittable does not support Internet Explorer 11. Submittable recommends the following browsers: Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Apple Safari.

Submissions should be made to:

Mr. Jeff Bezek, P.E.

Director, Engineering

Allegheny County Airport Authority Pittsburgh International Airport Landside Terminal, 4th Floor Mezz. PO Box 12370 Pittsburgh, PA 15231-0370

Questions should be directed to Mr. Jeff Bezek, P.E. at 412-472-3852 or email to jbezek@flypittsburgh.com

Final consultant selections (following short-listing, proposal evaluation, and interviews) will be based on, but not limited to, the following criteria: Staff qualifications, experience and local office bench strength; demonstrated interest in the projects; organization, clarity, cohesiveness, quality and completeness of both the written proposal and oral presentation; sensitivity to ACAA requirements and project constraints; indicated ability to manage projects, produce required results, meeting project schedule and controlling costs; demonstrated knowledge of FAA, PennDOT, local, and ACAA applicable standards and requirements; capital cost estimating expertise, constructability reviews, value engineering, construction procedures and scheduling methods; monitoring DBE goals, mentoring DBE firms, impacts to airport operations and other areas of professional design engineering.

Separate sealed Bids for the Work as listed hereinafter will be received at the Purchasing and Materials Management Department of Port Authority of Allegheny County (Authority) Heinz 57 Center, 345 Sixth Avenue, Third Floor, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15222-2527 until 1:30 p.m. on April 27, 2023 (Please call David Hart at (412) 566-5415 prior to arriving at this location - all participants - IF UNVACCINATED AGAINST COVID-19 - must provide and wear a mask at all times and practice minimum social distancing of 6 feet between other individuals) and will be publicly opened and read immediately thereafter at the same address. Each Bidder shall be solely responsible for assuring that its Bid is both received and time stamped by a representative of the Purchasing and Materials Management Department at or before the advertised time for submission of Bids. Bidders submitting bids via FedEx, UPS, USPS or other carrier must immediately provide tracking information to the assigned contract specialist via e-mail. Upon delivery, bidder will notify the assigned contract specialist with an e-mailed receipt. Bids received or time stamped in the Purchasing and Materials Management Department after the advertised time for the submission of Bids shall be non-responsive and therefore ineligible for Award.

EAST BUSWAY PAVEMENT RESTORATION CONTRACT NO. EB-23-04

The Work of this Project includes, but is not limited to, the furnishing of all labor, materials, tools, equipment, and incidental items necessary for the milling and repaving of approximately 6.9 miles of the Martin Luther King, Jr., East Busway from just beyond the Penn Station (Sta. 201+95) to the Wilkinsburg Station (Sta. 533+40). The Work will include the milling of 1.5 inches of the existing bituminous pavement and overlaying with 1.5 inches of new bituminous Superpave pavement.

The Work will also include miscellaneous concrete repairs throughout the East Busway corridor from Penn Station (Sta. 201+95) to the end of the East Busway (Sta. 680+50.45) at South Braddock Avenue in Swissvale, PA.

Bid Documents will be available for public inspection and may be obtained on or after March 27, 2023 at Authority’s offices at the following address:

Port Authority of Allegheny County Purchasing and Materials Management Department Heinz 57 Center 345 Sixth Avenue, Third Floor Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222-2527

Bid Documents are available for purchase as follows: Bid Documents are available in an electronic form on compact disk upon payment of $15.00 per Flash Drive. Payment shall be by check or money order (NO CASH), payable to “Port Authority of Allegheny County.” No refunds of payment will be made. Upon request, Bid Documents can be mailed upon receipt of payment in full. Should the purchaser wish to have the Bid Documents delivered via special delivery, such as UPS or Federal Express, the purchaser shall provide its appropriate account numbers for such special delivery methods.

This Project may be funded, in part, by, and subject to certain requirements of, the County of Allegheny and/or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Authority, in compliance with 74 Pa.C.S. § 303, as may be amended, require that certified Diverse Businesses (“DBs”) have the maximum opportunity to participate in the performance of contracts and subcontracts for this Project. In this regard, all Bidders shall make good faith efforts in accordance with 74 Pa.C.S. § 303, to ensure that DBs have the maximum opportunity to compete for and perform contracts. Bidders shall also not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, age, disability, national origin, sexual origin, gender identity or status as a parent in the award and performance of contracts for this Project. If aid is required to involve DBs in the Work, Bidders are to contact Authority’s Director of Employee Relations and OEO at (412) 566-5262.

The Bidder’s attention is directed to the following contacts for Bidder’s questions:

Procedural Questions Regarding Bidding: David Hart - Authority (412) 566-5415

All other questions relating to the Bid Documents must be submitted by mail or email to:

Port Authority of Allegheny County Heinz 57 Center 345 Sixth Avenue, Third Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15222-2527

Attn: David Hart email: DHart@rideprt.org

In addition, the Bidder ’s attention is directed to the following schedule of activities for preparation of its Bid:

9:00 a.m.

Pre-Bid Conference (in-person or via Teams) April 12, 2023

Port Authority of Allegheny County Heinz 57 Center Board Room 345 Sixth Avenue, Third Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15222-2527 (Attendance is not mandatory, but strongly recommended)

Meeting ID: 293 350 031 621

Passcode: VbNPAm

Call in (audio only): 412-927-0245 Conference ID#672 871 928#

LEGAL ADVERTISING

Bids/Proposals

LEGAL ADVERTISING

Bids/Proposals

PORT AUTHORITY OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY D.B.A. 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 April 11, 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 B23-03-18 Fixx Expansion

2 B23-03-19A Nitrile Gloves

3 B23-03-20A Coach Radiators

4 B23-03-21A CRP Air Conditioning

5 B22-12-123AR Paper Products - Janitorial Supplies

To join the bid opening through Microsoft Teams meeting on your computer, mobile app or room device Meeting ID: 276 578 910 863

Passcode: Kdj2Nz

Or call in (audio only)

412-927-0245

Phone Conference ID: 628 197 512#

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, March 28, 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: 290 930 588 454 Passcode: 4KnCW9 Or call in (audio only)

412-927-0245 Phone Conference ID: 286 913 705#

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.

INVITATION TO BID

REQUEST

LEGAL ADVERTISING Bids/Proposals

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) FOR WORKFORCE TRAINING PROGRAM

RFP#550-13-23

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

Workforce Training Program

The documents will be available no later than March 27, 2023, and signed, sealed proposals will be accepted until: 10:00 AM on April 20, 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 10:00 AM on March 27, 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 April 6, 2023, at 10:00 AM. Please see meeting information below:

Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 858 7816 0313 Passcode: 567537 +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington D.C)

11:00 a.m.

Pre-Bid Site Tour April 12, 2023 immediately following the Pre-Bid Conference

Contractors to initially meet at: Heinz 57 Center Lobby 345 Sixth Avenue, Third Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15222-2527

Transportation will be provided.

All participants must provide and wear safety vests and appropriate footwear; all participants

- IF UNVACCINATED AGAINST COVID-19 - must provide and wear a mask at all times and practice minimum social distancing of 6 feet between other individuals. Tours will be conducted in limited group sizes and in the order of which bidders sign-in at the site. (Attendance is not mandatory, but strongly recommended.)

1:30 p.m. Bids Due

April 27, 2023

Purchasing and Materials Management Department

Please call David Hart at (412) 566-5415 prior to arriving at the Heinz 57 location - all participants

- IF UNVACCINATED AGAINST COVID-19 - must provide and wear a mask at all times and practice minimum social distancing of 6 feet between other individuals.

Bids submitted via Fed Ex, UPS, USPS or other

carrier are subject to the notification requirements indicated above.

2:00 p.m. Bid Opening

April 27, 2023 will be conducted via Teams at:

Meeting ID: 216 580 113 666

Passcode: To7Rps

Call in (audio only): 412-927-0245

Conference ID#180 043 412#

Authority reserves the right to reject any or all Bids

ARTICLE 2 – PRE-BID CONFERENCE

A Pre-Bid Conference may be held with prospective Bidders to review the Bid Documents and generally discuss the Project. The time and place will be specified in the Advertisement. All Bidders are encouraged to submit their questions in writing to the respective individuals listed in the Advertisement prior to the time specified in the Advertisement for the Pre-Bid Conference. A response may be provided during the Pre-Bid Conference or by Addendum thereafter.

ARTICLE 3 – PRE-BID TOUR

If a site tour is to be conducted covering the area(s) of the Work, it will be held at the date and time indicated in the Advertisement.

ARTICLE 4 – PUBLIC OPENING OF BIDS

Bids will be publicly opened and announced at the advertised time and place set for such Bid opening.

CLASSIFIEDS GET RESULTS!

The HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE COUNTY OF BEAVER will receive sealed bids, in duplicate, until 9:30 AM (local time) on Friday, April 28, 2023 at the office of the Housing Authority of the County of Beaver, James F. Tress Administration Building, 300 State Ave (Vanport), Beaver, Pennsylvania at which time and place all bids will be publicly opened and read aloud at 10:00 A.M for the HACB Water Heater Replacement at Thomas Bishop Apts, Brodhead Apts, and Sheffield Towers at Francis Farmer Apartments, Community Room, 274 Friendship Circle, Beaver, PA 15009. A fifteen percent (15 %) bid bond is required for this project. Proposed forms of contract documents, including Plans and Specifications may be obtained at the Housing Authority of the County of Beaver Central Office, James F. Tress Administration Building, 300 State Avenue, Beaver, PA 15009 by first mailing $100.00 in the form of a check made payable to the HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE COUNTY OF BEAVER for each set of documents so obtained. An additional $10.00 is required if you want it mailed. DEPOSITS ARE NOT REFUNDABLE. Plans and specifications will be available on Thursday, March 30, 2023.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT

OPPORTUNITY and Section 3

Compliance are required.

PA

The MMVTA will award an agreement, if at all, through the competitive process set forth in the RFQ. Individuals/Firms will be required to comply with all regulations applicable to a federally and statefunded procurement. The MMVTA reserves the right to postpone, accept or reject any or all proposals as the MMVTA deems to be in its own best interest subject to the rules and regulations of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the U.S. Department of Transportation. All proposals will remain open for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of opening. Any person or business on the Comptroller General’s list of ineligible bidders and /or those who have been prohibited from doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or it’s agencies/ subdivisions, is not an eligible proposer.

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.

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) FOR CONSULTING SERVICES FOR CENTRAL MAINTENANCE GAS AND DIESEL STATION UPGRADES

RFP#600-04-23

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

Consulting Services for Central Gas and Diesel Station Upgrades

The documents will be available no later than March 27, 2023, and signed, sealed proposals will be accepted until: 9:00 AM on April 25, 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 April 25, 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 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:

James Harris

Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Department

100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-643-2915

A pre-submission meeting will be held in person; on April 11,2023 at 9:00 AM. Please see meeting information below:

On-site Meeting

Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Central Maintenance Building 201 Kirkpatrick Street Pittsburgh, PA 15219

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.

JOB OPPORTUNITIES

Help Wanted RHEUMATOLOGIST

University of Pittsburgh Physicians located at U. S. Steel Tower, 57th Floor, 600 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, seeks a Rheumatologist to treat patients with rheumatic diseases, systematic autoimmune conditions, and musculoskeletal diseases; provide arthritis treatments; treat patients with conditions such as tendon issues, muscle injuries, and rare, inherited disorders; responsible for the management of patients with rheumatic disease, both in an outpatient clinic setting and in-patient rounding, follow up care, and medical management of these patients- most patients have chronic diseases that will require lifetime care at UPMC St. Margaret, 815 Freeport Road, Pittsburgh PA 15215, UPMC East, 2775 Mosside Blvd., Monroeville PA 15146, and UPMC Shadyside, 5230 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15232.

Has the ability to work remotely from home. Position requires a Medical Degree or its equivalent, must have completed a residency in Internal Medicine, must have completed a fellowship in Rheumatology, must be Board certified in Internal Medicine and eligible for certification in Rheumatology, must have a valid, non-restricted and Pennsylvania medical license and DEA certification. Requires travel to worksites within 20 miles. Apply by following these steps; visit http://careers.upmc.com and enter 230000RP in the “Search Keyword/Job ID” field and click Go. EOE/Disability/Veteran.

TECHNOLOGY ENGINEER

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. seeks a Technology Engineer in Pittsburgh, PA, to participate in all aspects of PNC’s C&IB’s Systems Engineering Group activities. Position allows for the ability to work from home with appropriate telecommuting systems for up to one day per week, with a minimum of four days per week in the office.

Specific duties include: (i) lead the technical design and development of cross-functional, multi-platform Payment application systems using Global Pay Plus 5.0 and 4.6, custom enhancements and integration solutions; (ii) be accountable for development and design activities directly related to migration of legacy Wire and ACH platforms to a modernized real-time payments system using Global Pay Plus application suite that supports the needs of our Corporate and Institutional customers; (iii) participate in activities related to both core payments processing and ancillary initiatives all directly tied to the Payments Engine platform; (iv) develop DevOps Pipeline development using Ansible; (v) align business strategy with software solutions; (vi) execute complex projects/ initiatives including Technology Architecture, Design, Development, Testing and Release Management; (vii) analyze technical feasibility through proof of concepts; (viii) mentor the development team and perform design and code reviews, guide best practice; and (ix) translate business requirements into technical requirements and solutions by planning, developing, and refining ‘to-be’ architectures.

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Applications, Computer Information Systems, MIS, Computer Science or Computer Engineering plus 3 years of experience in software development position(s) requiring the use of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) in or for the financial services industry is required. Must have experience with: (i) Finastra’s Global Plus Payments software 4.6 and 5.0; (ii) payments experience (Swift, Fed, CHIPS, Real-Time Payments and ACH); (iii) Java based integration with spring framework and J2EE platforms; (iv) RESTful webservices design and development; (v) API design specification using Swagger framework; (vi) Ansible scripting for DevOps Pipeline development; (vii) planning, design, development, testing and release management and implementation with server technologies Websphere application server, Websphere ExtremeScale and Message Queueing, and Enterprise-wide REST/API applications;

(viii) designing and developing scalable, resilient and agile application integrations using database concepts and testing; (ix) distributed computing technologies including SOA (Service Oriented Architecture); (x) modern, Agile-based application development methodologies; (xi) planning and executing release plan and guiding team to implement monthly releases;

(xii) implementing the automation lifecycle to reduce manual intervention in the release process from development, testing and production environment using UrbanCode deployment tool;

(xiii) monitoring application using tools Dynatrace, Splunk and Oracle Enterprise Manager to provide solutions; and (xiv) Wire payments including FED, The Clearing House Interbank Payments System (CHIPS) and Batch Payment process. 40 hours/week, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Interested individuals apply online at www.pnc.com using keyword R130392. PNC provides equal employment opportunity to qualified persons regardless of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, veteran status, or other categories protected by law.

HELP WANTED

The Washington County Housing Authority is looking for a Property Manager that is experienced in Section 8 New Construction and Tax Credit properties, however, all Property Management experience will be considered. This individual will manage properties in Monongahela and New Eagle. This is a full-time Union position with an annual salary range of $39,512.00-$43,916.00

Benefits include: health, vision and dental insurance, paid time off, and a retirement plan. Hours are MondayFriday, 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. with an unpaid lunch hour.

Please contact Debbie Hurrell at 724-228-6060 ext. 110 for an application.

Stanley P. Shook, Deputy Executive Director

WASHINGTON COUNTY HOUSING AUTHORITY

An Equal Opportunity Employer

APPRENTICESHIP:

The Joint Apprenticeship Committee of the Heat & Frost In-sulators and Allied Workers Local #2, Pittsburgh, PA is accepting applications for consideration towards apprenticeship in the Mechanical System Insulator and Asbestos Worker Trade. Applications are accepted without regard to Race, Religion, National Origin, Sex, Age, or Disability. Applicants must be a minimum of 18 years of age at the time of acceptance into the program; have a high school diploma or G.E.D at the time of acceptance into the program; have a dependable form of transportation; and must be physically fit to perform the work of the trade. Applications must be obtained in person Monday through Saturday: April 3, through April 8, 2023 and Monday through Thursday: April 10, through April 13, 2023 between the hours of 12:30 PM and 5:00 PM at the Insulators Training Center, 109 Pleasant Drive Suite B, Aliquippa, PA 15001. Photo identification is required and there is a $25.00 (non-refundable) application processing fee, to be paid by cashier’s check or money order.

SOUTH FAYETTE TWP.

SCHOOL DISTRICT is seeking a: BUILDING CUSTODIAN Applications must be received by 4:00 PM March 31, 2023

Complete job descriptions and directions on how to apply are available at: www.southfayette.org

SOUTH FAYETTE TWP.

SCHOOL DISTRICT is seeking the following positions: PERSONAL CARE PARAEDUCATOR CLASSROOM PARAEDUCATOR Applications must be received by 4:00 PM, April 12, 2023

Complete job

My NCAA bracket, busted again!

But I have Miami winning it all!

:10—Let’s get this out of the way first and foremost...once UCLA went down in flames my entire bracket was busted. Again. For probably the 10th year in a row. And that’s what makes March Madness so much fun and so frustrating. No #1 seeds in the Elite Eight for the first time ever. Florida Atlantic (FAU), San Diego State, Miami and Connecticut (UCONN) as your Final Four teams. And yeah, I had exactly zero of these teams in my Final Four. But I digress. These four teams were simply the best as shown and proved on the court. I mean c’mon, Jordan Miller from Miami shooting 7 of 7 from the field and 13 of 13 from the free throw line, putting up 27 points and leading the Hurricanes from 13 back in the second half on Sunday, March 26, against a stillstunned Texas Longhorns team. Burnish the legend.

UCONN with a total team effort drubbing the Gonzaga Bulldogs 82-54 and it wasn’t even that close. The FAU Owls holding off Kansas State and their 5’8” dynamo and all-world guard Marquis Nowell, he of the 30 point, 12-assist night to no avail in their

79-76 loss. And last but not least, San Diego State Aztecs and their bruising defense first defeating the Creighton Bluejays 57-56 on a last-second, rather dubious, free throw. It was a wild, electric, totally incredible weekend of March Madness hoops and I couldn’t be any more amazed at how all four games played out.

:09—Okay, let’s get the elephant in the room hiding behind the curtains out of the way. The very ticky-tacky foul call on Darrion Trammell from San Diego State at the conclusion of their contest with Creighton was pretty weak. Actually it was really weak. A blatant foul where someone gets steamrolled or smacked upside the head? Yeah, make the call. A little touch around the waist? Give me a break, the ref inserted himself into the fray and decided the game for the Aztecs when he should of just let them play into overtime. That’s old school. And that’s what I am and where I come from. ‘nuff said.

:08—Man, that weak ACC this year, probably none of the teams should have made the tournament. Oh, except that one

of the Final Four teams is from the ACC, your Miami Hurricanes. So shut up already, you never know with the NCAA Men’s Tournament. Pitt deserved to be in the tourney and deserved better than a play-in game. Remember, back in January Pitt took down the Hurricanes 71-68. I’m just sayin’.

:07—Prediction? You want a prediction on the craziest tournament ever? Fine. And this is based on 60 years of basketball knowledge, running the Connie Hawkins League, coaching, playing with a modicum of talent for years and watching years and years of hoops at almost every level it’s played. I’ll go with San Diego State over Florida Atlantic and Miami over UCONN with Miami taking it all over San Diego State on a last-second shot to win on Monday, April 3rd.

:06—Switching things up, your Pittsburgh Pirates open the season on the road Thursday, March 30, in Cincinnati against the Reds at 4:10 p.m. Mitch Keller starts for our Bucs against Hunter Green for the Reds. With a youth-oriented team the Bucs should be exciting and although contending is a long shot this year, don’t think that a good year this year can’t springboard them to respectability and contention in the 2024 season. I’d love to see the Bryan Reynolds contract situation resolved with a new contract for Reynolds but that seems like a far-fetched dream at this point. Still under contract for two years, here’s hoping Reynolds explodes this year and realizes his full potential with another All-Star year and when he’s traded we can get some really solid prospects for the future. Wait. What? Doesn’t that sound all too familiar? I thought so.

:05—Oneil Cruz, all 6’7” of him, is poised to be a 30-home run, 40 doubles, .280 hitting freak show this year. If he gets off to a slow start, don’t panic and don’t boo the guy at PNC Park. He may never be the slick-fielding shortstop he

wants to be and a move to the outfield is almost inevitable, but for now let’s all just marvel at him swooping down on balls and throwing lightning bolts to first base and cracking line drives and home runs at 120 mph off his big bat. He’s going to be the real deal.

:04—Another day, another free agent signing for the Pittsburgh Steelers, this one Cole Holcomb, three-down linebacker formerly of the Washington Commanders and Elandon Roberts, linebacker from the Dolphins and Patriots, both prodigious run-stoppers but neither a great pass coverage kind of guy. Both men are proven tough, hard-nosed linebackers and Holcomb should be an improvement over departed, disappointing Devin Bush. Roberts, with two Super Bowl rings from when he played with the Patriots, is also a special teams demon and his leadership should translate well to the Steelers’ defensive culture.

:03—Anyone that watched the final game in the World Baseball Classic between Japan and the United States and wasn’t riveted when Japan’s and the Angels’ Shohei

Ohtani struck out Angels teammate and the United States’ Mike Trout in the 9th inning on a full count to win the Classic needs to have their pulse checked. MLB’s two best players, and legends in the making, battling to the final pitch was everything a fan could ask for and more. Ohtani, the extraordinary two-way talent, is even better than advertised and Mike Trout may be the best player not named Ohtani since Willie Mays in his heyday.

:02—Kudos to University of Pittsburgh wrestler Nino Bonaccorsi who became Pitt’s 17th national champion by beating South Dakota State’s Tanner Sloan in the 197-pound division. Bonaccorsi, from Bethel Park, also went 21-0 this season, the 6th perfect season in Pitt history. Congratulations to Nino on a tremendous season and career for the Pitt wrestling program.

:01—Never in doubt, Penn State won the NCAA team title in wrestling, going wire-to-wire as the #1 team in the nation. Congratulations to the Nittany Lions team and with 10 titles in the last 12 years, they are amazing. :00—GAME OVER.

THE OUTRAGE OF THE BLUEBLOODS

Only one ‘Blueblood,’ UCONN, is in the Final Four

Hear ye, hear ye, an infected and defective pool of competition is all that remains of the teams representing the “blueblood stream” of the 2023 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. The unscientific and pig Latin name of this newly discovered virus that has affected the so-called “quality” of the Final Four is “upsetus-monititus,” or in more simplistic terms, broken down for a few of us laymen means: “Don’t upset the flow of the dough, Creflo.” ‘The 2023 lineup for the Final Four is as follows. 1. UConn is the odds-on favorite to bring home the bacon. 2. San Diego State qualified for the “Fab Four” with a highly contested and questionable win over Creighton.

3. Miami is next in line.

4. Florida Atlantic is a program that is seeking a Cinderella-like conclusion to a very unlikely season. San Diego State is the only team that was ranked in the 2023 preseason polls (at #19) still left

standing. At this stage of the tournament, many of these athletes that perform for blue-blooded programs are now following the festivities on their big screens, stationed on their Lay-Z-Boy recliners suffering from a serious case of competitive anemia, wiping hot wings sauce from the corners of their mouths.

Consider the more than $1.18 billion that are injected and invested by advertisers into the markets of these so-called “blue-blooded” teams. Many of these schools are annually and automatically chosen by oddsmakers and ad makers alike to compete and win with “Vegas” in tow, sitting on the fence like the vultures that they are, waiting for pieces of carrion to drop. There is no foolproof method to pre-determine where advertising dollars will be invested because money for advertising budgets is often allocated years in advance. If you will, please consider the follow-

ing piece of info. After advancing to the Elite Eight, Creighton University was eliminated. The school is in Omaha, Nebraska, population, 486,051. On the other hand, San Diego State University beat Creighton to advance to the Final Four. San Diego State is in San Diego, Calif., and has a population of 1,423,851, which is 937,800 more people than the population of Omaha. What team do you think the advertising CFOs and executives are going to covertly and overtly be rooting for? If you guessed San Diego State, you might be on to something.

There are only two factors that influence any decision made in the past, present, or future by the

NCAA or any other competitive watchdog: money, money, advertisers, and the kings and princes of “viva Los Vegas.” Oh, Charlie Chan so sorry, Charlie Chan lost count, that is four factors instead of two.

On the commentary and analysis front, we have Charles “Gnarles” Barkley, a voice from the “country-hood” masquerading as a southern gentleman and pseudo-patriot, oops apologies are once again in order from Charlie Chan. Gnarles Barkley is the hip-hop star to whom Charlie Chan gives much respect, now regarding Charles Barkley, not so much. From the other side of the trailer park analyzing the officiating comes; Gene “the genie” Steratore almost always justifies or attempts to justify any bonehead or incompetent call made by the officials. On March 26, Sam McKewon on posted an article on https://omaha.com/sports titled: “I’m

Upset: Charles Barkley,

Jay Wright, CBS Analysts

Debate Late Foul Call on Creighton.”

After a questionable call at the end of the San Diego State vs. Creighton game which Creighton lost by a single point, 5756, Mr. McKewon quoted Charles Barkley as saying: “I don’t like the call, personally, because it decided the game. That was too good of a basketball game to come down — and if you actually look at the play, (Trammell) shortarmed that ball, that ball — watch him shoot! — his arm was coming down before (Nembhard) barely touched him. That ball was going to be short anyway. I hate when a referee decides the game.”

Gene “the Genie” Steratore offered his analysis of the “foul” called on Creighton guard Ryan Nembhard with 1.2 seconds remaining in the game. It was a shooting foul that awarded San Diego State guard Darrion Trammell two free throws that sealed the win for San

Diego State. Mr. McKewon also wrote that: “Steratore explained that the trail official who whistled for the foul had an assignment to ‘follow the ball.’”

“In his opinion, he felt like (Nembhard’s) left hand had displaced (Trammell) to a place that affected his shot,” Steratore said. “That’s his judgment. That’s the decision he made based on the angle that he had.”

Sometimes it appears to me that Steratore rubs a magic lantern and outflows his analysis. If the angle of the official was inadequate, then why wasn’t his call overturned by an official or officials that were in the position to make the correct call? Ladies and gents, we must remove our heads from the sand. Also please remember there is no such thing as a “bad call.” The only thing that matters is if the call is wrong or right.