Homewood Nation

The Homewood Nation calendar is overflowing. 

There has always been more going on in Homewood than many people realize, which is why I created "Homewood Happenings" in the first place. Now the normal level of busyness has been ratcheted up by the craziest Democratic mayoral primary in recent memory and the obnoxious/tragic outburst of gun violence in our community.

At 6 pm this evening, the Black Women's Empowerment Institute is hosting a community meeting on gun violence in the auditorium of the Carnegie Library, Homewood branch at 7101 Hamilton Ave. Invited guests include public safety director Michael Huss and Zone 5 Commander Timothy O'Connor. Organizer Lucille Prater-Holliday said, "We want to give the community an opportunity to speak about how the gun violence in District 9 has affected them," as well as to hear from Councilman Burgess about solutions, and to begin working toward solutions.

At the same time, the Alliance for Police Accountability, the group that formed in the wake of the Jordan Miles incident and that has continued to press both for justice for Mr. Miles and for - well, more accountability for our police - is holding their regular meeting at the Homewood-Brushton YWCA, 

At 6 pm tomorrow, Block Watch Plus will hold our monthly meeting. Jerome Jackson, executive director of Operation Better Block, will join us to give a preview of a new initiative for "mending the relationship" between community and police. BWP meets at the Homewood-Brushton YMCA.

At the same time, the East Triboro Neighborhood Association will hold their montlhy meeting at the Salvation Army. 

Good grief; I just learned form Ms. Prater-Holliday that the PIttsburgh NAACP is sponosoring a candidates' debate/forum at 6 pm tomorrow, in the Homewood Library auditorium.

Friday, the Pittsburgh Black Political Convention will host a "Meet the Candidates" night for mayoral candidates to respond to a "Black Agenda" that has been crafted over the past several months. The Black Agenda poses such questions as "What steps would you take to to dismantle the narcotics and gun trafficking and homicide epidemic in PIttsburgh?" and "What steps would you take to ensure that the City of Pittsburgh workforce mirrors the demographics of the city at all levels of employment, including supervisory and executive positions?" This event will be held from 6 pm to 9 pm at Mt. Ararat Baptist Church.

The group's slogan, "One Vision. One Voice. One Vote.", hints at a purpose beyond just hearing what the mayoral candidates have to say. That purpose will be met on Saturday, between 10 am and 3 pm, when Convention attendees will be asked to cast votes, at one of five polling places, to say which candidate they believe should receive the Black community's support. 

And that's just the more dramatic stuff happening between now and Saturday. Check "Homewood Happenings" to learn about more normal things that can just make your life more pleasant or manageable on a day-to-day basis.