Audio File
Transcript
I’m originally from Cincinnati. I got here in 05 and I wanted to be part of continuing the legacy of Pittsburgh Courier. It was one of the most influential black papers back during World War 2. In fact, the Courier instigated a campaign called Double V., Victory in Europe and victory in the United States in terms of no more segregation and discrimination. So it was a battle on two fronts. That was the kind of influence that they had. In fact, I remember reading that the Pittsburgh Courier was sent down South of the Pullman Porters, who were led by A Philip Randolph. So they like, literally had to sneak the papers into the communities at night when the trains came through. That’s the kind of legacy I wanted to build on. That’s what brought me to Pittsburgh. I also do public relations, public engagement, outreach, basically doing whatever I can to make sure that our community is not overlooked, taking advantage of people don’t have a one sided narrative of the Hill District’s, you know. Yes, we do have crime here, but there’s so much more. So much more.
My child, who was pretty standard, I was a Girl Scout and went to church a lot, was brought up in the Episcopal Church and that’s the same denomination as Desmond Tutu. I went to a college prep high school and then I would transfer. My mother enrolled me in to an all girls Catholic school, something similar to Oakland Catholic and then I went up to college being 200 miles away from parental supervision. No parents to tell me what to do. I’m on a college campus. Ohh yeah. I have big fun and lost my mind. I did not have my priorities together. So that’s something that I’ve been dealing with ever since because I never did get a degree. I was fortunate enough that I had enough of an education that I could, you know, work on my strengths and use those to build a vocation and career on. The history in this neighborhood alone y’all just don’t understand. You really do not understand what you have around you. One of the first things I did do when I came to Pittsburgh was to drive up and down Wylie Ave. because I wanted to see Aunt Esther’s house. If you’re familiar with any of August Wilson’s plays, Aunt Esther is a character that runs through just about every play, she lived to be two or three hundred and something years old. She lived at 1839 Wylie Ave. so in fact, if you guys go over to Wiley Ave. towards Wylie Ave. from here, you’ll see like a doorway. That’s Aunt Esther’s doorway. You’ve got the August Wilson house. You go further up on Bedford and you see Emmons Field. Well, that was renameded Josh Gibson Field because that’s where Josh Gibson played ball. Josh Gibson was one of the greatest negro league players. Well, greatest baseball players of all time and that’s just, you know a little bit of Bedford Ave. You go up further where Bedford Dwellings is, that used to be a stadium that was built by the owners of the Pittsburgh Crawfords. I think it was Gus Greenlee and he built a stadium that rivaled any of the other stadiums you know in the major leagues. That’s just one street in the HIll District. So that’s why you all have to be vigilant and you all have to be the ones that make sure that the story continues. The Hill District is probably in your blood for generations and generations and generations. So that’s why you gotta hold on to what you have and claim what’s yours. Look at doing as much extracurricular stuff as you can, because that’s also going to look good on your college applications or on your job applications. Any opportunity that comes your way that you know peaks your interest get involved with it and if you can get a letter of recommendation, if you babysit, get a letter of recommendation. If you’re volunteering for something at church or in the community, get a letter of recommendation. If your volunteering for something at church or in the community. If you have a teacher that thinks you are, you know fabulous and wonderful, get a recommendation. Those are your receipts. Gotta have receipts.