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Dr. Theodora Cotten turns 90! See Pages A6-7
Pittsburgh Courier NEW
www.newpittsburghcourier.com Vol. 114 No. 4 Two Sections
JANUARY 25-31, 2023
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25 YEARS STRONG
Racial Justice Summit pulls from past to forge better future by Zach Petroff For New Pittsburgh Courier
“I’m only 31.” Those were the final words of Jonny Gammage, a young Black man whose life was ended by the Brentwood Police in 1995. His death was ruled a homicide by the Allegheny County medical examiner. The outrage over the murder, the ruled mistrial and acquittal of the officers involved sparked community activists and organizers to create a Pittsburgh-based summit to fight for racial justice. A quarter-of-a-century later that summit continues. Last weekend, three generations of activists took center stage at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary to kick off the 25th annual Pittsburgh Racial Justice Summit on Jan. 20-21. The day-and-a-half event included a keynote panel, workshops, discussions, wellness sessions and even a community resource room. “We’re looking back at the last 25 years in fighting for racial justice, locally and nationally,” said
Daeja Baker, lead summit organizer and coordinator. “And then we’re looking how we move forward.” The keynote panel comprised of Auja Diggs, an executive member of the Black, Young and Educated; Amber Thompson, founder of de-bias, an equity-focused monitoring and evaluation platform; and Noble Maseru, the associate dean for diversity and inclusion at the University of Pittsburgh. Tim Stevens, founder of the summit, led the panel discussion. “We’re going to be speaking to our continuing collective struggle, and it is a struggle,” Stevens said in his opening remarks. “To address issues not only of the historic challenge of police abuse and overreach but the various issues of racial justice that continue to negatively impact Black, brown and marginalized people locally and nationally.” The panelists spoke about their activism, sharing their individual experiences and what inspired KEYNOTE PANELIST AND PITTSBURGH RACIAL JUSTICE SUMMIT FOUNDER, Tim Stevens (far left), listens to Auja Diggs, an executive member of Black, Young and Educated, address the summit audience Friday, Jan. 20, while panelists Amber Thompson, the founder of de-bias, and Noble Maseru, the university of Pittsburgh’s associate dean for diversity and inclusion, listen. (Photo by SEE JUSTICE SUMMIT A4 Jeremy S. Burnworth)
La’Tasha D. Mayes seeks to ‘disrupt politics as usual’ by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer
There’s never been someone quite like La’Tasha D. Mayes in the Pa. State House. She’s proud to call herself the first out lesbian to be elected to the House, and she’s the first woman to serve as District 24 representative, which encompasses Black neighborhoods like Homewood, Lincoln-Lemington and East Hills, along with Morningside, Highland Park, East Liberty and parts of Bloomfield and Oakland. Parts of the borough of Wilkinsburg is also included. But more importantly, Rep. Mayes told the New Pittsburgh Courier that she’s ready to “disrupt politics as usual” in Harrisburg. “I’m bringing different, newer, bolder perspectives on a host of policy and leg-
islative issues, but also how the work gets done,” Rep. Mayes, 41, told the Courier in an exclusive interview, Jan. 23. “How we engage with the people of the commonwealth, how we work within our party...my campaign, my race and now my leadership in the House is going to be a more unapologetic approach in my commitment not only to my district, but to the issues I have been fighting for in the greater Pittsburgh community and at the state level for two decades.” And those issues have been everything from reproductive justice and health care access, to environmental justice and voting rights. If the name La’Tasha D. Mayes sounds familiar, that’s because she is the founder of New Voices for Reproductive Justice, an
Sworn-in as House District 24 Representative on Jan. 3
SEE MAYES A5
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LA’TASHA D. MAYES IS THE NEW STATE REPRESENTATIVE FOR HOUSE DISTRICT 24. (PHOTO BY EMMAI ALAQUIVA)