On this week s Explainer:
Public health experts react to Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to lift more coronavirus restrictions on Memorial Day. Health and science reporter Sarah Boden explains what that could mean for the region, as well as the latest on vaccination rates.
The Pittsburgh Public Schools board has five open seats this year. Education reporter Sarah Schneider checks walks through who s been endorsed by local organizations, and how candidates hope to change the district s education systems.
It s been more than two years since a gunman opened fire at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill, the deadliest anti-Semitic attack the United States history. Arts and culture reporter Bill O Driscoll talks about new design plans in the building s future, a project which will be led by an internationally known architect.
90.5 WESA Demonstrators hold a sign during a protest against the police killing of Daunte Wright on Tuesday, April 13, 2021.
Demonstrators filled the sidewalk and poured into the street outside the East Liberty Target Tuesday night to show solidarity with the family of Daune Wright, a 20-year-old Black man killed in Brooklyn Center, Minn. on Sunday. The group ultimately made their way to the home of Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto.
Activist Gam, who has taken part in and led many actions against police brutality in Pittsburgh, asked white participants to listen to Black voices and disrupt racism in their daily lives. Gam also encouraged those participants to join the center of a circle the group had formed on Penn Avenue to talk about why they decided to take part in the demonstration.
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A look at a Black teaching artist residency s inaugural musicians
It’s a kind of open secret: Very few artists make a living solely from their creative work. The vast majority of painters, poets, dancers, and actors hold down day jobs. The same goes for most musicians – and perhaps especially Black composers and musicians, who often lack the institutional support given to their white peers.
Kendra Ross, of ACT3 Consulting, co-created the residency program.
Credit Denele D. Biggs
That s the problem the Black Teaching Artist-in-Residence Program hopes to address. In February, this initiative of the Pittsburgh-based nonprofit UniSound – a collaborative of some three dozen area organizations that helps kids create music – welcomed its inaugural class of two artists.