January 19, 2022 - Pittsburgh City Paper

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JAN. 19-26, 2022

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH

LA’TASHA D. MAYES RUNNING FOR MAYOR ED GAINEY’S FORMER HOUSE SEAT

+ NEW ACLU REPORT ON CASH BAIL + NEW CERAMICS STUDIO MANAGER FOR THE UNION PROJECT

FIRSTSHOT

BY JARED WICKERHAM

Pittsburgh health care workers held a vigil on the Rachel Carson Bridge in response to the staffing issues amid the pandemic on Wed., Jan. 12.

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COVER PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM READ THE STORY ON PAGE 6

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12/30/21 PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER JANUARY 19-26, 2022

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1:51 PM

NEWS

BREAKING BAIL

BY RYAN DETO // INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

J

AILS ACROSS PENNSYLVANIA, unlike prisons, are meant to hold people charged with crimes before they stand trial for their charges. People in jail are not convicted, and are merely awaiting their day in court. Pennsylvanians might think, then, that jails — with people incarcerated before they are proven guilty — are only for people charged with violent felonies and others forced into detainment by judges.

But that is not the case, according to a newly released report from ACLU of Pennsylvania.

By taking data from the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts over a twoyear period from 2016 to 2017, and from more than 383,000 cases, the ACLU determined that of the more than 166,000 cases assigned cash bail, over half of those cases’ defendants were not able to post bail, and thus were sent to county jails.

Jessica Li, a Criminal Justice Investigator for ACLU of PA, says assigning cash bail with such a large number of people being detained in jail is against state law.

“The large number of Pennsylvanians in jail due to cash bail is because Magisterial District Judges are breaking the law, and not setting cash bail low enough,” says Li. “It then becomes a covert mechanism for pretrial detention.”

Cash bail is one of five types of bail set by MDJs during preliminary arraignments. The others are release on nominal bail (where the defendant pays a small amount of money, like $1, and a designated person or agency will ensure the defendant makes their court date); release on unsecured bail (where a defendant will promise to pay a fixed sum if they miss their court date); release on non-monetary conditions; and release on recognizance, aka ROR, which is the least restrictive.

The Pennsylvania Constitution says the only time the government may jail someone pretrial and avoid setting a type of bail is if a person is facing a capital or life sentence, or if no condition or combination of release conditions can

“WE DON’T TAKE ISSUE WITH CASH BAIL IN PRINCIPLE, BUT IT HAS TO BE AFFORDABLE, AND IT HAS TO LEAD TO SOMEONE’S PRETRIAL RELEASE.”

CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM

A bail bonds location near the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh

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assure the safety of another person or the community.

According to the ACLU, cash bail was used by Pennsylvania MDJs more often than any other bail types during the study period. Cash bail represented more than 43% of all bail types, while ROR was used in about 22% of cases. Cash bail was used more often in urban areas (45.4%) compared to rural (37.1%), but rural defendants were often less likely to be able to post bail.

The average statewide cash bail amount was $38,433, which is more than half of the average household income in Pennsylvania. Many times, MDJs assigned defendants just a percentage of the assigned bail (typically about 10%), but sometimes defendants received straight bail, and had to secure the full amount.

Li says cash is only supposed to be used as an incentive to get defendants to show up to their next court day, not to hold people in detention who can’t afford it. The ACLU is calling on MDJs in Pennsylvania to set ROR bail far more often than they are currently, and if they must set cash bail, to make the amounts affordable to people of all income levels.

“We don’t take issue with cash bail in principle, but it has to be affordable, and it has to lead to someone’s pretrial release,” says Li. “The law very clearly says that bail, if the system is functioning as it should, then every person should be posting it.”

Even in Armstrong County, a rural county northeast of Pittsburgh that had the lowest average bail amount at just over $15,000, defendants struggled to make bail. Over 56% of defendants there didn’t post bail between 2016-2017.

Setting cash bail at rates most defendants can’t afford also perpetuates the bail bonds industry, which Li says has a history of predatory behavior.

“The bail bonds industry only exists because MDJs aren’t setting bail in the way that the law requires,” says Li. “If MDJ were following the law, even when they set bail, defendants would be set free before trial.”

According to the Brennan Center for Justice, those held for pretrial detention are four times more likely to be sentenced to prison than defendants released prior to trial, due in part to defendants making hurried decisions to plead to lower charges just to get out of jail. Li says jurisdictions like Washington,

D.C. have largely eliminated the use of cash bail, but have not seen increases in recidivism rates.

Furthermore, a November 2020 report from criminal-justice reform think tank Prison Policy Initiative found that, out of 13 jurisdictions across that county that have instituted pretrial reforms, 12 saw decreases of negligible increases in crime rates after they instituted the reforms.

The ACLU of PA report also notes that Black defendants are being disproportionately assigned cash bail, and given larger amounts of cash bail than their white counterparts. Among Black defendants statewide accused of a crime, MDJs set cash bail in over 55.2% of cases, compared to only 38.5% for white defendants.

Rural Western Pennsylvania counties were among the worst offenders in this disparity, even though the Black population is very small in these counties. Somerset County, with just 3% Black residents, had the severest disparity.

The report notes that “for Black people in Somerset, the rate of cash bail was three times the rate for white people; and, when assigned cash bail, the amount was more than double the amount of their white counterparts.”

Li says she doesn’t want to broadly paint all judges as being immoral and just “wanting to throw everyone behind bars.”

She says many judges are doing the right thing, noting that Centre County had the highest rate of ROR with one judge there setting ROR in 98.4% of their cases.

“There are definitely some bad actors, but also judges leading the way and showing reform is possible,” says Li. On Jan. 9, Allegheny County MDJ Mik Pappas tweeted that he hasn’t used cash bail in over two years in his district, which covers several neighborhoods in Pittsburgh’s East End. Pappas told Pittsburgh City Paper in January 2021 that he uses several different strategies to avoid assigning cash bail, including community-sponsored release, which provides services like helping to find housing, employment, and rides to court for defendants whose judges determine they might not show up to their court date.

“We have a responsibility to report to the public,” said Pappas in 2021. “When I think of how much we rely on incarceration and arrest, and I see how much it impacts people’s lives, we need to think of opportunities of diversion.”

CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM

A 2020 demonstration outside the Allegheny County Jail protesting conditions for Black women and calling for the end of cash bail

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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER JANUARY 19-26, 2022

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CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM

POLITICS

La’Tasha D. Mayes poses for a portrait in East Liberty.

THE RACE IS ON

BY JORDANA ROSENFELD // JORDANA@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

T

HE CAMPAIGN to fill Mayor Ed Gainey’s state House seat in District 24 for the remainder of this year’s legislative term is well underway. La’Tasha Mayes, a nationally recognized leader in the field of Reproductive Justice and founder and former executive director of New Voices for Reproductive Justice, is the latest candidate to enter the race.

“I believe all things are possible in Pittsburgh,” Mayes tells Pittsburgh City Paper in an exclusive interview announcing her campaign.

The special election for the district, which includes Wilkinsburg and Eastern Pittsburgh neighborhoods, including Homewood, Highland Park, Garfield, and East Liberty, will be on April 5. There

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are no primaries for special elections.

According to state law, the Allegheny County Democratic Committee is charged with selecting their party’s nominee.

There will then be a second election to determine who will represent District 24 starting in 2023 for the next twoyear term. Regardless of the outcome of the special election, Mayes, who lives in Morningside, plans to pursue the Democratic nomination in the next election as well. She says she’s looked at the district map which is currently involved in a redistricting process, and she expects to remain eligible to run.

State Senate aide and vice president of the Allegheny Chapter of the Young Democrats Martell Covington,

communications professional Ashley Comans, and environmental justice advocate NaTisha Washington also announced their intent to pursue the Democratic nomination.

City Paper sat down with Mayes to talk about her work with New Voices for Reproductive Justice, a Pittsburgh-based, multi-state organization dedicated to the health and well-being of Black women, femmes, and girls, and her run for the state House, which will be her second time at the polls. Mayes first ran against Deb Gross for Pittsburgh City Council District 7 in 2015.

This interview has been edited and condensed for space and clarity.

LISTEN TO AN INTERVIEW WITH LA’TASHA MAYES AND NATALIE BENCIVENGA on Instagram Live at 6:30 p.m. on Wed., Jan. 19 at instagram.com/pghcitypaper

Why are you pursuing elected office in District 24?

I’ve spent many years in the 24th Legislative District, mainly through my work with New Voices for Reproductive Justice. So much of my life, my work in the community, my professional work has been in this district. I always knew I wanted to live in this district, like after I graduated from Pitt, I always knew I

wanted to live on that side of town. I’m deeply vested, not only in the present, but in the future of this community. I’m an experienced leader, not only locally, but at the state and federal level. I’ve been working in Pittsburgh, overall, for over 22 years and in this district for almost the same amount of time, going back to 1999.

I believe that where we are in our social life, our economic life, and our political life, we need leadership at this time that can weather the storm, [both] the political storm that’s always going on in Harrisburg and the storm of these political times where we are boldly confronting race, gender, and class injustice and oppression. I have over 20 years of leadership skills that I know prepare me for the opportunity to become an elected policymaker. I’m an organizer at heart, a public servant at heart.

Why do you feel it’s important for our elected officials to have a strong grounding in reproductive justice?

Because, right now, we are literally facing the end of Roe v. Wade. I can’t think of any other person running, announced or unannounced, that has greater expertise to take on, not only the legislative attacks, but also the cultural attacks that often come with opposition to abortion access.

I’m the best person for the job, hands down. I consider my leadership in New Voices these last 18 years the highest calling of my life up until this point. The movement for reproductive justice has changed my life. It’s shaped my life as well as prepared me to not only work in spaces that are around movement building, but organizing spaces, policy spaces, electoral spaces.

The movement for reproductive justice is so much more intersectional in its framing of those first and most impacted by so many different issues, from general access to health care, access to reproductive health care, abortion access, maternal health, particularly Black maternal health, environmental justice, gender-based violence, you name it, of course LGBTQ rights and liberation.

So many of the issues that I’ve led in New Voices have been state-level issues. I’m well positioned to go in on day one with decades of policy advocacy experience, working directly with legislators here and across the state on a regular basis, not just elected legislators, but non-elected policymakers that we’ve worked with over the years, too,

PHOTO: BLACK FEMINIST FUTURE

La’Tasha Mayes shows support for abortion access.

“WE NEED LEADERSHIP AT THIS TIME THAT CAN WEATHER THE STORM ...

THE STORM OF THESE POLITICAL TIMES WHERE WE ARE BOLDLY CONFRONTING RACE, GENDER, AND CLASS INJUSTICE AND OPPRESSION.” especially around health care, voting rights, and voter suppression.

What are you most proud of from your many years of community work in Pittsburgh?

I was so proud when we [New Voices] were instrumental in the creation of the Allegheny County Human Relations Commission that expanded civil rights protections to LGBTQ residents in the county. That was in 2009. The city had had a commission two, three decades before that, and we were just catching up in the county. New Voices was unequivocal about our support for LGBTQ rights. I am a Black lesbian woman, and I had the

honor of serving as the inaugural vice chair of that commission. So that was, like, a personal victory for me, but overall, expanding protections in the state that doesn’t protect from discrimination of folks based on sexual identity or gender or sexual orientation or gender identity or expression in key things like employment, housing, education, and other public accommodations.

More recently, I’m proud of our COVID-19 relief work. We moved almost a half a million dollars to Black women, Black families, and families of all backgrounds, women of all backgrounds, providing menstrual products, diapers, cash grants, free laundry services, a toy drive, as

well as making emergency contraception available. We gave out thousands of packets of emergency contraception for free.

I am also always proud of our social justice Rapid Response Fund, which made small grants available to individuals and organizations who are working to create change in their community. With foundations, it’s hard to get money quickly, and so New Voices had a commitment of moving money to those on the ground in 14 days, which is unheard of. And it was a communitydriven process. We funded all types of activities for Black and Brown communities over, I would say, almost a two-year period. That was a collaboration with the Pittsburgh Foundation.

Lastly, I’m most proud of our voter engagement work. We outreach to Black women voters all year round because we believe voting is the first step to participation, our democracy, and decision making in our communities. We have been working in this community to educate, engage, register, mobilize, and turnout Black women voters. When New Voices turns out voters, when we contact voters, over 80% of them turn out to vote, which is far above voter turnout across any group locally.

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Follow news reporter Jordana Rosenfeld on Twitter @rosenfeldjb PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER JANUARY 19-26, 2022

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CP PHOTO: YASH MITTAL

ART

Mac Star McCusker at the Union Project

FIRED UP

BY AMANDA WALTZ // AWALTZ@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

A

LONGTIME SOUTHERNER, ceramic artist and sculptor Mac Star McCusker was set on moving north. That opportunity came calling in the form of the Union Project, a multiuse community space based in a former church on Negley Avenue.

After relocating from Asheville, N.C. in September 2021, McCusker has settled into his role as the Union Project’s ceramics studio manager, cleaning and reorganizing the space and teaching classes.

McCusker also got to fire up the Bailey Gas kiln, a state-of-the-art piece of equipment McCusker says had been unused before he arrived.

“It’s been sitting for about a year and never been fired,” says McCusker. “It’s all digital. It’s crazy.”

Previously, McCusker served as the studio manager at Claymakers in Durham, N.C. Then, in 2018, he met Union Project deputy director Michelle Clesse during a conference for the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, and the two kept in touch.

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WHILE HE MAINLY DOES ANIMAL SCULPTURES, HE ALSO RECORDS HIS OWN GENDER TRANSITION THROUGH A SERIES OF SCULPTURES. “I joked about how I was trying to get out of the South, and she was like, ‘Oh, you’re serious about that?’” he says. “A couple months later, she messaged me if I wanted the job.”

McCusker says moving to Pittsburgh has been a bit of a challenge, including preparing for the winter and getting used to navigating a city notorious for its aggressive drivers and strange layout. But McCusker says the Union Project offered a better position for him, both creatively and as a trans person.

“What attracted me to the Union Project was just the community-based programs that they do and the inclusiveness and

diversity of the studio,” says McCusker.

“There was not that in North Carolina.”

McCusker comes at a time when Union Project has sought to expand its resources and become more of an asset to the surrounding community. In November 2021, McCusker helped with the Clay Harvest, a celebration that served to debut Union Project’s Kiln Shelter. Started in 2019, the new facility is described as offering a safe, well-equipped place to teach ceramics, enabling the organization to “deepen its support of aspiring, emerging, and established ceramicists, and offer more arts education programming to surrounding neighborhoods.”

McCusker says that, while he mainly does animal sculptures “because they sell,” he also records his own gender transition through a series of sculptures.

“Some of them are just funny about the whole transition and how different I look and some of them are more serious about the abuse I get and the mean comments,” says McCusker. “In the ceramics world, I got a lot of negative comments about it, saying the only reason I’m getting attention is because I’m trans.”

The works include a 2016 glazed earthenware sculpture called “Top Surgery: 60 Days Post-Op. A Transgender Self-Portrait” and “A Little Worse for the Wear,” a red earthenware piece described as reflecting “the amount of self repair and re-building of ego” transgender individuals have to do. Another one shows McCusker taking a selfie with a T-shirt that reads “Transition Pending.”

“Selfies are a huge thing with the trans community,” says McCusker.

His website defines his work more broadly, saying that it regularly involves

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every Monday thru Thursday at 10 a.m. at lynncullen.pghcitypaper.com

PHOTO: MAC STAR MCCUSKER

“Gender Outlaw” sculpture by Mac Star McCusker

social commentary and “spotlights the policing of gender, anti-discrimination laws, Bathroom Bills, and issues addressing the LGBTQ community.”

Because of this, he’s been featured in numerous publications and lectured on his approach at various events.

UNION PROJECT 801 N. Negley Ave., Highland Park. unionproject.org

Though he originally started out studying painting at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Ga., he switched to ceramics after taking a sculpture class.

“I liked the physicality of taking up space with clay versus a painting on the wall,” says McCusker.

From there, he graduated from Georgia State University in 2009 with an MFA in Studio Art, Ceramics. He now

works with different styles including stoneware and raku, described on the Union Project website as “an ancient pottery technique where pots are taken from the kiln while still glowing red hot, then placed in a combustible material, such as sawdust or newspaper.”

Currently, McCusker is teaching or has taught various ceramics workshops for all levels, including one on electric kiln maintenance and firing. Over time, he says he would like to do more outreach in his role.

“Ideally, I would like to do things with people in recovery and [Alcoholics Anonymous],” says McCusker, adding that he has been sober for 10 years. He cites his work for a program at Claymakers, which invited patients at a recovery facility to take lessons.

He adds that he would also like to become more involved with the local LGBTQ community.

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Follow a&e editor Amanda Waltz on Twitter @AWaltzCP PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER JANUARY 19-26, 2022

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ELCOME TO THE FIRST 2022 installation of Soulshowmike’s Album Picks.

I normally focus on full releases in this column, then wrap the year with a December compilation of the year’s best. This time, I thought you might also enjoy a bonus listing of my favorite 2021 tracks. Here they are, along with assorted thoughts:

“Ya Habibi”

by Afro Yaqui Music Collective I heard this song played live at James Street several years ago, and it was great to hear it burned to wax. Great local music.

“Rocwell’s America” by Sa-Roc

“Another Day” by Kinetic More great local music, from essentially another collective led by Duquesne University professor Joe Sheehan.

Tickets to attend in person and virtually start at $15 Available at pittsburghlectures.org

“Pretend” by Brandee Younger with Tarriona “Tank” Ball “Together Again” by Angelo Moore & The Brand New Step GET YOUR TV TOGETHER

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“Why Can’t We Live Together”

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“Justice” by Dumpstaphunk “Wake Me” by Nigel Hall

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“Stand for Myself” by Yola

Now let’s come back to Pittsburgh music. The funk/jazz/rock outfit Slam Band & Sam emerged onto the local scene in 2021 with major gigs at Three Rivers Arts Festival and Hartwood Acres. We caught up for an interview about their origins, their freshman EP, and shows on the horizon. Watch it here: tinyurl.com/SoulShowSlam

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Mike Canton is the longtime host and producer of The Soul Show on WYEP 91.3FM. He recently launched a syndicated edition of the program, now airing in four markets. Both are produced in his Electric Basement Studios. Canton is also a Pittsburgh-area voice artist.

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SEVEN DAYS IN PITTSBURGH

IRL / IN REAL LIFE EVENT VIRTU VIRTUAL UAL / STREAMING OR ONLINE-ONLY ONLIN NE-ONLY EVENT HYBR HYBRID RID / MIX OF IN REAL LIFE A AND ND ONLINE EVENT

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^ Seasons

THU., JAN. 20 COMEDY • IRL Comedian Hasan Minhaj brings his one-man show The King’s Jester to the Benedum Center. Minhaj is best known for his work on The Daily Show, and for Patriot Act, an award-winning weekly show he used to educate his audience on the pressing issues of the world, including the election process, taxes, the eviction crisis, and the murder of George Floyd. The event will spotlight Minhaj’s unique comedic voice and give his fans more of the commentary he’s so well known for. 7 p.m. 237 Seventh St., Downtown. $39.50-95.00. trustarts.org

EVENT • VIRTUAL Heinz History Center will host a virtual version of their annual Treasures in the Archives event. See one-of-a-kind

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photographs and documents from the lives of Western Pennsylvanians as archivists reveal the rarely-heard stories about their favorite collections. The event will also explore the history of the Shadyside hospital and Gus Miller, a well-known Oakland business owner who also served as the chief usher for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Live captioning and American Sign Language interpretation will be provided. 7-8:30 p.m.

Takes place over Zoom. Free. Registration required. heinzhistorycenter.org/events

FRI., JAN. 21 FILM • VIRTUAL Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens continues its Virtual Environmental Film Series with an online screening of the nature documentary Seasons. Directed by Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud, the

team behind the multi-award-winning film Winged Migration, Seasons is described as a “poetic chronicle of Europe over the past 15,000 years, filmed through the eyes of animals.” The event includes a discussion with Phipps’ Research and Science Education Outreach Manager, Dr. Maria Wheeler-Dubas. 7 p.m. Registration required. Free. phipps.conservatory.org

DANCE • IRL Nearly two years after it was supposed to premiere, the Corningworks show The Tipping Point finally takes the stage at the former site of the Birmingham United Church of Christ. Created in collaboration with Doctors Without Borders, the new performance features a cast of 12 local dancers and actors, as well as an international group of resettled refugees, for what’s described as a “timely, multi-

disciplinary, intimate, audience-immersive production.” 7 p.m and 8 p.m. Continue through Sun., Jan. 30. 25 Carrick Ave., Carrick. $30. corningworks.org

SAT., JAN. 22 COMEDY • IRL Join #IMOMSOHARD comedians Kristin and Jen when they stop at Carnegie of Homestead Music Hall during The Getaway Tour. The pair started #IMOMSOHARD as a web series where they discussed topics like sex after marriage, swimsuits, and Spanx, and have since had two national sold-out tours, written a book, and more. Be prepared for “minimally, 2 glasses of wine” and a lot of laughs throughout the 18 and up stand-up show. 7 p.m. 510 E. Tenth Ave., Munhall. $21.42-159.50. librarymusichall. com/event/imomsohard

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^ Hasan Minhaj: The King’s Jester at the Benedum Center

SUN., JAN. 23 EVENT • IRL Looking for a fluffy new friend? Check out the Rabbit Café at Threadbare Cider House and Meadery. Presented as a benefit for the Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh, the event welcomes animal lovers to meet some adorable, adoptable house bunnies. Hang out with the rabbits in a room adjoining the Threadbare dining room, and make sure to enjoy some pizza, cider, and cocktails. A portion of food, drink, and bottle sales will benefit the Humane Animal Rescue.

11 a.m.-2 pm. 1291 Spring Garden Ave., Troy Hill. Free. threadbarecider.com/events

DRAG • IRL Head to Trace Brewing for a Drag Brunch presented by S&S Productions. Featuring performers Luna Skye, Indi Skies, Calipso, and Alexa Van Cartier, the event puts a twist on your average dining experience, bringing plenty of fun and performance to the meal. Enjoy free street parking, mimosa specials, and an appearance by the food truck Taqueria El Pastorcito. Make sure you bring cash to tip the performers. 12 p.m.

4312 Main St., Bloomfield. Free. tracebloomfield.com

MON., JAN. 24 EVENT • VIRTUAL If you’re a history buff or just interested in Pittsburgh’s industrial past, DOORS OPEN Pittsburgh has an event for you. The organization will host That Was Where? Mill Locations in Pittsburgh, a virtual storytelling session covering the history of the city’s old

steel mills and what took their place. Join host Ron Baraff as he focuses on “the once intense concentration of mills in the region,” and how everything changed once the mills closed or moved away. 7-7:45 p.m.

Takes place over Zoom. Free. Registration required. doorsopenpgh.org

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STAGE • IRL City Theatre is open to the public for the 2021-2022 season and will feature a production of the play The Medium.

Created and performed by SITI Company, and directed by Anne Bogart, The Medium explores “the effect of media and emerging technologies on our perceptions, our psyches, and our personal lives.” The play first came to City Theatre in 1996, and is based on the writings of Marshall McLuhan. 5:30 p.m. Continues through Feb. 13. 1300 Bingham St., South Side. $10-60. citytheatrecompany.org

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WED., JAN. 26 LIT • VIRTUAL White Whale Bookstore continues its tradition of hosting innovative literary events with another Virtual Poetry Reading. The celebration of Mary Biddinger’s recently released collection Department of Elegy — described as part post-punk ghost story, part Gen-X pastoral — will also feature M. Soledad Caballero, author of I Was A Bell, and Robert Krut, author of Watch Me Trick Ghosts. The books are available for purchase through White Whale. 7-8:30 p.m. Free. Registration required. whitewhalebookstore.com

1

“Medicare & You,” Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 2020 Includes the Participating (in GA: Designated) Providers and Preventive Benefits Rider.

Product not available in all states. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/ certificate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specific offer is not available in CO, LA, NY; call 1-800-969-4781 or respond for similar offer. Certificate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150 (GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN); Rider kinds B438/B439 (GA: B439B).

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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER JANUARY 19-26, 2022

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QUI COMPONENTS

BY BRENDAN EMMETT QUIGLEY // BRENDANEMMETTQUIGLEY.COM

ACROSS 1. Bit of smoke 5. “That was hairy” 9. Skoal in the mouth 13. City on Nevada’s Humboldt River 14. Circle dance 15. Gravy, e.g.

16. It’s just for laughs 17. Closing paragraph?

18. Large key 19. Stop playing the Steinway?

22. Unified 23. Engage in moshing 24. Sittin’ Up in My Room singer stabbing others in the back?

29. Brand of mouthwash 30. Mo. that begins with American Chess Day 31. Say firmly 33. Provençal beef stew 36. Word for word?: Abbr.

38. Bone head?

39. Off adventuring 41. Pick up 43. Conversation topic among gal pals 44. Floating among an antimalarial drug?

48. Gary Numan new wave classic 49. Some

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brown colors 50. Tough-to-chew piece of tobacco?

55. Last 56. Spitting sound 57. Shakespeare character followed

by The Fool 60. “I’ll take the blame” 61. “Snowpiercer” actor Bremmer 62. Nutrient in legumes 63. It’s so yesterday 64. “It wasn’t me!”

65. Smug grunts

DOWN 1. Wizards head coach Unseld 2. Similar group 3. Isn’t allowed to play 4. Drink that might make you feel funny 5. Frauds 6. Boxcar sleeper 7. Actor Ebouaney 8. Mashed potato alternative 9. Like a guaranteed winner 10. Ethnic group of Burundi 11. Served perfectly 12. “We ___ just leaving” 15. Crossreference phrase

20. Adding word 21. “Play it, Sam,” speaker 22. Jockey Eddie 24. Issued, as a farewell 25. Balanced the levels 26. Tip over 27. Hockey goalies 28. Salad veggies 32. “I don’t like your ___, mister!”

34. Gambling game with a punto banco variation 35. Intertwined 37. Answer page 40. Donuts in math class

42. Swimsuit that covers the head as well as the body 45. Daniil Medvedev won it in 2011 46. Needy person’s note 47. Do completely perfectly 50. Here today, gone tomorrow employee 51. Singer nicknamed “Queen of New Age” 52. Pencil scraps 53. Your Song Saved My Life band 54. Cooking fat 58. Just fine 59. Scrubs wearers, briefly LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS

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NAME CHANGE

LEGAL NOTICE

IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-21-7829 In re petition of Tara Brooke Cromwell Teets for change of name to Terra Brooke Cromwell Teets. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court authorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 11th day of February, 2022, at 9:30 a.m., as the time and the Motions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all persons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for.

NOTICE is hereby given that Articles of Incorporation were filed with the Department of State of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on the 14th day of January 2022 with respect to a proposed nonprofit corporation, Dormont Arts which has been incorporated under the Nonprofit Corporation Law 1988. A brief Summary of the purpose or purposes for which said corporation is organized is: To present inclusive creative experiences with the community.

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PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER JANUARY 19-26, 2022

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