America’s best weekly Harmony Club of Homestead, Pa. holds annual scholarship luncheon SEE PAGE A8
Pittsburgh Courier NEW
www.newpittsburghcourier.com Vol. 115 No. 43 Two Sections
OCTOBER 23-29, 2024
thenewpittsburghcourier Published Weekly $1.00
Ten Black mayors come together, denounce Trump, support Kamala Harris as election nears
THE BLACK MAYORS, FROM LEFT: CLETUS LEE (NORTH BRADDOCK); JAIME KINDER (MEADVILLE); DR. KENYA JOHNS (BEAVER FALLS); DONTAE COMANS (WILKINSBURG); ED GAINEY (PITTSBURGH); KAYLA PORTIS (SHARPSBURG); DWAN B. WALKER (ALIQUIPPA); DELIA LENNON-WINSTEAD (BRADDOCK); KEITH JACKSON (ROCHESTER); KENDY ALVAREZ (LEWISBURG). (PHOTO BY J.L. MARTELLO)
Lt. Governors of Pa., New York also join mayors in supporting Harris by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer
Arms locked, united as one, 12 Black elected officials stood tall for Vice President and Democratic Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris in her quest to become the next U.S. president, while standing
strong against her opponent, former president Donald Trump. The Black elected officials, tired of the murmur that some African Americans may want to vote for Trump, denounced Trump as a separator and a person morally unfit to become president again.
Among the 12 Black elected officials were Pennsylvania's Lt. Governor, Austin Davis, and New York state's Lt. Governor, Antonio Delgado, with 10 Black mayors from Southwestern and Central Pennsylvania. "A lot of times in our community, they put out
this narrative that we can't come together, that we can't stand up, that we can't be a voice for our community," said Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey at the Oct. 18 news conference in East Liberty. "Today for the first time in this commonwealth, you're seeing Black may-
ors...come together. I just think it makes a difference when we as mayors and lieutenant governors can speak to our community and let them understand that we see them and we feel them." The other mayors who joined Mayor Gainey in unison were Delia Len-
non-Winstead (Braddock); Kayla Portis (Sharpsburg); Dwan B. Walker (Aliquippa); Cletus Lee (North Braddock); Dontae Comans (Wilkinsburg); Keith Jackson (Rochester); Dr. Kenya Johns SEE BLACK MAYORS A4
Clearing the path to homeownership ‘Black Excellence in Real Estate’ awards gala now in its fourth year by Rob Taylor Jr. Courier Staff Writer
Black homeownership is a problem in Pittsburgh. Thirty-three percent, or 1 in 3 African Americans in Pittsburgh, are homeowners. Almost 75 percent, or 3 of 4 Whites in Pittsburgh, are homeowners. And when they talk about homeownership being a vital part of wealth-building for families, one can see how far behind African Americans are in Pittsburgh in this category. When Mary Hester, founder and owner of LifeVenture Real Estate Solutions, called founding executive director of Catapult Greater Pitts-
burgh Tammy Thompson about starting a "Black Excellence in Real Estate" awards gala, Thompson thought Hester was crazy. "We don't have time to do anything else," Thompson told Hester some years ago. Hester told Thompson it needed to happen, and Thompson obliged. Together, they began the first "Black Excellence in Real Estate" awards gala in 2021 at the Heinz History Center. It sold out easily. It had to be moved to a larger venue in 2022; thus, it was held at the Wintergarden at PPG Place, Downtown. And it sold out SEE HOMEOWNERSHIP A6
Pittsburgh Courier NEW
To subscribe, call 412-481-8302 ext. 136
TAMMY THOMPSON AND MARY HESTER, LEADERS OF THE ANNUAL BLACK EXCELLENCE IN REAL ESTATE AWARDS GALA. THIS YEAR’S EVENT WAS HELD, SEPT. 26, AT THE WINTERGARDEN AT PPG PLACE, DOWNTOWN. (PHOTO BY J.L. MARTELLO)