Pittsburgh Current Volume 3, Issue 43. Dec. 9, 2020

INSIDE:

SCHWEIGER: LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE 2020 ELECTION VOL. 3 ISSUE 43

Dec. 9, 2020 - Dec. 15, 2020

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FULL OF C H A R AC T E R WA L I JA M A L A B D U L L A H O N H I S I N T I M AT E R E L AT I O N S H I P W I T H AU G U S T W I L S O N ' S C H A R AC T E R S

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Climate Crisis and Corrupt Politics By: Larry J. Schweiger Free Shipping Paperback $29.95 or purchase an eBook for $19.00 (Read the first 25 pages for free)

There is only one earth and our world is undergoing dramatic changes brought on by the climate crisis and other human-induced ecological disruptions. The world's top scientists studying these threats and the forces behind them have been warning us for decades to end the use of fossil fuels or face catastrophic consequences. Their long-ignored warnings have become more dire.

Larry Schweiger has long been on the front line of efforts to enact rational clean energy and climate policies and has witnessed efforts to undermine our democratic system that has been rigged leaving America hoodwinked and held hostage to dirty fuels.

Climate Crisis and Corrupt Politics pulls back the curtain on the central role of big oil, coal, and gas interests in American politics through the flow of money to fabricated entities for independent SuperPAC expenditures for mass deception through distorted advertising. Larry wrote this urgent message aimed at parents, grandparents and young adults who care about their children forced to live on the ragged edge of an unprecedented climate crisis. This book is especially for leaders who understand that we must act now with a "Green New Deal" scale response. Together, we must confront and overcome the many toxic money influences, reverse a failing democracy and retake the reins of government to enact policies that secure our shared future and the future of life on earth.

PITTSBURGH CURRENT | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | 3

STAFF Publisher/Editor: Charlie Deitch Charlie@pittsburghcurrent.com Advisory Board Chairman: Robert Malkin Robert@pittsburghcurrent.com

contents

Vol. III Iss. XLIII DEC. 9, 2020

EDITORIAL

Managing Editor At Large: Brittany Hailer Brittany@pittsburghcurrent.com

NEWS 6 | ACJ COVID RATES

Music Editor: Margaret Welsh Margaret@pittsburghcurrent.com

OPINION 8 | Larry Schweiger

Visuals Editor: Jake Mysliwczyk Jake@pittsburghcurrent.com

Arts 10 | Wali Jamal Abdullah 16 | City of Asylum

Sr. Contributing Writer: Jody DiPerna Jody@pittsburghcurrent.com Education Writer: Mary Niederberger Mary@pittsburghcurrent.com

EXTRA 17 | Matthew Walllenstein 18 | Parting Shot

Social Justice Columnist: Jessica Semler jessica@pittsburghcurrent.com Environmental Columnist: Larry Schweiger info@pittsburghcurrent.com Contributing Photographer: Ed Thompson info@pittsburghcurrent.com Contributing Writers: Jody DiPerna, Atiya Irvin Mitchell, Dan Savage, Larry Schweiger, Brittany Hailer, Matthew Wallenstein, Caitlyn Junter, Aryanna Hunter, Nick Eustis, Jessie Sage, Mary Niederberger info@pittsburghcurrent.com

COVER PHOTO: SELF PORTRAIT BY WALLI JAMAL ABDULLAH

Logo Design: Mark Addison TO ADVERTISE : The Fine Print

Senior Account Executive: Andrea James andrea@pittsburghcurrent.com Charlie Deitch charlie@pittsburghcurrent.com

The contents of the Pittsburgh Current are © 2020 by Pittsburgh Current, LLC. All Rights Reserved. No portion of this publication shall be duplicated or reprinted without the express-written consent of Pittsburgh Current LLC. One copy per person. The Pittsburgh Current is published twice monthly beginning August 2018.

The opinions contained in columns and letters to the editors represent the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Pittsburgh Current ownership, management and staff. The Pittsburgh Current is an independently owned and operated print and online media company produced in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Beechview neighborhood, 1665 Broadway Ave., Pittsburgh, PA., 15216. 412-204-7248.

Email us or don’t: info@pittsburghcurrent.com.

4 | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | PITTSBURGH CURRENT

CORO N AV I R U S C ASES A R E AT AN ALL-TIM E H I G H S O R EMEM BE R . . . . .

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NEWS

ALLEGHENY COUNTY JAIL SEES GIANT SPIKE IN CO STAFF AND THE INCARCERAT

BY BRITTANY HAILER - PITTSBURGH CURRENT CONTRIBUTING WRITER

BRITTANY@PITTSBURGHCURRENT.COM

Editor's Note: This is a breaking story and will be updated as information becomes available on pghcurrent.com.

Allegheny County Jail Warden Orlando Harper announced Dec. 8 that 24 more employees and an additional two incarcerated individuals have tested positive for COVID-19.

Additionally, another 40 employees and 200 inmates are in quarantine.

Yesterday, the Current reported that 25 residents of the jail and just five employees were positive.

On Nov. 20, the Current reported that 25 employees of the jail were at home on quarantine after attending a party and a wedding with other jail employees.

“As of today, there are 29 employees and 27 inmates of the Allegheny County Jail that are COVID-19 positive. The employees have all been quarantined, with the most recent quarantine occurring on December 4. None of the employees are at work.

Due to these positive cases, another approximately 40 employees are currently in quarantine at their homes,” Harper wrote in the state-

ment. “Additionally, the inmates at the jail who have tested positive were already quarantined and have since been placed in isolation.

These individuals, with the exception of one person, are all isolated on the same housing unit. They are not showing symptoms but are being monitored regularly by medical personnel at the facility. Additionally, approximately 200 inmates are being quarantined on four housing units.”

According to the press release, “748 inmates have been tested for COVID since mid-March with 66 positive tests and 27 individuals with positive cases currently in the facility. The other individuals that had tested positive have either been released or have recovered.” Some members of the Jail Oversight Board and other public officials have called for universal testing but that request has been roundly rejected.

“We have been saying this since the beginning: The reason the official case number in the Allegheny County Jail is so low is that they haven’t been testing people. No testing means no positive cases,” Allegheny County Councilor and

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Oversight Board Member Bethany Hallam said. “We need to work to drastically reduce the population, especially considering many court proceedings have been postponed due to the recent emergency order issued by President Judge

Clark.”

With 69 employees now infected or on quarantine, there’s no telling what staffing issues will arise, although Harper claims staffing will be covered.

“We continue to work with employees to ensure

OVID-19 CASES FOR BOTH TED the proper staffing for the continued safety and security of everyone at the Allegheny County Jail. And, as we have done throughout this pandemic, we are following the advice of the facility’s medical provider as it relates to precautions for inmates,” Harper said.

“We also keep the lines of communication open to ensure that the measures being taken are in line with the guidance provided by the CDC, PA Department of Health, PA Department of Corrections, and the Allegheny County Health Department.

“People are wearing masks, washing their hands and remaining physically distanced. We’re testing when appropriate. Positive cases are isolated. We perform contact tracing and quarantine those individuals. We have consistent cleaning of the environment. Ongoing screenings include temperature checks and queries about symptoms of all employees and contractors are consistent.

Visitation restrictions, while difficult for everyone, are limiting the number of people who interact with the inmates and reducing

the chance of spread. We will continue to enforce and reinforce all recommendations. These measures have been upheld by our hardworking, essential employees and dedicated staff.

They work continuously to ensure the safe management of this facility and all those who are in it and we are confident that they will continue to do so.”

But as they have from the beginning, employees inside the ACJ tell the Pittsburgh Current that they are wary of management's approach to virus containment from the beginning.

"The poor short-term and long-term crisis management has been a problem in a building where morale was decimated years ago," one employee told the Current on Dec. 8. "Employees begged for equipment and solutions to the COVID-19 crisis. What we have now is the fruit of the inexperienced Chief of Medical [Laura Williams].

When asked what specific equipment problems staff had, the employee said conditions at the jail make the spread of COVID-19 more likely. "We should be wearing n95 not surgical masks."

NEWS OFFICIAL ADVERTISEMENT THE BOARD OF PUBLIC EDUCATION OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PITTSBURGH ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS Sealed proposals shall be deposited at the Administration Building, Bellefield Entrance Lobby, 341 South Bellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15213, on January 12, 2021, until 2:00 P.M., local prevailing time for: Service & Maintenance Contracts at Various Schools, Facilities, Facilities & Properties: Gas and Oil Burners, Boilers and Furnaces Inspection, Service, and Repairs (REBID) Concrete Maintenance (REBID) Fire Extinguisher and Fire Hoses Service and Maintenance (REBID)

Various Schools Carbon Monoxide Detectors Phase III Mechanical and Electrical Primes Pgh. Mifflin PreK-8 Various Asphalt and Concrete Repairs General Prime Project Manual and Drawings will be available for purchase on December 7, 2020 at Modern Reproductions (412-488-7700), 127 McKean Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15219 between 9:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. The cost of the Project Manual Documents is non-refundable. Project details and dates are described in each project manual.

We are an equal rights and opportunity school district

PITTSBURGH CURRENT | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | 7

OPINION

SCHWEIGER: POST-ELECTION OPPORTUNIT

BY LARRY J. SCHWEIGER - PITTS

T

he 2020 election has been crazy with Trump's never-ending rage-filled seditious shenanigans to illegally alter the outcome. Still beyond the nonsense, some crucial lessons can and must be gained by the recent election, including some essential opportunities to "build back better" in rural areas.

First, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris ran on a platform of addressing the pandemic by calling for mask-wearing, social distancing, hand-washing, and other critical measures to stop the flood-tide of a run-away health crisis. Meanwhile, Trump promotes the virus with his many maskless rallies and White House events that continue to this day.

Biden has already announced his stellar healthcare team. The newly appointed Biden team understands the daunting task before them. Millions of Americans ignored Thanksgiving warnings and are now getting sick and overflowing hospital beds. Many more will probably ignore warnings about gatherings during the extended Christmas-New Year's holiday period. The Biden team plans to launch a thoughtful implementation strategy for vaccine distribution and an educational campaign to encourage vaccinations and foster mask-wearing for 100 days. Biden will assist the state and local governments with needed resources and support hospitals and exhausted healthcare workers in any way possible.

Second, coupled with fighting the pandemic, President-elect Biden also made it clear that he would make a massive invest-

INFO@PITTSBURG

Georgia Democratic Senate Candidate Rev. Raphael Warnock (Photo: Campaign Facebook)

ment in the energy and transportation infrastructure to address the climate crisis. The climate crisis is upon us, destroying western forests and communities, flooding Gulf coast communities, and threatening farm communities with extreme weather events.

It is hard to overstate the urgency of addressing the climate system by working with the world's nations and establishing strong policies and investments at scale.

Third, while Biden and Harris won, Republicans retained control of the U. S. Senate despite a terrific effort by several democratic opponents. The outcome of the two senatorial elections in Georgia will define the possible

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during the next two years.

Republicans gained ten seats in the U. S. House and added seats in many state legislatures, capturing two more legislative bodies.

Republicans had majorities in 59 chambers, and Democrats had majorities in 39 chambers before the 2020 elections. Republicans added two more, having gained majorities in the New Hampshire House of Representatives and State Senate. The Democratic Party has retained narrow control of the U.S. House with 222 votes. The Republican Party now holds 211 seats.

College-educated voters are deeply concerned with COVID, climate change, and racism and

were a critical voting block for Biden, especially in the suburbs.

While Biden has long been a labor union champion, he did not do well with the working-class or rural voters. These losses should warn the Democratic Party to give much more attention to the working class. Workers are experiencing declining wages, and lost benefits. They have justifiable fears of machine learning that may automate the industries where they work. AI is emerging as a fast-growing force that will eliminate jobs in every sector, including the entire transportation sector. Biden understands the working class needs help.

He promises to create 18 million

IES FOR DEMOCRATS TO REACH RED STATES

OPINION

SBURGH CURRENT COLUMNIST

GHCURRENT.COM

new good-paying jobs while rebuilding the energy and transportation infrastructure. In addition to advancing a clean energy revolution, Democrats must seek to understand how the future of work will change and focus on training workers to be prepared for the transition during a rapidly changing paradigm.

Fourth, Democrats must help rural America. The GOP has been winning about two-thirds of the rural votes in America's heartland while doing very little to deserve that support. In Wisconsin, Bill Hogseth, Chair of the Dunn County Democratic Party, observed in an opinion piece in Politico, "Any election results map you look at offers a bleak visualization of the political divide between rural and urban voters: a sea of red dotted with islands of blue."

President Biden has started right by promising to be the President of all Americans, whether from blue states or red states. In addition to helping working-class Americans, President Biden and the Democrats must address rural America's critical needs if they ever hope to reclaim the Senate from do-nothing Republicans.

While Democrats should never expect to win the guy who drives around in a pickup with oversized wheels flying a Trump flag or the farmer who painted his barn with a huge Trump 2020 message, however, Democrats have largely neglected the Red State rural voters yielding far too many states to Republicans.

Democrats now have an opportunity to meaningfully impact rural voters with several thoughtful actions to build back better in

rural communities, including the following: The digital divide is stifling rural economic growth. As a part of the infrastructure investments, 5G and high-speed internet must be made available to rural America. Because it is not profitable for the mega-corporations to extend service there, perhaps it can be accomplished much like the rural electric was as part of the New Deal. Farmers need high-speed internet to buy seeds and negotiate crop sales from their homes. Other rural residents starting new businesses find it nearly impossible to function without high-speed internet.

People who have learned how to work from home during the pandemic may want to pursue a more rural lifestyle with less expensive living but find the digital divide as a stopper. •Farm Aid warns, "A handful of corporations control our food from farm to fork. Their unbridled power grants them increasing political influence over the rules that govern our food system and allows them to manipulate the marketplace – pushing down the prices paid to family farmers and driving them out of business." As Hogseth pointed out in his piece, the average farmers' share from retail food sales has fallen from about 50 percent in 1952 to about 15 percent today. Family farmers are being squeezed as profits have moved from farmers and local businesses to an international oligopolistic agribusiness that has grown unchecked. The hollowing out of rural communities is a real thing as far too many local businesses have shuttered. The Farm Bu-

reau has been too entwined with agribusiness interests who fund them to stand up for farmers.

Republican Senators and House members have done nothing to prevent recent damaging mergers. Both Democratic and Republican administrations have failed to challenge several sweeping mergers in the food industry under anti-trust laws. Monopolies are now vertically integrated as they control patented seeds, chemical herbicides, insecticides, and fertilizer. Instead of selling farmers inputs at a reasonable price and giving them a fair shot at an open market, farmers must sell their grain, milk, and meat with chronically low commodity prices in constrained markets controlled by oligopolies. Often they must deal with the same agricultural monopolies that sell them the high-priced seeds. The Biden administration should investigate the concentration of power, antitrust violations, and the lack of competition in agriculture and explore every legal avenue possible to tackle corporate abuses and re-engage the farm community to push for meaningful reforms. The anti-trust laws must be dusted off and used to protect farmers.

The health care system in the middle of the pandemic is on the verge of collapse in many places.

Health care in rural America is a complete disaster. It has not been profitable for hospitals to operate in low-population areas.

Nearly 180 rural hospitals such as the Elwood City Hospital have closed across the country in the past ten years. Many rural hospitals struggle to survive as elective surgeries, testing, and

other routine visits are being postponed. Health care is failing rural people as essential institutions are closing. As a part of the promised improvements to "Obama Care," Democrats should find ways to revise and fund this needed public health service for rural residents.

Farmers can participate in the green revolution by receiving compensation for farm practices that increase carbon storage in soils. Farmers can store carbon as organic matter in their soils and be compensated for deploying sound practices that reduce atmospheric carbon. "Building Back Better," can and should fund farmers to help them solarize their farm operations lowering their energy cost of operation.

In recent years, Republicans have ignored their farmer's and rural communities' real needs.

Mitch McConnell and the Republicans held up relief funding to protect the corporate packing house owners from liability for their failure to protect workers from COVID. Republicans have not hesitated to take money from the four massive agribusinesses that control eighty percent of the corn and beef industry. Yet, with a straight face, Republicans claim to represent farmers.

Democrats should hold them accountable for their failures and demonstrate that democrats care for family farmers and rural communities. This is an excellent time for Democrats to start expanding the legislative map for 2022 as part of efforts to build back rural America better.

PITTSBURGH CURRENT | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | 9

ARTS

ACTOR WALI JAMAL ABDULLAH MAY KNOW AUGUS

BY JODY DIPERNA - PITTSBURGH

JODY@PITTSBURG

I

f you've been to the theatre in Pittsburgh in the decade or so, there's a good chance you've seen Wali Jamal Abdullah on the stage. Smooth and natural, can do a thousand different things by shifting his tone of voice and is able to turn farce to tragedy on a dime. He's been in productions by Kuntu Repertory, Bricolage, Quantum, Pittsburgh Playwrights and many others.

He has also performed in all ten of the works that comprise August Wilson's 'Pittsburgh Cycle,' as well as taking to the stage in 'How I Know What I Know,' Wilson's autobiographical one-man show penned in 2003.

With the adaptation of Wilson's peerless, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom dropping on Netflix next week, Abdullah sat down with the Current to talk about growing up in Pittsburgh, a life in the theatre and, of course, life inside the works of August Wilson. This is his story, as told to Pgh Current Senior Contributing Writer, Jody DiPerna. **** I first got the acting bug in 7th grade. I grew up just above the Southside, around Mt. Oliver, a housing project called St. Clair Village. It's gone now.

But I would catch the bus and go down to the Southside for school. It was in 7th grade, I was 11 years old and I'll never forget it. I was going to St. Adalbert's on 15th Street on the Southside. I had no idea that years later I would be performing a couple blocks away at

Wali Jamal Abdullah

City Theatre. But anyway, at St. Adalbert's, my language arts teacher, Miss Cavalieri decided to have us read a play.

We read a play version of 'The Invisible Man' (based on H.G. Wells' book.) She had me read the part of Griffin, who was the scientist who turned himself invisible.

I had no idea of the definition of the word irony, or any

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idea of the man named Ralph Ellison who wrote a (different) book called "The Invisible Man." I was the only Black kid in this school. Sure, I was aware I was the only Black kid in the school all the time, but it wasn't a big deal. It really wasn't. I just looked at it as, I get the lead. I'm reading the main character!

I just thought, it's me! Elev-

en-year-old Wali.

I didn't do crap for years after, because there wasn't any venue. I went to the Army and when I got out of the Army, I still wanted to be an actor.

I really did. I always did. I never didn't want to be an actor.

There just weren't any opportunities. I did extra work in films.

I did a lot of stand up comedy in some seedy places, some

ST WILSON'S CHARACTERS BETTER THAN ANYONE

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tough, tough places.

Then, in November, 1998. I went into the Kuntu Repertory Theatre to auditions. I was schmoozing, I was on. I was used to working a room. So I'm working the room and the director is out there -- I didn't know who she was. She comes to me and I'm making these people laugh over here, and she's like, "Do I know you?"

I'm like, "Yeah, baby. We go way back. What you got here."

She said, read this and I'm going to call you in.

I went in there and read that stuff. Dr. Vernell Lillie (the founder of Kuntu Repertory Theatre) was there. She said, Child, where have you been?

I walked out with the lead role. I've been at it ever since.

Non-stop. Full speed ahead, no brakes.

We were in the middle of rehearsal and Dr. Lillie is asking me about, what have you been doing? where have you been? I said, I've been looking for this, to tell you the truth. I've been looking for this, I just didn't know how to find you guys. I never even saw a play.

It just so happened that they were planning to go to Baltimore to see 'Jitney.' It was so awesome. I'm sitting there and they're teaching me blocking while we're watching 'Jitney.'

It was this tutorial while I'm sitting there. I'll never forget it.

They were giving me ins and outs and I was just flying.

Around March, 1999, Mark Southers had the August Wilson Reading Roundtable at his house and had arranged for us to read 'Jitney.' He let August

know and August said, can I come and read? So, two months after my first time setting foot on stage, I'm sitting right next to August Wilson reading a part in 'Jitney.' He read the most rambunctious part in the play, Turnbo, the busybody. The one that's in everybody's business.

He was perfect. Oh, he was dastardly.

That play -- it's real people, talking real stuff. Nobody's axe is being ground. It's real people, living real life.

August Wilson does have his focuses. In his plays you will find constants. You will find family. You will find love.

And you will find death. Those three constants -- and most of all -- dignity. August strives to present characters who have dignity and are willing to die for it -- for their principles and their dignity. It doesn't matter how you might find that person: that person has dignity.

Like, in 'Two Trains Running' Hambone -- he only has two lines, "I want my ham." "He gon' give me my ham." Those two lines. I would love to play that character. He died in pursuit of that ham. That was his dignity in life, that he wasn't going to let you cheat him like that and he would just let it go and accept it.

In 'How I Learned What I Learned,' it's explained when his [August's] mother had won a new washing machine. They found out she was Black and they wanted to give her some certificate to the Salvation Army and she said no. That was about that dignity. She said something ain't always better

than nothing. Not going to just take that, when I got this coming.

That's how it is in all of his plays.

Another thing I love about August -- there are characters who don't know exactly how things work, but they just look at the right and the wrong of it, where it concerns them. Like Floyd in 'Seven Guitars.' He was going down there to get the money that he had coming from him from working at the workhouse, but he didn't have the piece of paper. He was incensed that they wouldn't give him his money he had coming to him because of this piece of paper. He's looking at the right and the wrong of it, and not the procedural part of it. It's so messed up that sometimes such crucial things can come down to a piece of paper. That piece of paper finds itself in a few of August's plays.

Another thing in all of his plays is an older Black man giving advice and counseling a younger Black man, whether successful or not, the attempt is there.

[In the Pittsburgh Playwright's production of Ma Rainey in the fall and winter of 2018, Abdullah played Toledo, the older pianist in Ma's band who tries to counsel the younger Levee. In the film production Toledo is played by Glynn Turman who starred in the Kuntu Repertory Theatre production of 'A Raisin in the Sun' in 1984.]

What to even say about the

guy playing Toledo -- Glynn Turman. He's been one of my favorite actors since he made this movie called 'J.D.'s Revenge.' It's from 1976, disco times, floppy hats, bell-bottoms. I know he's going to tear it up. Nobody can do it like him.

The obvious other reasons I'm looking forward to this production -- Chadwick Boseman's final performance and Viola Davis outdoing herself once again. As if you ever thought she could, but there she is doing it. We thought Rose was the top in 'Fences,' but there she is as Ma. I've seen three different women play Ma in performances and, ooooh, nothing comes close to Viola. Those are the first two reasons.

Another reason is for the dialogue, for the screenplay, the adaptation from Ruben Santiago-Hudson. This is a man who definitely knows how to encapsulate August's writing for the screen. If you haven't seen 'Lackawanna Blues,' see it. It's so Wilson-esque. You would swear August Wilson wrote that. It's the Wilson feel, but it doesn't take nothing from Wilson. It's just that feel, it's that feel.

And, 'Ma Rainey's' is picturesque. It is magnificently the 1920s in all it's roaring regalness.

They've taken this play and made it into a biopic. This movie feels bigger than 'Ragtime.'

Wali Jamal Abdullah can be seen in the Quantum Theatre production of 'Wild' available to stream until December 13th. He will reprise his role in Wilson's 'How I Learned What I Learned'

PITTSBURGH CURRENT | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | 11

ARTS

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ARTS

NEW CITY OF ASYLUM CAMPAIGN, 'DICTATOR BOOK REVIEWS' BRINGS ATTENTION TO THE ORGANIZATION'S WORK

BY NICK EUSTIS - PITTSBURGH CURRENT CONTRIBUTING WRITER INFO@PITTSBURGHCURRENT.COM

On Nov. 17, City of Asylum unveiled its latest public service marketing campaign against authoritarian regimes criminalizing dissent and freedom of speech: “Dictator Book Reviews,” a collaboration with advertising firm Brunner Pittsburgh.Featuring fictitious book reviews from three dictators about books they have banned in their countries, the campaign shines a light on the importance of freedom of expression in the modern age.

Located in the heart of the North Side, City of Asylum Pittsburgh is part of an international grassroots network that works to promote freedom of speech worldwide. A critical piece of that effort is their writers-in-residence program, which provides resources to authors who have been exiled from their home country, while helping them build a new life.

“We are an organization whose mission is to build community, and we protect and celebrate creative free expression,” said Andrés Franco, executive director of City of Asylum Pittsburgh. “We provide housing and a stipend to the writers-in-residence who have to flee their countries because of censorship.”

Two of the authors fea-

tured in this campaign are former writers-in-residence at City of Asylum Pittsburgh. Author Israel Centeno fled Venezuela in 2011 with his wife and two children due to political persecution from supporters of Venezuela’s then-leader, Hugo Chavez. His novel “The Conspiracy” is the subject of one of the fictional reviews, “penned” by current Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro.

Osama Alomar is another former writer-in-residence who is featured in the public service campaign. Alomar came to City of Asylum Pittsburgh from Syria after his home and possessions were destroyed by the fighting in the region. His short story collection, “The Teeth of the Comb & Other Stories,” was the subject of a review “written” by Syrian leader Bashar Al-Assad.

The third and final review focuses on the short story collection, “The Accusation,” written by North Korean author Bandi, a pseudonym as he is still living in the country. The ad campaign features a critical review of the work, supposedly penned by Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-Un. For this campaign, City of Asylum collaborated with Brunner Pittsburgh,

who also created their 2019 “Book in a Book” ad campaign.

“They are an organization that we are proud to support,” said Kevin Corfield, writer and creative director for Brunner Pittsburgh.

“We think more people should be aware of their organization around here, because they’re doing a lot of good things, not just for the city, but for writers everywhere.”

Corfield and his team heavily researched each of the leaders and authors in order to ensure the reviews came from an authentic point of view.

“It was an interesting challenge trying to get in the heads of these dictators, to write from their perspective,” said Corfield.

The campaign has been distributed in English through social media and the City of Asylum mailing list, as well as through traditional publications. There are also plans to translate each review so that they can be distributed across borders.

“As we were talking about it, we decided it would be great if we had the same content in the original languages, so it could be more widely circulated in those countries,” said Franco.

The campaign hopes to raise awareness about the plight of writers and creatives around the world, and the work City of Asylum is doing right here to address that.

“For us, the most important thing is to bring the idea of freedom of expression, and to remind people that this particular issue is not getting any better. In fact, freedom of expression is under attack pretty much everywhere in the world,” said Franco. “We also want to remind everyone that we have the largest endangered writer’s sanctuary right here in Pittsburgh.”

Another part of the goal is to increase local awareness of the City of Asylum bookstore, in which all three books reviewed can be found. The proceeds from any book purchased through the City of Asylum bookstore go toward funding the writer-in-residence program and the organization as a whole.

“When you buy a book from us, you are helping us protect freedom of expression,” said Franco.

For more information on the bookstore, residency program, and virtual events, visit cityofasylum. org.

PITTSBURGH CURRENT | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | 13

MUSIC

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND

BY MATTHEW WALLENSTEIN - PITTSBURGH CURRENT COLUMNIST

W

e left from New Hampshire. My dad drove most of the way. We slept for a few hours at a truck stop in northern Maine then went back to it. The Canadian border guard just waved us through without looking at our passports. Eventually we arrived in Prince Edward Island.

We decided it would be interesting to go to as many of the Island's lighthouses as we could. By our third day, we had ridden our bikes to a good many of them. The roads went along the ocean. Looking one way it was farms and fields. Long golden stalks blew in the wind, twists of old barbed wire ran from post to post. There were houses falling in on themselves. To the other side were beaches, small cliffs, water that went on forever.

The farms ran right up to the beaches in some places. Sheep doddled and ate grass by the ocean. There were few people.

We came across an abandoned house. It was completely lopsided. It stood at an impossible slant. Its facade had collapsed so we could see its insides.

We stopped and got off our bikes. I climbed up a pile of boards that used to be a wall and went in.

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Prince Edward Island

Moving through the rooms was like walking through a funhouse because of the bizarre angle. My father took some pictures.

We kept riding. As the day went on we grew more and more tired. We grew hungrier and hungrier. We had been on our bikes all day and hadn’t eaten anything. We Wallensteins do not plan our trips ahead of time. We go to a place and see what we can see, do

14 | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | PITTSBURGH CURRENT

what we can do. As a consequence we had no idea where we would stay that night. It was getting cold.

We were worn out and starting to get annoyed.

By some chance we happened across a restaurant.

While there, my father asked the waitress if she knew a place we could stay. She said she had heard of a bed and breakfast not far from there. She hadn’t been to it herself.

She had seen it advertised on a placemat at another nearby restaurant.

We arrived at dusk. It was a small, one-story house. All the windows had venetian blinds. All the blinds were pulled down and closed. There were no lights on the porch but I could see a light coming from inside the house.

“Is this the place?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” my dad said.

ESSAY We walked across the lawn. I knocked. The door opened a few inches and I could see part of a face: A wrinkled cheek, half a mouth— thin lipped, an eye. The eye moved rapidly between my father and me.

“We wanted to rent a room.”

“Well we’re closed for the season. It’s past 6 p.m. anyway. We are closed.”

I turned around, looked at my dad and shrugged.

The door opened the rest of the way.

“How many nights? This room, how many nights you want it?”

“Just tonight.”

He motioned for us to come inside. We did. He had on a blue silk robe. It was decorated all over by dragons. His hair was like thin string and only covered portions of his scalp.

What was there reached his shoulders. He moved very slowly and kind of slid rather than walked.

We followed him through the dark into the living room which had a light on.

The TV was on. Its sound was turned down low.

“That’s my wife,” he said, pointing to a woman asleep in an armchair. His fingernails were long and yellow and curled into themselves.

I looked over at the sleeping woman.

“Say hi, honey,” he said.

She was snoring like a broken machine. She scratched her crotch. She

went on snoring.

“That’s her,” he said.

“Mm,” I said.

One of them farted, I’m not sure which.

“I’ll bring you to your room,” he said.

We walked to the back of the house. There was a large wooden door.

“The room is in the basement. You’ll need to take your shoes off before you go down there.”

“Why?” “That is the rule. Take your shoes off.”

My father and I looked at each other. There was a silent acknowledgement between us. It said we were tired and it was a place to stay. Normally we probably would have just left and slept outside or back in the car, but we were dog tired.

This guy was weird, but beds sounded very good.

We took our shoes off and put them on the mat.

I opened the door. It was very heavy and thick.

“Well go on. Go ahead.

I’ll see you in the morning,” the man said and shut the door.

We walked to the bottom of the steps. It was dimly lit down there. On the other side of the door I could hear latches, I could hear locks being locked, metal sliding into place.

“He’s locking us in,” I said.

“Our shoes are still up there, outside that door,” my father said.

He started walking around quickly. I followed him, un-

sure of what he was doing.

At the bottom of the stairs there was a thin hallway lined with rooms. He was opening the doors to them and looking around with purpose. I was trying not to laugh. He was mumbling to himself as he went.

“What are you doing?”

“A way out,” he said.

He kept searching, lifting up mattress pads, looking behind things. The rooms were windowless, only slightly larger than closets.

They had been built very cheaply. A couple were unfinished, portions of walls were covered in plastic sheets.

In the back corner of the basement was a room with a toilet in it. My dad opened a door off of that.

Inside it was crowded, a water heater, pipes, some shovels, that sort of thing.

He was still going, looking for something, some way out, an exit if we needed it. He finally found what he wanted. Tucked in the back corner behind the hot water heater was a window.

It was about a foot over his head and too slender for either of us to fit through.

“There it is. We have it if we need it. I don’t like this guy at all,” he said.

After much talk and pacing and plan-hatching we decided to go to bed.

I don’t think I slept. I did some wall staring and I read. It was Hamsun, I was hooked on him at the time.

He was the meanest softie there ever was.

In the morning I was sitting on the edge of the bed.

I heard someone walking above me on the first floor.

The locks clicked, unlatched, slid, opened. Then the footsteps moved away, got quieter. Right then I heard hurried pattering in the hall outside my door.

Then a few rapid knocks. It was my father.

“Let’s get the hell out of here,” he said.

We went up the steps.

The door creaked as it opened. We hurriedly put on our shoes and snuck through the house and out the front door. We were free. We hadn’t been murdered. We took off.

By the end of the day we arrived at a lighthouse.

There was a restaurant attached to it and we were hungry so we went in and sat down. It was expensive which always made me feel out of place and guilty. But it felt good too to be sitting there with my dad in an otherwise empty restaurant. It felt good to eat when you were hungry, to sit in a room with many windows and all that sun rolling into it. We sat. We ate. We talked.

There were crumbs in his beard from the pie he ordered. He held the plate up when he was done eating and licked it. The ocean looked good. The table cloth was clean. Our lives were waiting on us and we didn’t care.

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PA R T I N G S H OT PITTSBURGH CURRENT PHOTO BY JAKE MYSLIWCZYK PITTSBURGH CURRENT | DECEMBER 9, 2020 | 16