NAACP: Vote, answer census to demand change
Local leaders support push for racial justice
Disproportionately the target of police brutality and disproportionately at risk of COVID-19 because of health disparities, local NAACP leaders are saying enough is enough to the “double assault” of systemic racism.
“We’re done dying. We are done. It’s too many. This has got to stop,” said Richard A. Stewart Jr., president of the NAACP Pittsburgh chapter and a retired law enforcement officer.
Mr. Stewart spoke at a Friday news conference at the chapter’s Hill District office on Wylie Avenue in support of the national organization’s “We Are Done Dying” campaign, a double-barreled effort demanding racial justice in the institutions of criminal justice and health care.
As of Friday afternoon, Allegheny County numbers showed that 26% of the 2,065 known COVID-19 cases occurred among African Americans; the county’s black population is 13.2%, according to census data.
“We do need to have more protective equipment throughout the community for folks of color. We need to have more information put out there for people of color,” said Felicia Alexander, the chapter’s health chair.
A September 2019 city-commissioned report on inequality across race and gender revealed that Pittsburgh’s black residents face worse health and economic outcomes than black residents in other comparable U.S. cities.
Ms. Alexander said the police brutality that is getting renewed attention after George Floyd was killed by a while Minneapolis police officer who knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes combined with disproportionate COVID-19 cases is a “double assault” on the black population.
“It’s like that old saying: When the [nation] gets a cold, we get the pneumonia,” she said.
The local committee members urged protesters to wear masks, use hand sanitizer and observe social distancing recommendations.
They had another reminder as well: Vote.
“We are thrilled to see so many young people come out and speak out and yell and not give up. Two weeks, three weeks, loud voices. We are so proud of our young people, and we encourage them to continue,” said Gwendolyn Young, the chapter’s secretary. “... What they did was they set the stage for us. They provided the opportunity for the world to hear the truth about what was going on. And what the NAACP does, and what Pittsburgh
NAACP is doing, is what we do best. We work on changing laws and policies. Racism is systematic. In order for there to be lasting change, there must be systematic change . ... And how do we do that? First and foremost, get out there and vote. No matter how hard we work, no matter how much politicians — some — want to work with us, if we don’t get the right ones in [office] using our vote, then it’s all for nothing, and we’re right back where we were.”
Members said they are in communication with Pittsburgh police — including “heated discussions” — and have a “good working relationship” with Chief Scott Schubert, said Mr. Stewart, a retired police officer of 35 years.
“Don’t paint every officer out there with the same brush,” he continued, using the “few bad apples” description. “Do not do that because now he’s going to get disenchanted. ‘You’re going to paint me with a brush, why should I care?’ You go after the ones you need to go after.”
The Rev. Regina Ragin Dykes, the chapter’s religious affairs chair, also reminded community members to complete their 2020 Census.
“We still have time to get our information in, knowing that it affects the money that comes in for our [communities],” said the pastor of the New Light AME congregation in Homewood. “... Now may be the opportunity when we speak about Black Lives Matter that we can make some changes.”
The local NAACP office is set to reopen next week after being closed due to COVID-19. The chapter plans to post abbreviated hours on its Facebook page, Ms. Young said.
The office at 2203 Wylie Ave. is also accepting donations of personal protective equipment, including masks, to distribute to communities of color.