PublicSource | News for a better Pittsburgh (https://www.publicsource.org/author/halle-stockton/)
Mental illness was a label I always knew, but one that I never thought described me. The label was given to me in my early childhood and, from then on, I tried to make peace with the fact that I was “ill.” I twisted and turned the label in my head, trying to figure out what it meant for me and how it fit into my life.
Those who don’t know me may see me merely as an intersection of many identities — a deaf, black woman. Each one of those identities on their own would commonly put me into the marginalized category. But as a mom to 10-year-old Aaron and 5-year-old Manny, I can’t rest on these statistics.
The work of confronting racism has historically been left to people of color. As such, the very people who are oppressed hold the responsibility of transforming the power structures that subjugate them. Imagine lying on the ground with someone’s foot on your neck and you alone are left to overpower your aggressor.
In some cases, fragments of historic sites survive based on their value as industrial heritage or their adaptability into venues for culture and tourism. In a few other cases, factory sheds are reused as office or light manufacturing spaces, if they can compete in the real estate market.But most often, it seems these relics of our industrial roots are razed.
Students left school and turned out in droves to honor Antwon Rose II on the first school day after the verdict that sparked a weekend of protests in Pittsburgh.
Antwon Rose Sr. spoke to about 200 people gathered at Freedom Corner in the Hill District on Saturday. They had gathered for what was billed a Community Solidarity Service in response to Friday's not-guilty verdict in the fatal shooting of his son, Antwon Rose II. Rose Sr. said he was thankful for the support since his son’s death in June and through the trial this past week. “It’s very painful to see what happened, to sit there and deal with it,” Rose said. “I just don’t want it to happen to our city no more, man.”
Antwon Rose II, 17, was killed on June 19 by former East Pittsburgh police officer Michael Rosfeld.
Vanessa German, a visual and performance artist based in Pittsburgh, has written three poems addressed to Antwon Rose II this week during the trial of former East Pittsburgh police officer Michael Rosfeld who fatally shot the teenager on June 19.
PublicSource is thrilled to announce the debut of Develop PGH — a focused reporting project with a goal to provide vital information, transparency and accountability about the design, planning and development of the Pittsburgh region.
