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An appreciation for Black comic book artists SEE PAGE A9
Pittsburgh Courier NEW
www.newpittsburghcourier.com Vol. 116 No.4 Two Sections
JANUARY 22-28, 2025
thenewpittsburghcourier Published Weekly $1.00
Community groups demand investigation, transparency in recent arrests by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer
Black Political Empowerment Project Chairman and CEO Tim Stevens, NAACP Pittsburgh Branch President Daylon A. Davis and other community leaders are holding the City of Pittsburgh's feet to the fire after a number of recent arrests of African Americans that they deemed excessive and possibly unlawful. The first arrest came on Dec. 29, 2024, when a Black man, Devlon Pridgen, was arrested on the North Side by Pittsburgh Police. A bystander video shown on local television outlets captured multiple police officers trying to apprehend Pridgen, with a woman screaming off-camera that Pridgen
didn't have any weapons on him. Pridgen suffered cuts to his face and photos have since surfaced of Pridgen's face bloodied and bruised following the arrest. The second arrest came on Dec. 31, 2024, when a Black woman, Morgan Daniels, was arrested by Pittsburgh Police by being "forcibly removed from her home," according to a joint statement by B-PEP, the NAACP Pittsburgh Branch and the Alliance for Police Accountability, Jan. 9. A video of the encounter, which has since been circulated on social media but not widely shown on local television, shows, in the opinion of B-PEP and the NAACP Pittsburgh Branch, "an officer" pushing and falling SEE COMMUNITY A5
THE ABOVE PHOTOS SHOW DEVLON PRIDGEN’S FACE AFTER HE WAS ARRESTED ON THE NORTH SIDE, DEC. 29, 2024. COMMUNITY GROUPS BELIEVE THE ARREST BY PITTSBURGH POLICE WAS TOO AGGRESSIVE AND EXCESSIVE FORCE WAS USED.
Honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
THE REV. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. was celebrated on Jan. 20, 2025, with events in Larimer and East Liberty, among other places in Pittsburgh. In the photo at left, it’s POISE Foundation CEO Mark Lewis, getting the Legacy Award for POISE’s tireless work in the community, at the Allegheny County Bar Association’s 2025 Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast and Program, at Mt. Ararat Baptist Church. In the photo at right is a performance during the annual Kelly Strayhorn Theater MLK Celebration. See more photos on Pages A6 and A7. (Photos by J.L. Martello)
Black families shoulder heavy dementia care burden
African Americans nearly twice as likely to suffer from Alzheimer's as Whites by Amber Frantz PublicSource
Velouise Bell, 69, was visiting her son in New York when she received a call that her house was on fire. Her husband, Darrell, was home alone at the time in the summer of 2023. To this day, Bell does not know exactly how the fire was started, but she remembers it as a clear sign that her husband of 48 years was starting to
experience memory loss. Around 20 percent of Allegheny County’s population is 65 and older, according to recent studies, placing among the highest concentrations of seniors of any large U.S. county. Of the adults 65 and over, 12 percent have an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and even more seniors battle other forms of dementia. The county’s aging population brings a growing need for dementia care,
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and that support often comes from within the home. Caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s or dementia places heavy demands on the caregiver, which can significantly impact their mental health. Bell, now her husband’s primary caregiver, knew she needed additional support after a particularly difficult day when their dog was sick and also needed care, so she sought out a caregiver support group. While she was willing to seek help on her own, Bell pointed out that some families struggle DARRELL BELL, LEFT, AND HIS WIFE, VELOUISE, pose for a portrait in their living room on Jan. 9, in Swissvale. Mrs. Bell, now her husband’s primary caregiver, sought out a caregiver support group when she had a particularly hard day caring for her husband and their sick dog. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg/PublicSource) SEE BLACK FAMILIES A4