10.1.25 NPC by Real Times Media

Pittsburgh

by Rob Taylor Jr.

Staff Writer

Right on time, the 53L Homestead Park Limited Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus appeared along Amity Street at the Waterfront Shopping Center in Homestead, ready to turn into the storefront areas to pick up passengers at the bus stop just steps from Giant Eagle. One of those passengers to get on the bus was Lavonne Smith of Homestead, better known as Jackie. Smith told the New Pittsburgh Courier on Tuesday, Sept. 30, that for years, she's been coming to the Waterfront, to go to Giant Eagle and other places, and the PRT bus stops are within steps of Giant Eagle and Target, two of the shopping center's most popular outlets. It's so convenient for Smith and others, especially the seniors.

Which is why it floored her and others when the Waterfront's ownership, M&J Wilkow Ltd., announced last week that it was forcing PRT to eliminate the two bus stops at Target and Giant Eagle,

effective Oct. 19. Those bus stops are on private property.

Almost immediately, the backlash came. From bus riders, and from elected officials like Congresswoman Summer Lee. She called on the bus stops to stay.

The Allegheny County Chief Executive, Sara Innamorato stepped in, too. By Monday night, Sept. 29, Innamorato announced that an agreement was made to keep the bus stops in place. The reversal showed that, as Congresswoman Lee loves to say, there's power in the people.

"I was saying they were going to lose business, especially the seniors," Smith told the Courier on a bright, sunny day, Sept. 30. "They look forward to coming down here. It's like an outing for them."

Smith said M&J Wilkow, the Waterfront owners, "were just cutting off their nose to spite their face." But what was the reason M&J Wilkow wanted to rid of the two bus stops in the first place? Carey

by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer

United we stand, divided we fall.

Anthony Smith is Executive Director of Cities United, a national movement that, for nearly 15 years, works to stop gun violence, particularly among Black men and Black boys. The Louisville, Kentucky-based organization works with mayors and organizations in more than 100 cities across the nation, "to create safe, healthy and hopeful communities," according to its website.

From July 22-24, Cities United rolled into Pittsburgh for a stop on its "Leading the Way Tour," and its host organization was the South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace. Some of the tour was held at Center for Victims, on East Carson Street, South Side. The tour brought to-

gether many anti-violence organizations that originate on the South Side, but it also featured young, Black adults and teens, so they could see that there's many more people fighting against gun violence than those in the streets who sometimes advocate for it.

"The impression that I felt the tour left behind, was first of all, hope for the future," South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace Executive Director Rev. Eileen Smith told the New Pittsburgh Courier. Reverend Smith also was proud of her organization for bringing together the various anti-violence groups from not just the South Side, but from all parts of Allegheny County, for the national initiative that is Cities United. Anthony Smith, in an interview with on-air host

Courier

Assata Shakur remembered: A Voice of Struggle, a Legacy of Love

by Stacy M. Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

The passing of Assata Shakur has left a deep void in those who saw her as more than a revolutionary. She was a mother, poet, and symbol of liberation whose life embodied struggle and sacrifice.

On Black Press USA’s Let It Be Known morning news show, journalist and commentator Thandisizwe Chimurenga spoke about Shakur’s death and her legacy. “My heart literally skipped a beat,” Chimurenga said. “I have known Assata’s daughter and husband for over 30 years. I immediately called to see if it was true. I was so saddened when he said that it was true.”

Born JoAnne Byron and once known as JoAnne Chesimard, Shakur became a leading member of the Black Panther Party and the Black Liberation Army. She was targeted by the FBI’s COINTELPRO program, convicted under disputed circumstances in 1977, and sentenced to life in prison. In 1979, she escaped and was granted asylum in Cuba, where she remained until her death. “I purposefully refrained from going into journalism mode,” Chimurenga said. “The only question I asked was had she been ill. He said, Yes, she had been ill. My heart was broken for them because losing a parent, losing your mother,

you are never prepared for that. And I was heartbroken for me, being, as Assata says, an African woman in America, that she was no longer physically here with us.”

For Chimurenga, Shakur’s exile carried both sorrow and triumph. “I liked knowing that she was physically walking around free in Cuba, away from the clutches of the U.S. government,” Chimurenga said. “I was absolutely saddened that I had never taken myself down to Cuba and tried to find her and interview her as a journalist. But at the same time, I was rejoicing in the fact that for close to 50 years, she remained free of the United States criminal injustice system.” Her words shaped generations of activists. “It is our duty to fight for our freedom,” Shakur famously stated. “We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.” That declaration became a chant during protests in Ferguson and in the Black Lives Matter movement.

“She was our warrior queen mother, our sister comrade, our mama,” Chimurenga said. “She fought for us. She sacrificed for us. And her autobiography, infused with poetry, showed us the beauty of a woman the state called a terrorist. She was a beautiful soul who often said we must be weapons of mass construction, cre-

BLACK LIBERATION ARMY MEMBER ASSATA SHAKUR, also known as Joanne Chesimard (IMBD).

ating more beauty in the world because the people running it are destroying it.” Reactions to her passing showed the divide in the nation. “America is a white supremacist nation,” Chimurenga said. “It was not founded for us. We were brought here to enrich other people. If we did not believe it before, everything Trump is doing right now is in perfect lockstep with White supremacist principles. And that is how he was able to be reelected twice.” Chimurenga said Shakur’s memory will always remain tied to her devotion to her people. “Love. Love of Black people. Sacrifice, commitment, and beauty,” she remarked. “That is who she was.”

Black Caucus Awards Dinner: Former VP Kamala Harris, Gov. Wes Moore give pointed remarks

by Lauren Burke

(NNPA Newswire)—At the annual Congressional Black Caucus Foundation awards dinner that marks the end of the half-century-old legislative conference commonly known as “CBC Week,” the notable speakers of the evening were blunt in their remarks.

Beyond the awards and the sequins and campaign that’s featured at the annual CBC Gala, blunt talk of what is ahead for Blacks in America and the state of democracy was close at hand. Former Vice President Kamala Harris was one of three awardees.

“They played the long game working for decades to take over statehouses, gerrymander districts and stack the Supreme Court,” said Vice President Harris, speaking from the large podium to over 2,000 people. She offered advice and surprise at how so many have capitulated to the demands

of Donald Trump. She also offered remarks on leadership.

“Please let’s get over the savior complex, which suggests only one individual can save us. Come on. As Democrats, we have so many stars and many of them are in this room right now. You are the leaders who are up for the fight,” Harris added. The audience cheered loudly for her appearance on stage. The crowd also reacted favorably to Texas U.S. Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett. Both women have been direct and consistent in their criticism of Trump.

“At a time such as this, it demands one thing for sure: we must fight fire with fire,” Harris added. It hasn’t been forgotten that, during her 107-day presidential campaign in 2024, Harris accurately predicted the future of America under a second Trump Administration. Her book, entitled “107 Days,” was recently released.

“I’m not interested in

This Week In Black History A Courier Staple

• OCTOBER 1

1841—Fannie M. Richards is born. She becomes one of the nation’s early civil rights advocates as well as a prominent educator.

1868—John Mercer Langston (1829-1897) organizes the nation’s first Black law school at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Largely forgotten today, Langston was a major Black political figure during his day. He was one of the nation’s first African American lawyers, elected political officials and he influenced Black education throughout the country. The town of Langston, Okla., is named in his honor.

1872—Morgan State College is founded in Maryland.

1937—The NAACP awards the prestigious Spingarn Medal to Walter White for his work against lynching. The light complexioned White had “passed for White” to gather evidence against terrorist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan.

1960—Africa’s most populous nation-Nigeria-declares its independence from colonial rule.

1966—The militant Black Panther Party is founded in Oakland, Calif., by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale.

• OCTOBER 2

1800—Nat Turner is born on this day in South Hampton, Va. The spiritually inspired Turner would organize and carry out one of the deadliest slave revolts in American history. His rebellion led to the deaths of 57 Whites including men, women and children.

1864—What was to become the nation’s first Black daily newspaper began publishing on this day in New Orleans, La. Amazingly, the New Orleans Tribune began distribution while slavery still existed. It was founded by Dr. Louis C. Reudanez. It began as a tri-weekly but soon became a daily published in both French and English.

1969—Howard Lee and Charles Evers became the first Black mayors of Chapel Hill, N.C., and Fayette, Miss., respectively. Evers was the brother of civil rights legend Medgar Evers who was murdered by Ku Klux Klan member Byron De La Beckwith on June 12, 1963.

1988—The Martin Luther King Jr. federal building is dedicated in Atlanta, Ga. It thus became the first federal building to bear the name of the slain civil rights leader.

• OCTOBER 5

1867—The first Black mayor of any American city takes office. His name was Monroe Baker. The prominent businessman was appointed mayor of St. Martin, La., two years after the end of slavery.

• OCTOBER 6

talking about how powerful the President is or how powerful the President thinks he is. I’m interested in talking about how powerful we are,” said Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. There were many questions and much discussion during CBC Week about “what the strategy is” against Trump’s attacks on democracy moving forward. “The CBC was built in moments like this,” Gov. Moore added. “If you ever want to learn anything about anybody, watch them when it was hard. Watch them when it was tough. Watch them when it wasn’t simple. Watch them when there are no easy decisions left,” Gov. Moore went on. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries also spoke as the government stands on the brink of a shutdown and more mass firings of federal employees. The evening featured awards to Vice President Harris, former Congressional Black Caucus Executive Director Angela Rye, and Win with Black Women founder Jotaka Eaddy.

1937—Famed attorney Johnnie Cochran is born on this day in Shreveport, La. He was the lead-attorney in the 1995 murder trial which resulted in the not guilty verdict for football legend O.J. Simpson. In addition to Simpson, Cochran was involved in several other high profile cases. He died on March 29, 2005 at the age of 67.

1967—Thurgood Marshall is sworn in as the first Black justice on the United States Supreme Court. President Lyndon Johnson had nominated him in part because of his distinguished career in the NAACP fighting to desegregate American institutions. Marshall had been the lead attorney in the historic Brown v. Board of Education case which led to the desegregation of the nation’s schools.

1986—The U.S. Senate imposes economic sanctions on the then White minority government in South Africa. The sanctions were imposed only after the Senate overrode a veto of the measure by President Ronald Reagan. Reagan had angered Blacks and progressive Whites by favoring a policy he referred to as “constructive engagement” with the racist South African regime. Black majority rule was not achieved in South Africa until 1994.

• OCTOBER 3

1856—Journalist and fiery advocate for Black rights T. Thomas Fortune is born in Marianna, Jackson County, Fla. He was an orator, journalist and militant civil rights advocate. He attended school at Howard University in Washington, D.C., but later moved to New York City where he founded the New York Age newspaper. Fortune died in Philadelphia at the age of 71 in 1928.

1935—The then-independent East African nation of Ethiopia is invaded by fascist Italy in an attempt to join other European nations which had used military force to establish colonies in Africa and exploit its economic resources. Blacks throughout the world rallied to Ethiopia’s defense, in part, because the nation was viewed by many as the place on Earth where human life began.

The U.S. effort was led by prominent Harlem, N.Y., minister Adam Clayton Powell Sr. 1949—One of the first Blackowned radio stations in America begins broadcasting in Atlanta, Ga. The principal organizing force behind WERD was businessman J.B. Blayton.

1995—Former professional football great O.J. Simpson is found not guilty of the murders of his exwife Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman. The trial had been a national sensation. The verdict angered a majority of Whites. Polls showed that better than 80 percent of Whites surveyed felt Simpson got away with murder.

• OCTOBER 4

1847—The first National Black Convention takes place in Troy, N.Y. There were more than 100 delegates in attendance from at least nine states. Top items on the agenda included determining ways to help end slavery and encouraging free Blacks to refuse to purchase products produced by slave labor. Frederick Douglass frequently makes note of the convention because one of its aims was to organize independent Black power and “not depend on Whites and hope” to free Blacks. 1871—The now world famous Fisk Jubilee Singers begin their first national tour. The tours helped raise funds for Nashville, Tenn.’s, predominately Black Fisk University as well as give the school an international reputation.

1917—Activist Fannie Lou Hamer is born in Montgomery County, Miss. She goes on to become one of the major female figures in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Nevertheless, she remains one of the movement’s most effective unsung heroes. As to why she became involved in the movement for Black freedom, dignity and political rights, she would often say in reference to injustice, “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

1971—The first legal interracial marriage takes place in North Carolina. A Black man, John Wilkinson, marries a White woman, Lorraine Mary Turner. The marriage came a few years after the 1967 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Loving v. Virginia, that ruled legal barriers to interracial marriage, which existed in most Southern states, were unconstitutional.

• OCTOBER 7

1821—One of the most prominent Blacks in the Underground Railroad, William Still, is born near Bedford, Mass. The “Underground Railroad” was the name given to a series of secret trails and safe houses used to help Blacks escape from slavery in the South to freedom in the North.

1897—The founder of the Nation of Islam Elijah Muhammad is born Elijah Poole in Sandersville, Ga., as one of 13 children. Muhammad would build his religious sect into the largest independent Black separatist organization in America. The group is currently headed by Min. Louis Farrakhan. Muhammad died in February 1975.

1934—Activist, writer and poet Imamu Baraka is born Everett LeRoi Jones in Newark, N.J. Baraka was one of the leading intellectual figures in the Black Power and Black Nationalist movements of the 1960s and early 1970s. A special tribute honoring Baraka’s 75th birthday took place around this time last year. 1967—Carl Stokes is elected the first Black mayor of a major American city—Cleveland, Ohio. Interestingly, he won by defeating Seth Taft—the grandson of a former United States president—Howard Taft. 1993—Writer Toni Morrison is awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Huge backlash over proposal to remove Waterfront bus stops

Congresswoman Lee, County Exec. Innamorato stepped in

The Women of Excellence Award celebrates local African American women who motivate and inspire others through their vision and leadership, exceptional achievements and participation in community service. The selected honorees will join an exclusive society of professional women who have previously received this distinction.

CRITERIA:

1. The nominee must a be a woman 40 years of age or older, who resides in the Greater Pittsburgh area.

2. The nominee must be active in her career or profession. Career or profession is defined as paid employment in her field. Nominees must agree to have their photograph and biographical information published in the New Pittsburgh Courier. To submit nominations, visit : www.newpittsburghcourier.com/WOEnominations2025 Nominations Must be Received by Monday, October 6.

All nominees selected as a Women of Excellence will be featured in a 2025 edition of the New Pittsburgh Courier

3. Evaluations will be based on the quality of a nominee’s achievements rather than the quantity of information submitted.

4. Selections will be made by the New Pittsburgh Courier Women of Excellence Selection Committee based on the following criteria:

• Local African American executive or business owner

• Proven success in career/profession

• Positive role model

• Demonstrative community service

Kann, general manager of the Waterfront shopping center, told the Courier in an exclusive interview, Sept. 29, that it was a congestion and safety issue.

"Because there's often more than one bus at a time going through there (just off Amity Street), it creates incredible congestion and it causes some people to lose their patience and try to drive around them (the buses) and that's unsafe, because people are walking through these buses to get to the parking lot," Kann said.

Kann told the Courier that for the last two years, he's been working with PRT and "other stakeholders" to figure out a way for the buses to pick up and drop riders off on the sides of the stores. Waterfront ownership wanted the buses not to make a right turn from Amity Street, but to remain on Amity Street, turn on Waterfront Drive and turn into a street between the McDonald's and Chick-fil-A, which would keep the buses off the busy street where all the storefronts are. But earlier this year, one of the stakeholders nixed the idea/agreement, and it caused M&J to give the directive to PRT to get rid of the two bus stops altogether by Oct. 19.

“Removing bus stops from the Waterfront disregards the needs of thousands of riders—working people, seniors, people with disabilities, families, and caregivers—who depend on this lifeline every single week," Congresswoman Lee said on

Friday, Sept. 26. "Forcing riders to walk across vast parking lots and unsafe roadways, often while carrying groceries, walking with children, or navigating mobility challenges, is not only unjust, but also dangerous."

Sure, cars fill the parking lots at the Waterfront.

But more than 400 people per day use the PRT buses, whether it's the 61D, 59, 57, 64, 53L or more, to get on or off at either the Target or Giant Eagle stops, to shop at the Waterfront. Many who use the buses are African Americans and seniors.

Congresswoman Lee wasn't having that, the idea of seniors having to walk what amounts to a few blocks from what the nearest bus stop would have been, to get to Giant Eagle for their food and prescriptions.

“As someone who grew up riding these busways, it’s clear this decision was not made with the public in mind," Congresswoman Lee continued. "When we allow private interests to dictate access to essential services, it is our most vulnerable neighbors who inevitably pay the price."

On Monday afternoon, Sept. 29, Innamorato said an "agreement in principle" was reached to maintain PRT bus service at the Waterfront.

"I want to thank all parties involved for their willingness to come to the table," Innamorato said in a statement.

"On behalf of the more than 400 weekday riders who rely on these stops — and the many community

members who spoke out in support of preserving them—Pittsburgh Regional Transit welcomes M&J Wilkow’s decision to reverse course on these bus stops," PRT spokesman Adam Brandolph said in a statement, Sept. 29. "We are grateful to County Executive Innamorato, Senator (Nick) Pisciottano, and all those who advocated alongside us for a solution that puts riders first."

As the Courier spoke with riders at the Target and Giant Eagle bus stops on Sept. 30, Betty Esper, the former Homestead mayor, appeared at Giant Eagle. She told the Courier that she had spoken with Waterfront officials about the issue, and that, "I'm just glad it's resolved."

Angie Lee, who was sitting next to Smith, told the Courier that she doesn't drive, and she uses PRT to get to the Waterfront. "I don't know why they would do that," she said about M&J's original decision to get rid of the bus stops. And Willis Moore, from the Homewood area, made it from Homewood to Homestead on this Tuesday, Sept. 30, via the bus. He was waiting on the 61D to get back to the Squirrel Hill/Oakland area.

"I have been catching the bus here for years," Moore told the Courier. He called it a "slap in the face" for someone to think about moving such convenient bus stops. "This is a regular," he said. "Why change things around?"

“As someone who grew up riding these busways, it’s clear this decision was not made with the public in mind.”

- Summer Lee

WILLIS MOORE, of Homewood, applauds the decision to keep the bus stops near Target and Giant Eagle at the Waterfront.

COLONEL DAN JOHNSON, OWNER OF JOHNSON’S BBQ, IN BLUE WITH HIS WIFE, FAR RIGHT, AND FAMILY, AT THE ANNUAL RIBFEST, HELD ON THE NORTH SHORE OF PITTSBURGH, EACH LABOR DAY WEEKEND. (PHOTOS BY J.L. MARTELLO)

BRIA THOMAS AND WADE ANTHONY FROM THE NORTH SIDE...

PICNIC! AT THE RIBFEST! LACHELLE TURNER FROM MCKEESPORT, NADINE HODGES FROM MONROVILLE, NEIL HODGES FROM GREENSBURG AND NATALYA HODGES FROM GREENSBURG.

CAROL WASHINGTON AND MELVIN WASHINGTON FROM VERONA GRABBING SOME RIBS...

South Pittsburgh anti-violence organizations getting the job done

Only 1 homicide through first 8 months of the year

ANTI-VIOLENCE FROM A1

Brother Marlon Martin of WAMO-FM (107.3), said that the Leading The Way Tour is a 20-city tour throughout the year, and the tour aims to uplift those organizations who are fighting against gun violence, as well as providing them with grant funding and other resources to continue their missions.

Reverend Eileen Smith, also in an interview with Martin, said that South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace has four violence "interrupters," going into the South Pittsburgh communities aiming to prevent violence before it starts. SPCP also is embedded in Carrick High School, where the organization "spots kids, mentors them...and we watch them and we teach them, and when they change their behavior over a certain period of time, then they are publicly acknowledged with an award, over the PA system, and we just keep mentoring them even after they've graduated," Rev. Smith said. "We actually do a lot with the few staff that we have because four violence interrupters and two outreach workers is certainly not enough to cover the

vast area of South Pittsburgh," she continued, "but we are connected with other people who are doing what we're doing, boots on the ground, and so that's what makes it work."

Reverend Smith said Cities United coming into Pittsburgh was a "morale booster," as Cities United provided a community dinner at Lighthouse Church, 810 Fisher St., in St. Clair, for the attendees in addition to their resources and hospitality. "Bringing them into our city and our county has been a great honor and we certainly were honored to be selected as the local host," Rev. Smith said. The work that SPCP and other anti-violence organizations are doing in the South Pittsburgh is working. Homicides have been on a serious decline this year, 2025, as compared to other recent years, with 43 homicides recorded in Allegheny County from Jan. 1, 2025, to Aug. 31, 2025. More specifically, in the South Pittsburgh neighborhoods, there was just one homicide recorded through the first eight months of the year—17year-old Tyrone Gatewood

Jr., killed in Mount Oliver, March 27.

South Pittsburgh communities include Mount Oliver (borough and city), Arlington, Beltzhoover, Allentown, Knoxville, Bon

COURIER CHURCH DIRECTORY

BAPTIST TEMPLE CHURCH

Sunday Worship: 8 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.

Pastor—Rev. Dr. Rodney Adam Lyde 7241 Race Street Pittsburgh, Pa., 15208

EBENEZER MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Sunday Worship Service: 11 a.m.

Campbell 2001 Wylie Avenue Pittsburgh, Pa., 15219 www.baptisttemple.church www.ebenezerbaptistpgh.org

Bountiful Blessings: 1st, 3rd Tuesday, 5-7 p.m. 312 Viola St. Duquesne, Pa., 15110 116 South Highland Ave. Pittsburgh, Pa., 15206 412-441-3800

Dorothy Stubbs

Air, St. Clair, Mt. Washington and Carrick. Reverend Smith unabashedly said in the interview with Martin that her organization's violence interrupters are

busy "forming relationships with the highest risk population, which are the potential shooters, providing trauma-informed care to reduce the risk factors to gun vio-

lence such as lack of jobs, lack of housing, addiction, mental health; all those things that lead to gun violence."

Reverend A. Marie Walker’s

“HE that is UNJUST, let him be UNJUST STILL: and he which is FILTHY, let him be FILTHY STILL: and he that is RIGHTEOUS, let him be RIGHTEOUS STILL: and he that is HOLY, let him be HOLY STILL.

And, behold I come QUICKLY; and MY reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.”

- Revelation 22:11-12

Pastor—Rev. Laphon Flood-Francis

Pastor— Nathaniel Pennybaker

Sr. Pastor—Rev. Dr. Vincent K.

BILLIE VAUGHN SPEAKS DURING THE CITIES UNITED TOUR. (PHOTO BY MARLON MARTIN)

The 2025 Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic

by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer

In the New Pittsburgh Courier’s four consecutive years of traveling to Canton, Ohio, and covering the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic, the HBCU Virginia Union University Panthers have played in the game twice. Both times, they’ve dominated their opponent with 45-point performances. Two years ago, in 2023, VUU crushed Morehouse College, 45-13. This year, Aug. 31, 2025, they demolished Miles College, 45-3. The next time Virginia Union University plays in Canton, you might want to put money on the Pan-

thers. VUU’s Curtis Allen ran for two touchdowns, 185 yards total on 17 carries. Panthers quarterback R.J. Rosales threw for a touchdown and ran for another. Overall, the VUU offense gained 556 yards to Miles’ 249. Now a staple on the day before Labor Day, the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic has turned into a week full of events leading up to the game. On Aug. 28, members of the Divine Nine (Black Greek letter organizations) went to local Canton schools and gave them inspirational tips for school and for life. A college fair then ensued, featuring more than 20

colleges and universities. A job fair closed out the day. On Aug. 29, a Habitat for Humanity Day of Service occurred, where people helped paint garden sheds of homes purchased by Habitat families in the area. A Clearview Golf Club Classic was held on Saturday, Aug. 30, along with a Battle of the Bands and the official plaque unveiling of the 2025 Black College Football Hall of Fame Inductees. This year’s inductees were: Henry Dyer (Grambling State University), Rashean Mathis (Bethune-Cookman University), Jacquay Nunnally (Florida A&M University), Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (Ten-

nessee State University), Jay “Sky” Walker (Howard University) and Coach Fred “Pop” Long (Wiley College). To close out the night, an All White Affair presented by the Divine Nine was held. Sunday, Aug. 31, was game day. But earlier in the day, before the 4 p.m. kickoff, a Gospel Fest was held, featuring national recording artist Deitrick Haddon. A Minority Business Reception was also held. By 4 p.m., though, there were 3,280 in attendance to watch the sixth annual Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic, with an impassioned Battle of the Bands at halftime.

VIRGINIA UNION UNIVERSITY REPRESENTIN...

SOME OF THE MILES COLLEGE CHEERLEADERS...(PHOTO BY ROB TAYLOR JR.)

SOME OF THE VIRGINIA UNION UNIVERSITY CHEERLEADERS...(PHOTO BY ROB TAYLOR JR.)

PROPERTY IS POWER!

Defending Black homeownership in the face of Trump’s political challenges

Over the past six decades, the African American community has made significant strides toward homeownership, building generational wealth and stability. Yet, the current political climate, particularly under the Trump administration’s push to roll back housing protections, threatens to undo these hard-earned gains.

The Political Landscape and Its Impact

Recent policy shifts have aimed to dismantle key housing protections that were designed to promote fair lending and equitable access. This includes potential rollbacks of the Fair Housing

Act and the Community Reinvestment Act, which have historically been crucial in addressing housing discrimination and ensuring that Black communities have fair access to mortgages.

The Importance of Homeownership

Homeownership is more than simply having a roof over one’s head; it is the cornerstone of economic security and social mobility in America. It provides a stable environment for families and a foundation for intergenerational wealth. A home is an appreciating asset one that not only provides shelter, but also creates an opportunity to build equity over time. That equity can be leveraged for education, entrepreneurship, retirement, or to weather unexpected financial storms. For African Americans, the significance of homeownership carries even greater weight because of how long access to it was deliberately denied.

For decades, Black families were excluded from mortgage credit and locked out of desirable neighborhoods through redlining, racially restrictive covenants, and predatory lending. These discriminatory practices robbed generations of the chance to build wealth in the same way many White families did. As a result, today’s racial wealth gap is not accidental, it is the cumulative effect of denied opportunities.

Yet, when African Americans own homes, the benefits extend far beyond the individual household. Ownership brings stability to families, reduces the risk of displacement, and anchors communities. Children are more likely to do better in

PROPERTY IS POWER!

IS POWER FROM B1

school, graduate, and pursue higher education. Neighborhoods with higher rates of ownership often enjoy lower crime rates, stronger civic engagement, and higher property values, all of which reinforce a cycle of empowerment.

Homeownership is also the foundation of intergenerational wealth, the ability to pass down not just money, but an asset that grows in value and creates opportunity for the next generation. This is especially critical for Black families, where the absence of inherited wealth has meant starting from scratch, generation after generation. A home changes that equation: it provides collateral, financial flexibility, and most importantly, the chance to leave something tangible behind.

In this way, homeownership is not just about financial transactions, it is about dignity, stability, and power. For African Americans, achieving and sustaining homeownership is a direct challenge to centuries of exclusion. Every home purchased is more than a milestone for one family; it is a step toward closing the racial wealth gap and rewriting the narrative of what economic empowerment looks like in Black America.

Standing Up and Fighting Back

In this critical moment, it’s vital for the Black community to stay politically engaged and vigilant. Advocacy and activism are key. By participating in local and national political processes, advocating fair housing policies, and supporting leaders who prioritize equity, we can protect the progress we’ve made and push back against policies that threaten it.

Tips for Empowerment and Action

Stay Informed and Engaged—

Follow policy changes and understand how they impact housing.

Advocate for Fair Policies— Support legislation and leaders that promote equitable housing and fair lending practices.

Educate and Empower Your Community— Share knowledge about homeownership, credit-building, and political advocacy.

Support Black-Owned Businesses and Initiatives— Strengthen the community by backing efforts that uplift Black homeownership and economic empowerment.

Stay Persistent and Resilient— The fight for fair housing is ongoing. Patience and perseverance are essential as we protect and expand our gains.

Conclusion

The current political climate may present challenges, but it also underscores the importance of unity, activism, and education. By standing up for our rights and safeguarding the progress made, the Black community can continue to turn property into power. Together, we can ensure that homeownership remains a pillar of empowerment and opportunity for generations to come. (Dr. Anthony O. Kellum—CEO of Kellum Mortgage, LLC Homeownership Advocate, Speaker, Author NMLS # 1267030 NMLS #1567030 O: 313-710-9025 W: www.KelluMortgage.com.) Property is Power! is a movement to promote home and community ownership.

Couples

es. Money often takes the blame, but the issue runs deeper. The real root? Lack of alignment.

It’s been said that many married couples are willing to merge bedrooms but not merge bank accounts. Does this imply that couples are more comfortable talking about sex than talking about money? Think about that. Folks are willing to get in between the sheets but won’t analyze the spreadsheets of their financial life together. Why is money such a taboo topic— especially among couples? Could one spouse, or both, be hiding financial infidelity?

When you agree on money, you’re really agreeing on something much bigger: goals, values, dreams, and priorities. When you disagree on money, you’re really disagreeing on goals, values, dreams, and priorities. All this time you thought you were having money disputes, but what it really boils down to is unequally yoked priorities.

Households Not on the Same Page

Two incomes can be a blessing, but if the household isn’t on the same page financially, it can feel more like a curse. I’ve coached couples making over $200,000 a year who are drowning in debt, living paycheck to paycheck, and arguing every week about bills.

BofA raises U.S. minimum hourly wage to $25,

The increase delivers on a pledge to hit $25 by 2025

CHARLOTTE, NC—Bank of America

announced it has raised its U.S. minimum hourly wage to $25 per hour. With the increase, the minimum annualized salary for full-time employees in the U.S. will rise to more than $50,000. The increase, which goes into effect in early October, applies to all full-time and parttime hourly positions in the U.S., affecting thousands of employees across the nation and helping to fuel the growth of the American economy and create job opportunities that strengthen the communities the company serves.

A national leader

· This is the company’s latest move, after steadily increasing over the last several years, from under $15 per hour to $25 per hour

· It builds on the bank’s history of being a national leader in establishing a competitive minimum rate of pay for U.S. hourly employees

· With the increase to $25, starting salary for full-time U.S. employees at the bank will have gone up by more than $20,000 since 2017

Joining the bank at the minimum wage is a launchpad for a long-term career. From onboarding and professional development to tuition assistance and career mobility, the company is committed to a workplace where every teammate has the opportunity to grow and succeed.

“Our strong and rising minimum starting salary provides opportunities for our teammates to build a long-term career at Bank of America,” said Sheri Bronstein, Chief People Officer, Bank of America.

“Competitive compensation is one of the many ways we are helping to drive American economic growth and opportunity.”

Competitive pay, industryleading benefits

As a further investment in the team, 97 percent of Bank of America employ-

ees have received awards beyond regular compensation, mostly in the form of Bank of America restricted common stock. Nearly $5.8 billion has been awarded since the program’s inception in 2017.

Bank of America also offers industry-leading benefits and employee programs for all. Additional benefits include, but are not limited to:

· An award-winning onboarding, education and professional development organization, The Academy

· 26 weeks of parental leave; 16 are fully paid

· An industry-leading sabbatical program, offering 4-6 weeks of paid time off based on tenure

· Back up child and adult care program, as well as for eligible teammates, a reimbursement program for childcare expenses

· U.S. health plans include no-cost wellness visits, preventative medica-

tions, virtual care and onsite screenings

· Personalized support for employees and their families navigating critical life events through our Life Event Services team

Through an ongoing investment in skills-based training and a culture rooted in opportunity, many teammates who started their careers at a minimum wage salary rise to roles where they lead, mentor, provide for their families and give back to their communities.

Bank of America’s leadership as a global employer of choice has been recognized by many external organizations, including LinkedIn’s Top Companies in the U.S., Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list for seven consecutive years and People Magazine’s 100 Companies That Care. These recognitions reflect Bank of America’s continuous focus on providing a Great Place to Work for all teammates.

When housing rights fall, equality slips away

(TriceEdneyWire.com) —“Every way that someone could come to us and get help for free and see that someone is speaking with the voice of the American people and with the government, all of that is being dismantled ... when people lose that, they’re losing something fundamental to the American dream, to the economy, to their lives. And it has a real, concrete impact.”— HUD whistleblower Paul Osadebe

The Trump Administration’s latest assault on fair housing protections is more than a technical rollback. It is a deliberate step backward in the long fight for racial equity and opportunity. By stripping resources from HUD’s fair housing division, slowing investigations, and easing the burden on cities and landlords, this administration is sending a clear signal: the federal government will no longer stand firmly on the side of justice in housing.

For generations, housing has been the foundation of the American Dream. A home is more than shelter. It is the anchor of stability, the pathway to generational wealth, and the entry point to better schools, safer neighborhoods, and economic mobility. When these protections are weakened, those doors close — and too often, they close hardest on Black families.

We know where this road leads.

Housing segregation in America was not an accident. It was the result of deliberate government policy: redlining maps that marked Black neighborhoods as too risky for investment, racially restrictive covenants that

Money doesn’t solve money problems—discipline, unity, and a plan do.

If one partner is stacking while the other is swiping, you’ll cancel each other out. If one is dreaming about retiring early and the other is planning expensive vacations, conflict is guaranteed. This is why financial unity is more important than financial capacity.

Two paychecks don’t automatically equal prosperity. But two aligned visions? That’s where the magic happens.

Leverage Each Other’s Strengths

A winning team plays to its strengths. The same applies in marriage. Maybe one partner is bold at negotiating raises or diving into investments, while the other is steady at budgeting and tracking expenses. One sees the big picture, the other sweats the details. Together, you create a financial game plan that’s balanced and resilient.

Shared Work Ethic = Shared Discipline

Couples who grind together usually build discipline together. If one says, “Let’s skip eating out so we can save,” the other is more likely to co-sign the idea when they’re aligned on goals. That type of accountability makes overspending harder and smart choices easier.

Kids see it, family sees it, and eventually, it becomes your household culture. You’re not just saving money—you’re teaching values. That’s how generation-

excluded Black families from buying homes, highways that cut through thriving communities, and lending practices that preyed on rather than protected those locked out of mainstream credit. These were not unintended consequences; they were purposeful choices that created a geography of inequality still visible today.

The consequences endure. Black homeownership rates lag far behind those of white families. Schools remain segregated by neighborhood. Wealth gaps widen with every generation denied the chance to own a home in a stable, appreciating community. The protections of the Fair Housing Act were designed to interrupt this cycle. When those protections are gutted, the old patterns threaten to reemerge.

The stakes today are clear. Weakening fair housing enforcement means that a Black family can be turned away from a rental unit with little recourse. It means lenders can use coded criteria to exclude entire communities. It means cities can avoid taking meaningful action to dismantle segregation. And it means another

al wealth takes root.

Avoid the Trap: Lifestyle Creep

Here’s where most couples fumble. Lifestyle creep is real. Income goes up and so does spending. Bigger house. Fancier vacations. New cars. More “stuff.” Before you know it, you’ve got more bills but not more wealth. Wealth is what you keep, not what you spend. Double incomes should mean double investing, not double debt.

Couples Who Grind Together, Shine Together

If you and your partner are both working, and you’re still broke, something’s off. That’s not a “couple goal.” That’s “couple chaos.”

Couples who grind, save, invest, and plan together don’t live paycheck to paycheck—they build money that flows, grows, and lasts. And that’s the kind of wealth that supports not just your love, but your legacy.

Strategies for Couples Who Want That Money Flow

Want to turn two checks into endless money flow? Try this playbook: Emergency Fund Together—3–6 months of expenses.

Kill Debt—Use your combined power to crush it fast.

Invest Early & Often—Stocks, retirement, real estate—make your money work.

Set Shared Goals—Be clear on what

generation of children grows up confined by the zip code into which they are born.

Black history in America is inseparable from the struggle for fair housing. From battles against redlining and contract lending to fights for public housing reform, housing has always been at the heart of the civil rights movement. To roll back these protections now is not just a policy shift, it is an erasure of that struggle and a denial of the lessons learned at great cost.

We cannot allow complacency in the face of such deliberate erosion. Fair housing is not a luxury or a partisan issue. It is a civil right, and it is a test of whether America intends to honor its own principles. This means restoring strong enforcement, demanding accountability from local governments, investing in affordable housing, and challenging discriminatory practices in all their forms.

The Trump Administration may seek to undo decades of progress, but history reminds us that progress is never given; it is fought for and defended. The right to live free from discrimination, to raise a family in safety, and to build wealth through homeownership is fundamental to the American promise. We will not go back to a time when those rights were denied. Fair housing is racial justice. Fair housing is economic justice. And fair housing is democracy itself.

you’re chasing. Track & Budget—Stay transparent about spending. Protect Yourselves—Insurance, wills, estate planning. Run your household like a business. You’re the co-CEOs of your financial destiny.

Closing Thoughts

Couples who work together have the chance to achieve extraordinary financial outcomes. Dual incomes give you a serious edge, but alignment, discipline, and vision are what unlock the wealth. When you and your partner share priorities, goals, and financial discipline, money doesn’t divide you—it multiplies you.

Couples who grind, save, invest, and plan together don’t just live for today— they build money that flows, grows, and lasts. That’s wealth that protects your love, supports your dreams, and builds your legacy.

Marc H. Morial

A requiem for free speech Guest Editorial

The word “requiem” is a religious ceremony that includes prayers for the departed to find eternal rest. There are also other meanings for requiem, and one of these is the figurative use as a description of something that serves as a mournful commemoration of something that has been lost, such as a “requiem for a lost world.” A variation of this last phrase, substituting “free speech” in place of “lost world,” is the appropriate phrase for the situation that Americans currently face Essentially, the First Amendment is under attack by the current presidential regime, and the president, along with a gaggle of rogue White men, is the architect of this movement to disenfranchise Americans. The latest effort in this regard can be seen in the fallout surrounding the unfortunate public murder of Charlie Kirk, the head of a movement, Turning Point USA, that indoctrinates Americans—particularly youthful White Americans on college campuses—to embrace MAGA ideas.

To be sure, Kirk’s murder, in front of a big crowd, was abhorrent, terrible, wrong, and just about any other negative adjective available! But two wrongs don’t make a right, and unfortunately, humanity does not always respond in a manner that is expected, thereby generating serious challenges. This is particularly vexing and has revealed a tear in the fabric of civility in the form of propaganda that threatens the demise of free speech in America. This has been clearly demonstrated by a recent debacle regarding the canceling of late-night talkshow host Jimmy Kimmel, who told a joke that, to some people, was hilarious and benign. The message that this action generated has released a firestorm of controversy. The crux of the problem is allegedly that the joke was in very poor taste because it targeted Charlie Kirk, considered to be a martyred MAGA hero. Kirk spread what he considered to be his “truth,” which often came across as White supremacist dogma.

Ironically, Kimmel also spoke his truth and was sacrificed as a result. On the other hand, Kirk’s messages contained a lot of unfortunate untruths. He was not the paragon of virtue that he is being painted to be. He was a bigot who spread ugly propaganda masquerading as religious truth. Kirk also had a lot of harsh words for Black people. Some of his notorious gems included the following: he denied the existence of systemic racism and called White privilege a “racist idea;” called George Floyd a “scumbag;” said, “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, boy, I hope he’s qualified;” and, “If you’re a WNBA, pot-smoking, Black lesbian, do you get treated better than a United States Marine?”

In addition: “If we would have said that Joy Reid and Michelle Obama and Sheila Jackson Lee and Ketanji Brown were affirmative action picks, we would have been called racists. Now they’re coming out and they’re saying it for us… You do not have the brain processing power to otherwise be taken really seriously. You had to go steal a White person’s slot to be taken seriously.” In addition, Kirk verbally disrespected Simone Biles, calling her a “national disgrace” based on her gymnastics performance in the 2021 Olympics.

These statements, along with others, reveal the true nature underlying Kirk’s god-fearing exterior. And yet, Jimmy Kimmel has been sanctioned by having his show suspended due to an innocent comedic monologue. A suspension that had been lifted by Crusader press time. Ultimately, it is unfortunate that Charlie Kirk lost his life at the hands of an assassin, but it is also true that Kimmel, and others who choose to share their truths, should not be targeted for their speech. In fact, a lot of people are increasingly reluctant to share their ideas since Trump ascended to power. A veneer of fear has descended upon America, and people are finding themselves targeted for speech that does not jibe with ideas circulated by the Trump regime. Chiefly, free speech is under attack, and if people do not wake up and respond appropriately, we may soon find that we will need a requiem for free speech as it meets its demise. Aluta continua.

(Reprinted from the Chicago Crusader)

Trump’s crown is not fitting!

(TriceEdneyWire.com) A Quinnipiac Poll told us 2/3 of Americans look back and say they weren’t taught enough about the struggles and triumphs of Black Americans in school. Along came Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump who declared as long as they’re in charge, they aren’t going to learn about those struggles and triumphs. DeSantis has defied Florida’s teachers to bring Black History books to school and removed them from the libraries! Trump piggy backed on what he did. He’s decided to shut down anything that includes Black facts and is now threatening to send someone rifling through the African American Museum in Washington, DC to see if they can find anything not pleasing to him!

Pete Hegseth’s Dept. of War took down Jackie Robinson’s picture, and he saw that it’s not just Black people who consider Jackie an American hero, but so do a lot of others. They put it back in place. To show how far Trump has sunken, he decided to remove President Barack Obama’s handsome photograph from the White House and placed his own ugly photo there!

Trump is urging AG Pam Bondi to prosecute his political opponents. Why he felt the need to say that at the memorial service for the late Charlie Kirk after Erika Kirk delivered a heart-warming message about her spouse. She referred to the man who murdered her husband, and said she forgave him because the answer

“is not hate”. “The answer is love”, she said. Even we hardcore Progressives Trump hates so much, applauded her—but not the so-called leader of the free world, Trump, who went on to show Erika he didn’t agree with her by saying he hates his opponents and delivered a hate-filled political speech. He said, “I can’t stand my opponents. I hate my opponents, and I don’t want the best for them.”

Trump claims to support free speech, but one must assume he means he supports it for himself because he says a lot vulgar, untrue and offensive stuff about others. He uses vulgarity frequently all day when young children are still awake.

After all the hate-filled rhetoric from Trump about Jimmy Kimmel (who was invited back to his show because Trump’s crown didn’t fit that case). It doesn’t fit New York’s AG Letitia James, California’s Senator Adam Schiff, Atty. Jim Comey or his daughter, or others Trump calls enemies. Why this venom at a memorial service! Trump’s crown didn’t fit on Kimmel or the others, and the backlash was furious! Now we need all these good people who fought for free speech, to stand

up for mail-in voters’ rights, innocent immigrant rights, women’s rights, Palestinian rights and reparations for Black people whose ancestors were enslaved.

MAGA people need to apologize to universities whose funds were cut, to South Koreans for sending workers back home, to women for taking away our rights in health care, for disrespecting so many brilliant Black women and the list goes on and on. It is my prayer that soon the brilliant trio of the Supreme Court Justices (Kagan, Sotomayor, and Brown Jackson) will be able to convince the balance of the Supreme Court that our Constitution does not call for Kings to govern America, and Trump should not be treated as one. I speak often with these young National Guard members Trump sent to Washington, DC to take over our city. Many are embarrassed when we explain the statistics of some of their areas as having greater crime than DC. They ask us to call their Senators to let them know. The men and women I’ve met are friendly and preferring to be in their own states working to make improvements there. As the Mayor of Memphis said, “If the Federal government sent his city funds to make improvements, they could do it themselves.” Trump prefers spending more tax dollars sending people away from their states to others to satisfy his ego!

(Dr. E. Faye Williams, President of The Dick Gregory Society.)

John. H.

In the topsy-turvy world of Donald Trump, logic and coherence infrequently accompany his assessments of reality. The president is perpetually aggrieved and persistently in attack mode against imagined sinister forces out to destroy our country. The president blocks out the bright light of reason and descends into darkness when his depressive worldview is challenged. There is abundant proof of his penchant for unthinking misstatements.

In the immediate aftermath of the January collision between an army helicopter and a passenger jet, President Trump immediately blamed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives for making the skies dangerous. As evolving (still ongoing) investigations seek to determine the exact cause of the collision, the President’s assertions are being revealed as gross exploitation of a tragedy for political reasons. President Trump’s penchant for unfiltered utterances is core to his fundamental essence. As I am writing, a news alert claims that the people who were responsible for a stalled elevator at the United Nations “should be arrested”. Crazy!

President Trump zealously berates nighttime talk show hosts for using humor to highlight the foibles of his actions. By fearlessly eliciting laughter at the expense of Trump’s actions, comedians felt protected by the generous freedom of speech covenants embedded in the Constitution. Often with brutal transparency, focus is made on his “cankles” or his “orangeness”. In turn, the president calls latenight comedians “talentless”. “All they do is hit Trump,” he said, and mused that the networks should have their broadcast licenses revoked.

Jimmy Kimmel was pilloried for his commentary on the murder of Charlie Kirk and was nearly permanently exiled from late-night television. He was accused of exploiting a trage-

dy for political reasons. Kimmel’s comments were no less offensive than Trump’s. It is a case of a carrot calling a pumpkin orange. This give-and-take between the president and his critics has been a hallmark of our nation. Richard Nixon’s team famously maintained an “enemies list” that targeted many journalists. Abraham Lincoln arrested journalists and censored negative stories about the conduct of the Civil War. President John Adams imprisoned journalists, alleging misconduct under the Alien and Sedition Acts. Tension between presidents and the press is endemic to our governmental process.

A free press enhances the nation’s health. Brendan Carr, Trump-appointed chair of the Federal Communications Commission, said several years ago, “Free speech is the counterweight—it is the check on government control. That is why censorship is the authoritarian’s dream”. Now, he has sold his soul to Donald Trump and promotes government (authoritarian) control of the press.

There is an unprecedented attack on free speech. Imagine a society where any news reporting critical of the Trump administration was deemed impermissible. Well, imagine no more: Trump is a long way down the road of controlling media criticism. The return of Jimmy Kimmel to late-night television is a small battle in the ongoing war to maintain freedom of speech. The Trump-controlled federal bureaucracy is well on its way to ap-

proving mega-mergers that will result in the control of mass media messaging by a small number of individuals. Many of the most powerful media moguls were prominently in attendance as Trump took the oath of office. With visions of cascading dollars dancing in their collective headspaces, multiple media leaders are deferentially bowing from the waist before Trump. Like fawning puppies with tails entrenched between their legs, these leaders are raising their hind legs to pee on free speech. Veteran networks, which were once primary distribution channels for national news, now find themselves numbed by the chill winds of censorship. Objecting to the Trump agenda is not an assault on America. Conservative interests have not only gained the presidency but also brutally deconstructed the walls that housed fairness and equity in our country. Under the banner of “Make America Great Again,” settled history and policy become unsettled The “few” are setting the agenda for the “many”. Mobs that stormed our Nation’s Capital are celebrated as tourists. Federal soldiers are sent to “control” urban concentrations of poor people. The names and images of Confederate traitors are resurfacing from their justified internment. Enslavement is portrayed as a life-affirming and beneficial experience for relocated African peoples. In plain view, Trump minions are disdainfully stomping through vast fields of hard-won freedoms, savagely crushing opposition with brute force. Brute force is not muted by capitulation. There is but one course! Over century and a half ago, Frederick Douglass opined that “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and never will”. His words ring true today. In the words of Public Enemy, to save America, we must aggressively Fight the Power!

When presidents can’t take a joke,

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—A Midwestern schoolteacher once told her class that a sense of humor is a sign of intelligence. “Look around the classroom,” she said. “The smartest kids always get the joke right away. The others might struggle.” I’ve never confirmed that theory with a doctor. But I believe it. Humor takes quick thinking. It takes perspective. It takes freedom. That’s why it matters when our presidents can laugh at themselves. For generations, they have. Reagan turned questions about his age into a punchline. Obama roasted himself at the Correspondents’ Dinner. Even George W. Bush, the butt of endless late-night jokes, learned to grin and roll with it. That humility has always set us apart from the monarchy we broke away from. Kings demand silence. Presidents in a free nation are supposed to be able to laugh along with the people. Donald Trump doesn’t get that. He can’t take a joke—and worse, he tries to punish the people who make them. First Stephen Colbert. Now Jimmy

Kimmel. Using the power of the presidency to go after comedians isn’t just petty. It’s dangerous. Authoritarians hate humor because humor exposes them. Stalin, Mussolini—every strongman fears the comic more than the critic. A joke spreads fast. A sharp one can cut through a wall of propaganda. That’s why free countries protect comedians. They keep leaders honest by refusing to let them take themselves too seriously. We forget: America was born on satire. Franklin drew cartoons mocking the British crown. Revolutionaries cracked jokes as easily as they fired muskets. Laughter was proof that no king could control the American spirit. But when presidents can’t laugh at themselves, citizens stop laughing too.

And when citizens stop laughing, they stop questioning. That silence is the first step toward submission. This isn’t about whether you watch Jimmy Kimmel or Stephen Colbert. It’s about whether you want to live in a country where the president decides which jokes are allowed. Today it’s late-night hosts. Tomorrow it could be a cartoonist, a college kid, or you for what you post online. The strength of America isn’t that our leaders are above mockery. It’s that they can survive it. A president who can’t take a joke can’t take criticism. And a president who can’t take criticism can’t be trusted with freedom.

That Midwestern schoolteacher was right: humor is a sign of intelligence. But more than that, it’s a sign of liberty. And if we want to keep our democracy strong, we better insist on leaders who can laugh—even, and especially, at themselves.

(Ben Jealous is a professor of practice at the University of Pennsylvania and the former head of the NAACP. He is a direct descendant of the youngest combatant at the Battle of Lexington and Concord.)

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—We must ask ourselves, “Why did so many people ignore the warnings during the last election?”

As we witness the criminal prosecution of one of Trump’s political opponents, former FBI Director James Comey, the demise of the fundamental values of democracy is no longer a threat but is occurring in real time. As the Democratic nominee for president, former Vice President Kamala Harris, warned us about her rival, Donald Trump, as he spoke about “the enemy from within.” Harris said, “You heard his words, coming from him. He’s talking about the enemy within… he’s talking about that he considers anyone that doesn’t support him, or who will not bend to his will, an enemy of our country.” As Harris’s words become reality, does the truth change the minds of those who were not listening? Are people starting to care now that the retribution campaign is underway, and the fact that New York Attorney General Letitia James could face a similar fate?

While former FBI Director James Comey is maintaining his innocence, he has been indicted on two criminal counts—one count of making false statements and another for obstruction of justice. Ironically, Comey played a significant role in the political landscape that enabled President Trump to obtain the White House. The indictment comes days after President Trump ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue his perceived enemies more aggressively.

The Eastern District of Virginia sought the indictment nearly a week after Trump forced Erik Siebert, the former U.S. attorney of the district, out of his post and replaced him with Lindsey Halligan, one of the president’s former personal attorneys who has no prosecutorial experience. In other words, a seasoned prosecutor was removed and replaced with an unqualified “yes person” who was placed in a high-powered position to carry out Trump’s wrongful bidding.

David W. Marshall Commentary

The public is witnessing another moral failure in presidential leadership, but are voters paying attention? Halligan brought the charges just five days before a Sept. 30 legal deadline, which is when the statute of limitations of the alleged crimes was due to expire. The administration is becoming increasingly bold in its attacks against political opponents and the concept of free speech.

The recent suspension of Jimmy Kimmel after his comments made during his show in response to the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk shows how suppressing prominent figures sends a warning to ordinary citizens and activists. After right-wing websites and TV shows publicized Kimmel’s comments, the Trump-aligned FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called it “the sickest conduct possible” and suggested that the FCC could move to revoke ABC affiliate licenses. ABC’s announcement was made after media giant Nexstar Media Group announced it would pre-empt Kimmel’s show indefinitely on all of its stations over his remarks. Widespread criticism of the Kimmel suspension led to people cancelling their Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions. In his return to the late-night stage, Kimmel stated that “anti-American” efforts to curtail free speech in the United States will not temper his criticism of the president.

These assaults on free speech and politically motivated prosecutions are signs that the true enemy from within continues to be exposed. Letitia James is not the enemy from within. The true enemy was exposed with his 34 felony counts as a candidate for president. Liz Cheney is not the enemy from within. The House January 6 Select Committee exposed the true enemy. Joe Biden is not the enemy from within. Two House impeachments exposed the true enemy. Kamala Harris is not the enemy from within. The true enemy was exposed when he executed Project 2025 as president. Barack Obama is not the true enemy. The true enemy was exposed when he chose not to place his hand on the Bible during his swearing-in as president. With this increasingly authoritarian government, the Black community must not be silent or divided. There is too much at stake. Black pastors and others in the faith community are speaking out. Our voices cannot be suppressed when we defend the oppressed, the poor, the immigrant, and the fatherless. Our voices cannot be silenced when we speak truth to power, when we hold those accountable who misuse the power of their elected or appointed position. Our voices cannot be silenced when we need to expose the whitewashing of the Black experience. The affront on free speech is a threat to everybody. What happened to Jimmy Kimmel and James Comey can happen to anybody. “Time for leaders—political leaders, business leaders, civic leaders—to pick a side: democracy or autocracy.” Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut posted on X.

National divorce and dangerous illusions of division

Following the assassination of Turning Point USA’s conservative founder, Charlie Kirk, Republican representative Marjorie Taylor Greene called for a “national divorce” between conservatives and “the left.”

Greene contends that the United States has become too divided to reconcile.

She stated, “There is nothing left to talk about with the left. They hate us. They assassinated our nice guy who actually talked to them peacefully, debating ideas. Then millions on the left celebrated and made clear they wanted all of us dead.”

She concluded, “I want a peaceful national divorce … it’s no longer safe for any of us.”

This statement is uncustomary. The politically correct response to a political killing is to urge unity and demand no acts of retaliation.

After a rooftop shooter attempted to kill Donald Trump during his second presidential campaign, President Joe Biden quickly asked Americans to tone down their political rhetoric. According to The Hill: “Days after surviving the shooting, Trump delivered an address at the Republican National Convention in which he extended an olive branch to Americans who had not supported him and said the country must put its disagreements aside to reach its potential.”

A few months later, there was another attempt to assassinate Trump.

This time, Trump did not attempt to unite the nation. He insisted that Democratic rhetoric had put his life in danger. Politico reported that Trump’s statement was part of a strategy Trump’s advisors viewed as a way to hold Democrats accountable. Congresswoman Greene went beyond Trump’s strategy, but she was not the first to propose a “national divorce.”

David Reaboi, a fellow of the Claremont Institute, a conservative think tank, wrote about the concept in 2021. Most intellectuals believe a national breakup is a fantasy. Divorce divides everything once shared. It’s impossible to determine which side would gain territory, industries, or nuclear weapons.

Reaboi argued that impossibility won’t be forever. He asserted that history teaches us regimes, like all human creations, rise and fall. The United States will eventually come to an end. The timeframe is uncertain, but it will come. In America today, we have two competing, diametrically opposed, and mutually irreconcilable ideas of the good, justice, and the proper role of the state in its interactions with citizens. As time goes on, more of reality will become a battleground. If we disagree on these major issues, the essential question becomes: what force could keep us from coming apart? A national divorce is not an immediate action plan. Rather, it is a rhetorical approach to lay the groundwork for critical discussions about what happens next in America, as the country becomes increasingly divided, bitter, and angry. Reaboi specializes in “national security” and “political warfare.”

This idea of a “national divorce” likely originated from the specialist becoming

overly immersed in his field of expertise. It’s similar to what happens to a news junkie. The news captures and reports on the abnormal, but when a viewer overdoses, they begin to believe what is abnormal is normal.

James S. Bridgeforth and Emma Roshioru recently stated in The Black Wall Street Times that there are dangerous illusions of division in America. They wrote, “Here’s the truth: Americans aren’t nearly as divided as we think. The ‘Perception Gap’ study found that Republicans and Democrats wildly overestimate how extreme the other side is. Most Americans—65 percent—say they hate divisive politics. Nearly 80 percent describe the current climate as toxic. What we actually crave is constructive disagreement. We want leaders to argue fiercely but shake hands afterward. We want citizens who can sit across a dinner table without flipping it over.”

It seems improbable that Congresswoman Greene believes the country is more divided today than it was in the 1860s or 1960s. That means she’s not calling for a national divorce because the division is unreconcilable. She advocates for a national divorce because she overdosed on political violence and has lost hope. Rich Lowery of National Review responded to Reaboi’s suggestion of a national divorce, and his response also applies to Congresswoman Greene. Lowery said, “This is an impulse that must be resisted. Breaking up is hard to do, and quitting on America is—or should be—unforgivable.”

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—For 200 years —the 17th and 18th centuries—Africans came to America involuntarily and enslaved. Then fast forward to the 21st century. The news is Sub Saharan Africans are coming to America willingly, in search of opportunity and freedom.

The trend was driven by the 1965 Hart-Celler immigration law that ended 40 years of racially discriminatory U.S. policy that preferred Northern European immigrants but rejected Southern and Eastern Europeans, plus other peoples from Asia and Africa.

By 1980, 15 years after Hart-Celler, reported the Migration Policy Institute, 130,000 African immigrants had arrived in the United States. In subsequent decades the numbers climbed to:

* 265,000 in 1990,

* 691,000 in 2000,

* 1,327,000 in 2010, and

* 2,094,000 in 2019.

Furthermore, the new Americans were distinct in where they choose to live.

In 1993, when the NBC “Today” morning show spent a week telling stories on the African continent, the National Association of Black Journalists held its annual convention in Houston. A local journalist announced with pride that greater Houston housed the third-largest Nigerian community outside of that originating nation (London UK was No. 2.)

Why those people came to Texas? Because of Houston’s oil industry that related to Nigeria’s and because the hot, humid climate was familiar. NBA and collegiate champion Akeem Olajuwon came to Houston for school and athletic glory (and years later, another 7-footer Dikembe Mutombo of the Congo was a student-athlete at Georgetown who blossomed as probably the NBA’s most feared shot blocker.)

Another geographical USA hotspot was the state of Maryland, especially affluent Prince George’s and Harford counties in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. megalopolis.

During my seven-year span as a professor at Morgan State University-Baltimore I relished teaching the grandchildren of African exchange students who had been coming to the

USA since the 1950s The grandkids enriched my African Diaspora and Communication class as we collaborated on four cultural mileposts: fashion, food, music, and religion/spirituality.

For example, enslaved Africans brought rice to the New World and mass produced it in the Carolinas. A student informed me that African women sewed rice grains into their braided hair to smuggle and then plant something familiar in the New World.

The kalimba, a thumb piano had a distinct sound in the hands of Maurice White of Kennedy Center-honored, multi-Grammy winning band Earth, Wind and Fire.

The banjo too is a distinctively African instrument, memorialized in late 19th century painter Henry Ossawa Tanner’s “The Banjo Lesson.”

As for religion and spirituality, Africans in America include Christians, Muslims, and Hebrews. Egyptians and East Africans people who were Christians before many Europeans.

A third regional concentration of 21st century Africans is in Twin Cities Minneapolis-St. Paul. Many were former refugees who escaped drought, famine, and regional wars and were hosted by humanitarian organizations.

U.S. Representative IIhan Omar was one of them. She now navigates the halls of Congress, distinct in her head wraps. Famously feisty, Omar was in the news this month because U.S. Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina tried to smear Omar and possibly have her stripped of key committee assignments. Mace’s stunt failed because Omar’s Democratic caucus plus some Republicans by a one-vote margin spared Omar from sanctions.

There are martyred African immigrants. In the 1999, Amadou Diallo, 23, of Guinea was a New York merchant

who police mistakenly thought had brandished a handgun. The object was the wallet he pulled from his pocket. Multiple cops fired their guns, and their ricocheting bullets made may have made some of them believe Diallo was shooting at them.

He wasn’t, but 41 shots hit him 19 times, the name of a Bruce Springsteen song that angered many cops, but memorialized a tragedy.

Diallo was a victim, but Dr. Bennet Omalu was a sports hero. Based in NFL-loving Pittsburgh Steeler country, Omalu researched the connection between helmet-to-helmet collisions and traumatic brain injuries that shortened player’s lives and made some suicidal. Initially, Omalu was ridiculed and dismissed by the NFL establishment but in time the science compelled the leaders of America’s most popular sport to embrace a concussion protocol to protect player’s health. Omalu may have saved NFL, collegiate, and high school football before enough parents reconsidered having their sons play the game.

The 21st century African immigrants in America experience have enriched this nation just as immigrants from every continent improved America, whether it is savory jollof rice, or Afro Beat music (recently made a Grammy Award category), or NFL and power five college stars with distinctive African surnames on the back of their jerseys.

(Never mind Donald J. Trump’s vulgar tirade about “shithole” African countries, nor his recent executive order to ban immigrants from a dozen Sub Saharan and Western Hemisphere nations.)

On TV, consider “Bob Loves Abisola,” the CBS romantic sitcom (2019-2024) where Bob, a White sock salesman from Detroit falls in love with Abisola, a nurse from Nigeria, who also works in the Motor City.

Abisola’s African co-star is also a standup comic. Gina Yashere has a bit in which she says striving Nigerian families in America expect their children to become one of three things: “Doctor, lawyer, or embarrassment to the family.”

Dear Editor,

The USDA has decided to end its annual food insecurity survey. This survey documents real families’ struggles to put food on the table. Just as deep cuts to anti-poverty programs take effect, the Administration is sending a clear signal that they want to hide poverty rather than solve it. And leaders in Congress are not helping. In addition to pushing us to anoth-

er costly government shutdown that will disrupt services for millions, they continue to attack programs that make a difference. Recent US Census data shows that the Child Tax Credit, coupled with the Earned Income Tax Credit, kept 6.8 million people out of poverty last year. SNAP kept 3.6 million people out. Yet, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) takes the CTC and SNAP away from millions of hardworking families, trapping them in poverty.

Good policy needs good data to back it up, and good leaders to make it happen. I urge the President to work with both parties in Congress to pass a proper FY2026 budget that repeals the harmful OBBBA cuts and prioritizes investments in anti-poverty programs. Nicholas Diamond White Oak, PA

Wayne Dawkins Commentary

Impact Consulting Solutions, Inc. is an EOE M/F/V/D. LEGAL ADVERTISING Articles of Incorporation Centre for the Governance of Al, Inc. filed a Foreign Registration Statement with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Corporation is organized as a nonprofit nonstock corporation under

ANNOUNCEMENTS Meetings

The Wilkins Township Zoning Hearing Board shall hold a public hearing on Thursday, October 23, 2025 at 7:00 p.m., at the Municipal Building, 110 Peffer Road, Wilkins Township, PA 15145. At that time, the Board shall hear an application for an appeal of the Decision of the Code Officer filed by Jonathan Kamin, Esquire, Counsel for Lamar Advertising, (‘the applicant’), of 740 Trumbull Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15205. The applicant seeks an appeal of the decision of the Code Enforcement Officer regarding a permit fee for the refacing of two billboard structures owned by Lamar Advertising on William Penn Highway, on property leased from Union Railroad, Lot and Block Number 454-L-400, situated in an M-1 Manufacturing Zoning District. If granted, the appeal would authorize the refacing of the billboards without a permit. Code §450-30(E) states that it is unlawful to erect, construct, enlarge, move or convert any sign without first obtaining a permit

NOTICE OF DEFAULT AND FORECLOSURE SALE

PLLC, 1322 5th Avenue, Coraopolis, PA 15108

Estate of WAYNE W. JELINEK, Deceased of Pittsburgh, No.: 06095 of 2025, Wayne J. Jelinek,or to Alex Ostojich, Strassburger McKenna Gutnick & Gefsky , 444 Liberty Avenue, Ste. 2200, Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Estate of BARBARA J. PARNELL A/K/A BARBARA JOAN PARNELL, Deceased of the Borough of Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania, No.: 02-25-4754, John A. Stiver, Executor or to David J. Nichols, Atty, 6 Clairton Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15236

Estate of YAKOV M. REZNIK, Deceased of Bridgeville, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, No.: 02-25-01867, Yulya R. Catena, Administrator, 740 Bayberrt Drive, Bartlett, IL 60103 or to AUBREY H. GLOVER, Atty; BRENLOVE & FULLER, LLC. 401 Washington Avenue, Bridgeville, PA 15017

Estate of JOHN R. ZAVODNICK, Deceased of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, No.: 02-255598, Laura A. Nagy, Executor or to Robert S. Bootay, Atty, 6 Clairton Blvd., Pittsburgh, PA 15236

ANNOUNCEMENTS Meetings PUBLIC NOTICE ALLEGHENY COUNTY SANITARY AUTHORITY

The Professional Services Committee of the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority will hold a special meeting for general purposes on Thursday, October 9, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. prevailing time, in the Trefz Board Room at its offices located at 3300 Preble Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15233. Official action on the Committee’s recommendations will take place at a regular meeting of the Board of Directors at a later date. The public may view the meeting via livestream by visiting www.alcosan.org.

The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) will hold a special meeting of the Board of Commissioners on Thursday, October 2, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. EST. The meeting will be conducted via Zoom only. Registration for attending the meeting via Zoom and registration to provide public comment will both open on Monday, September 29, 2025, at 11 a.m. and will be posted to www.hacp.org. HACP conducts business in accordance with

and

The Wilkins Township Zoning Hearing Board shall hold a public hearing on Thursday, October 23, 2025 at 7:00 p.m., at the Municipal Building, 110 Peffer Road, Wilkins Township, PA 15145. At that time, the Board shall hear an application for a Special Exception filed by John Laird (‘the applicant’), of 143 Leneake Street, Turtle Creek, PA 15145. The applicant seeks a Special Exception and a Validity Challenge on property that is located at 139 Leneake Street, Turtle Creek, PA 15145; Allegheny County Tax Map Lot and Block Number 453-S-162, situated in an R-3 Residential Zoning District. If granted, the Special Exception would authorize the conversion of a single family structure into a multifamily structure, in accordance with the provisions of Code §45022(E), relating to land held in single and separate ownership prior to 1969. If granted, the Validity Challenge would also permit the conversion of a single family structure into micro apartment units. The Applicant claims that the Code does not provide zoning for micro apartment units. Code §450-13(A) requires a minimum lot area of 7,500 per family in an R-3 Zoning District. Code §4507, definitions, requires a dwelling unit to be at least 750 square feet. Interested parties may choose to attend the meeting in person, or virtually via Zoom, at the following link: https://us02web.zoom. us/j/83228714744

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Public Notice

1-800-Pack-Rat (PA-Leetsdale-5463) 142 Ferry St Leetsdale, PA 15056

877-774-1537 Notice of Sale

Tenant: Unit #

Barkus, Ben D55179

Barone & Psaros, Cleopatra & Teddi D61725 Carter, Raymond D58552

Cindric, Joseph D04228 Cronin, Autumn D71169

Cushey, David 705217

Fluker, Terry 700859

Jones, Kevin D65319 Kenny, Erin D00805

Lehrman, Carrie 804381

Lowrey & Schidek, Heather & Cristopher D56650 Lucas, Saria D03154 Moon, Briona D05212 Salera, Donald B60096

Stoyanoff & Swartz, Nick & Betsy D72065

1-800-Pack-Rat (PA-Leetsdale-5463), 142 Ferry St, Leetsdale, PA 15056, has possessory lien on all of the goods stored in the units above. All these items of personal property are being sold pursuant to the assertion of the lien on 10/8/2025 at 10:00 AM in order to collect the amounts due from you. The sale will take place on www.storagetreasures.com from 10/8/2025 to 10/15/2025 at 12:00 PM

WHEREAS, on November 19, 2004, a certain mortgage was executed by ROSE MARIE MOORE, as mortgagor in favor of ALL-PENNSYLVANIA REVERSE MORTGAGE, INC. as mortgagee and was recorded in Office of the Recorder of Deeds of Allegheny County in Mortgage Book VL 29112 Page 438 Instrument # 2004-217454 (“Mortgage”); and WHEREAS, the Mortgage encumbers property located at 1209 Swissvale Avenue aka 1209-1211 Swissvale Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15221, parcel number 0232-P-00101-0000-00(“Property”); and WHEREAS; the property at 1209 SWISSVALE AVE IS IN SERIOUS DEFAULT due to violation of 9(b)(iii). An obligation of the Borrower under this Security Instrument is not performed.: and WHEREAS, the Property was owned by ROSE MARIE MOORE by virtue of deed dated 7/10/1986 and recorded 7/16/1986 in Instrument No. 18016; and WHEREAS, the Mortgage is now owned by the Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (“Secretary”), pursuant to an assignment recorded on 11/16/2017 in Book VL 48639 Page 44 in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania; and WHEREAS the entire amount delinquent as of 7/11/2025 is $56,214.08 plus interest, costs and other charges through the sale date; and WHEREAS, by virtue of this default, the Secretary has declared the entire amount of the indebtedness secured by the Mortgage to be immediately due and payable; NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to powers vested in me by the Single Family Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 1994, l2 U.S.C. 3751 et seq., by 24 CFR Part 29, and by the Secretary’s designation of me as Foreclosure Commissioner, recorded on 06/28/2012 in Misc. Bk-DE, Vl-14933, Pg 17, in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, notice is hereby given that on 10/21/2025; at 10:00 AM at the Main Entrance of the Allegheny County Courthouse located at 436 Grant St, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 all real property and personal property at or used in connection with the following described premises will be sold at public action to the highest bidder: ALL THAT CERTAIN LOT OR PIECE OF GROUND SITUATE IN THE FIRST WARD OF THE BOROUGH OF WILKINSBURG, COUNTY OF ALLEGHENY AND COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA, BOUNDED AND DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS, TO-WIT:

BEGINNING ON THE WESTERLY SIDE OF WATER STREET (NOW SWISSVALE AVENUE) IN JAMES KELLEY’S PLAN OF LOTS IN THE BOROUGH OF WILKINSBURG AT A POINT DISTANT 132 FEET NORTHWARDLY FROM NORTH STREET (NOW NORTH AVENUE) IN SAID PLAN; THENCE ALONG SAID SWISSVALE AVENUE, NORTHWARDLY 33 FEET AND EXTENDING BACK WESTWARDLY, RETAINING THE SAME WIDTH, BY LINE PARALLEL WITH NORTH AVENUE, 160 FEET MORE OR LESS, TO AN ALLEY 18 FEET WIDE, LAID OUT BY JOHN D. MCCUNE PARCEL NO: 232-P-101

The sale will be held 10/21/2025; at 10:00 AM at the Main Entrance of the Allegheny County Courthouse located at 436 Grant St, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development will bid $56,214.08 plus interest, costs and other charges through the sale date. Ten percent (10%) of the highest bid is the deposit required at the sale. The amount that must be paid to HUD by the mortgagors or someone acting on their behalf so that the sale may be stayed is the total delinquent amount of $56,214.08 as of 07/11/2025, plus all other amounts that would be due under the mortgage agreement if payments under the mortgage had not been accelerated, advertising costs and postage expenses incurred in giving notice, mileage by the most reasonable road distance for posting notices and for the Foreclosure Commissioner’s attendance at the sale, reasonable and customary costs incurred for title and lien record searches, the necessary out-of-pocket costs incurred by the Foreclosure Commissioner for recording documents, a commission for the Foreclosure Commissioner, and all other costs incurred in connection with the foreclosure prior to reinstatement. There will be no proration of taxes, rents or other income or liabilities, except that the purchaser will pay, at or before closing, his prorata share of any real estate taxes that have been paid by the Secretary to the date of the foreclosure sale.

When making their bid, all bidders, except the Secretary, must submit a deposit totaling ten percent 10% of the Secretary’s bid as set forth above in the form of a certified check or cashier’s check made out to the Secretary of HUD. Each oral bid need not be accompanied by a deposit. If t he successful bid is oral, a deposit of ten (10%) percent must be presented before the bidding is closed. The deposit is nonrefundable. The remainder of the purchase price must be delivered within thirty (30) days of the sale or at such other time as the Secretary may determine for good cause shown, time being of the essence. This amount, like the bid deposits, must be delivered in the form of a certified or cashier’s check. If the Secretary is the high bidder, he need not pay the bid amount in cash. The successful bidder will pay all conveyance fees, all real estate and other taxes that are due on or after the delivery of the remainder of the payment and all other costs associated with the transfer of title. At the conclusion of the sale, the deposits of the unsuccessful bidders will be returned to them.

The Secretary may grant an extension of time within which to deliver the remainder of the payment. All extensions will be for fifteen (15) days, and a fee will be charged in the amount of $150.00 for each fifteen (15) day extension requested. The extension fee shall be paid in the form of a certified or cashier’s check made payable to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. If the high bidder closes the sale prior to the expiration of any extension period, the unused portion of the extension fee shall be applied toward the amount due.

If the high bidder is unable to close the sale within the required period, or within any extensions of time granted by the Secretary, the high bidder’s deposit will be forfeited, and the Commissioner may, at the direction of the HUD Field Office Representative, offer the Property to the second highest bidder for an amount equal to the highest price offered by that bidder. There is no right of redemption, or right of possession based upon a right of redemption, in the mortgagor or others subsequent to a foreclosure completed pursuant to the Act. Therefore, the Foreclosure Commissioner will issue a Deed to the purchaser(s) upon receipt of the entire purchase price in accordance with the terms of the sale as provided herein.

KML LAW GROUP, P.C. Foreclosure Commissioners (215-825-6305)

LOGS LEGAL GROUP LLP

BY: CHRISTOPHER A. DENARDO, PA I.D. NO. 78447

SAMANTHA GABLE, PA I.D. NO. 320695

STEVEN PALMER, PA I.D. NO. 334553

LESLIE J. RASE, PA I.D. NO. 58365

HEATHER RILOFF, PA I.D. NO. 309906

KEVIN T. TONCZYCZYN, PA I.D. NO. 332616

ELIZABETH L. WASSALL, PA I.D. NO. 77788

JOSEPH L. LOCASTRO, IV, PA I.D. NO. 314973 985 OLD EAGLE SCHOOL ROAD, SUITE 514 WAYNE, PA 19087

TELEPHONE: (610) 278-6800

E-MAIL: PAHELP@LOGS.COM

LLG FILE NO. CEV 23-070256 Carrington Mortgage Services LLC PLAINTIFF VS. Tara Petrucci a/k/a Tara Kincaid, Known Heir of Susan Petrucci, deceased and Unknown Heirs, Successors, Assigns and All Persons, Firms or Associations Claiming Right, Title or Interest from or under Susan Petrucci, deceased

DEFENDANTS

COURT OF COMMON PLEAS CIVIL DIVISION ALLEGHENY COUNTY NO: MG-24-000057

To the Defendants, Unknown Heirs, Successors, Assigns and All Persons, Firms or Associations Claiming Right, Title or Interest from or under Susan Petrucci, deceased: TAKE NOTICE THAT THE Plaintiff, Carrington Mortgage Services LLC has filed an amended action Mortgage Foreclosure, as captioned above.

NOTICE IF YOU WISH TO DEFEND, YOU MUST ENTER A WRITTEN APPEARANCE PERSONALLY OR BY ATTORNEY AND FILE YOUR DEFENSE OR OBJECTIONS WITH THE COUT. YOU ARE WARNED THAT IF YOU FAIL TO DO SO THE CASE MAY PROCEED WITHOUT YOU AND A JUDGMENT MAY BE ENTERED AGAINST YOU WITHOUT FURTHER NOTICE FOR THE RELIEF REQUESTED BY THE PLAINTIFF. YOU MAY LOSE MONEY OR PROPERTY OR OTHER RIGHTS IMPORTANT TO YOU. YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS NOTICE TO YOUR LAWYER AT ONCE. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A LAWYER GO TO OR TELEPHONE THE OFFICE SET FORTH BELOW. THIS OFFICE CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT HIRING A LAWYER. IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO HIRE A LAWYER, THIS OFFICE MAY BE ABLE TO PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT AGENCIES THAT MAY OFFER LEGAL SERVICES TO ELIGIBLE PERSONS AT A REDUCED FEE OR NO FEE.

Allegheny County Bar Association 400 Koppers Bldg. 436 7th Avenue, 3rd Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15219

LOGS LEGAL GROUP LLP BY: CHRISTOPHER A. DENARDO, PA I.D. NO. 78447

SAMANTHA GABLE, PA I.D. NO. 320695

STEVEN PALMER, PA I.D. NO. 334553

LESLIE J. RASE, PA I.D. NO. 58365

HEATHER RILOFF, PA I.D. NO. 309906

KEVIN T. TONCZYCZYN, PA I.D. NO. 332616

ELIZABETH L. WASSALL, PA I.D. NO. 77788

JOSEPH L. LOCASTRO, IV, PA I.D. NO. 314973

985 OLD EAGLE SCHOOL ROAD, SUITE 514 WAYNE, PA 19087

TELEPHONE: (610) 278-6800

E-MAIL: PAHELP@LOGS.COM LLG FILE NO. CGG 23-069453

CARRINGTON MORTGAGE SERVICES, LLC PLAINTIFF VS.

Melissa A. Byers, Known Heir of William T. Byers, deceased; Unknown Heirs, Successors, Assigns and All Persons, Firms or Associations Claiming Right, Title or Interest from or under William T. Byers, deceased; Hailey L. Byers, Known Heir of William T. Byers, deceased; and Kassidy Byers, Known Heir of William T. Byers, deceased DEFENDANTS COURT OF COMMON PLEAS CIVIL DIVISION ALLEGHENY COUNTY NO: MG-24-000937

To the Defendants, Unknown Heirs, Successors, Assigns and All Persons, Firms or Associations Claiming Right, Title or Interest from or under William T. Byers, deceased: TAKE NOTICE THAT THE Plaintiff, CARRINGTON MORTGAGE SERVICES, LLC has filed an amended action Mortgage Foreclosure, as captioned above.

NOTICE

IF YOU WISH TO DEFEND, YOU MUST ENTER A WRITTEN APPEARANCE PERSONALLY OR BY ATTORNEY AND FILE YOUR DEFENSE OR OBJECTIONS WITH THE COUT. YOU ARE WARNED THAT IF YOU FAIL TO DO SO THE CASE MAY PROCEED WITHOUT YOU AND A JUDGMENT MAY BE ENTERED AGAINST YOU WITHOUT FURTHER NOTICE FOR THE RELIEF REQUESTED BY THE PLAINTIFF. YOU MAY LOSE MONEY OR PROPERTY OR OTHER RIGHTS IMPORTANT TO YOU.

YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS NOTICE TO YOUR LAWYER AT ONCE. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A LAWYER GO TO OR TELEPHONE THE OFFICE SET FORTH BELOW. THIS OFFICE CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT HIRING A LAWYER. IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO HIRE A LAWYER, THIS OFFICE MAY BE ABLE TO PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT AGENCIES THAT MAY OFFER LEGAL SERVICES TO ELIGIBLE PERSONS AT A REDUCED FEE OR NO FEE.

Allegheny County Bar Association

400 Koppers Bldg. 436 7th Avenue, 3rd Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15219

LEGAL ADVERTISING Bids/Proposals

CITY OF PITTSBURGH

OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET

Separate and sealed bid proposals will be received electronically starting on Monday September 29th 2025 for:

2025-IFB-253: Lewis Parklet Wall Repairs

Information on solicitations is available on the City of Pittsburgh website: https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/pittsburghpa 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 certifications included with the contract documents relating to Equal Employment Opportunity.

Vendors submitting responses on federally funded projects must register on SAM.gov and provide proof of registration.

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

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

NOTICE TO BIDDERS

The Westmoreland County Housing Authority (WCHA) is requesting bids for:

HEMPFIELD TOWERS 2025 PARKING LOT REHABILITATION PROJECT 2500 GRANDE BLVD. GREENSBURG, PA. 15601

GENERAL SITE CONSTRUCTION –CONTRACT – PA 28-8-02-2025.1

GC-SITE

Westmoreland County Housing Authority is requesting General Site Construction bids for the referenced project through sealed bids which will be received by the Westmoreland County Housing Authority, until October 21, 2025 at 10:00 A.M. (eastern standard time). Bids shall be deposited at the Administrative Office of the Westmoreland County Housing Authority, 167 South Greengate Road, Greensburg PA 15601. Bids received will then be opened publicly.

A Pre-Bid Meeting is scheduled for October 8, 2025 at 1:30 P.M. (eastern standard time) Attendance is not mandatory, but highly recommended. Meeting location will be at WCHA HEMPFIELD TOWERS – 2500 South Grande Blvd., Greensburg, PA. 15601. Electronic Bid Documents are available for downloading at www.wchaonline.com. Bidders are required to register online at the www.wchaonline.com to view bid documents. Plan holders proposing to bid shall also register their intent to submit a bid with Westmoreland County Housing Associates, Inc. via email to lindam@wchaonline.com and eriks@wchaonline.com in accordance with the bid requirements.

Westmoreland County Housing Authority,

By: Michael L. Washowich, CEO / Executive Director

1827–MISC. HVAC IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT shall be received at the Engineering Department office of the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority, 3300 Preble Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15233, until 11:00 A.M., Prevailing Time, Wednesday, November 12, 2025 and then shall be publicly opened and read. A Pre-Bid Meeting will be held in person, Wednesday, October 15, 2025 at 10:00 A.M., Prevailing Time. If interested in coming to the Pre-Bid Meeting, please contact Judith Shropshire via email at judith.shropshire@alcosan.org. ALCOSAN encourages businesses owned and operated by minorities and women to submit bids on Authority Contracts or to participate as subcontractors or suppliers to successful Bidders. Successful Bidders are to use minority and women’s businesses to the fullest extent possible. Contract Documents may be examined and obtained at the Engineering office of the Authority. A non-refundable fee of One hundred dollars ($100) (no cash or credit cards will be accepted) will be charged for each set of Contract Documents received. Bid Security shall be furnished by providing with the Bid a Certified Check or Bid Bond in the amount of 10% of the Bid Price. Contract documents must be purchased directly from ALCOSAN to qualify as an eligible bidder. Any questions regarding the Contract Documents should be directed to Dustin Copenhaver, via email at dustin.copenhaver@alcosan.org. Any questions regarding the Purchase of Bidding Documents should be directed to Judith Shropshire, ALCOSAN, via email at contract.clerks@alcosan.org. The Authority reserves the right to reject any or all bids, to waive any informality in any bid and to accept any bid should it be deemed in the interest of the Authority to do so.

ALLEGHENY COUNTY SANITARY AUTHORITY Kimberly Kennedy, P.E. Director of Engineering and Construction

PUBLIC ADVERTISEMENT TO BID HILL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (Hill CDC) New Granada Square Retail Fitout 2023-2033 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that sealed bids will be received by the Hill Community Development Corporation (Hill CDC) for furnishing all labor, materials, tools, equipment, and services necessary for the construction work associated with the New Granada Square Retail Fitout, located at 2023-2033 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. This solicitation actively invites participation from general contractors, construction managers, subcontractors, and specialty contractors interested in submitting proposals for this project. The Hill CDC is committed to expanding opportunity and broadening participation among qualified firms, including certified small, disadvantaged, minority, women, and locally based firms, in its procurement and subcontracting. The Hill CDC seeks to reduce barriers, promote competition, and enhance utilization of underrepresented firms.

Project Description: The scope of work includes, but is not limited to, selective demolition, structural framing, interior finishes, mechanical, electrical, plumbing (MEP) systems, to complete a ground-floor commercial redevelopment project that encompasses five (5) future Tenant Spaces totaling approximately 4,454 square feet of gross floor area. All work must be performed in accordance with the project drawings, specifications and local building codes. This project is federally assisted and subject to Section 3 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, as amended. Contractors will be required to comply with Section 3 requirements regarding employment, training, and contracting opportunities for low-income residents.

Bid Documents: A full set of the construction documents, specifications and Contractor Bid Tabulation (Bid Package) will be available beginning Wedneday, October 1, 2025, starting at 9:00am (EST). The construction documents will be issued in PDF format and the Contractor Bid Tabulation will be issued in Excel. All bidders who wish to participate in the bidding must request the Bid Package via email from bmiller@hilldistrict.org and jpakrul@talsonsolutions.com. All bidders are required to respond to the email transmission within 24 hours to confirm receipt.

Pre-Bid/Site Walkthrough: Hill CDC’s pre-bid meeting will be held at the project site located at 2023-2033 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. The meeting will take place at 9:00 AM on Thursday, October 9, 2025.

Bid Due Date (email copy): October 30, 2025

Time: No later than 5:00 PM (EST)

Delivery Email: bmiller@hilldistrict.org and jpakrul@talsonsolutions.com

Bid Due Date (hard copy): October 31, 2025

Type: Overnight delivery service, UPS, FedEx, etc.

Hill Community Development Corporation

2015 Centre Avenue, Suite 2 Pittsburgh, PA 15219

Attention: Bret Miller Hill CDC reserves the right to

and to

SONNY BOY

10.1.25 NPC

Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh

Assata Shakur remembered: A Voice of Struggle, a Legacy of Love

BLACK LIBERATION ARMY MEMBER ASSATA SHAKUR, also known as Joanne Chesimard (IMBD).

Black Caucus Awards Dinner: Former VP Kamala Harris, Gov. Wes Moore give pointed remarks

This Week In Black History A Courier Staple

• OCTOBER 3

• OCTOBER 7

Huge backlash over proposal to remove Waterfront bus stops

South Pittsburgh anti-violence organizations getting the job done

Only 1 homicide through first 8 months of the year

COURIER CHURCH DIRECTORY

Reverend A. Marie Walker’s

The 2025 Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic

PROPERTY IS POWER!

Defending Black homeownership in the face of Trump’s political challenges

Sponsored by JPMorganChase

PROPERTY IS POWER!

Couples

BofA raises U.S. minimum hourly wage to $25,

When housing rights fall, equality slips away

A requiem for free speech Guest Editorial

Trump’s crown is not fitting!

National divorce and dangerous illusions of division

ANNOUNCEMENTS Meetings

ANNOUNCEMENTS