Hundreds gather for Pittsburgh Rally for Solidarity to protest anti-Asian violence
More than 400 people gathered on Flagstaff Hill in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood on Wed., March 24 for a rally in response to the recent Atlanta mass shooting, as well as the general rise in anti-Asian hate crimes in the past year. The Rally for Solidarity was co-hosted by the East Coast Asian American Student Union…
Former Pa. health secretary Rachel Levine becomes first trans cabinet official confirmed by U.S. Senate
On March 24, Dr. Rachel Levine was confirmed as U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health with a vote of 52-48 in the U.S. Senate. Levine, formerly the Pennsylvania health secretary under Gov. Tom Wolf, becomes the first transgender person ever confirmed for a White House cabinet position by the U.S. Senate. She becomes the highest-ranking out…
Heinz released newly concocted condiments for Canadians. Let’s hope Pittsburgh is next
Pittsburghers were quick to mock locally-based food giant Heinz when it debuted some new condiments in 2018. The names of those new concoctions (Mayochup, Mayomust, and Mayocue) were a bit unorthodox, but the condiments were basically just versions of aioli, as the company mixed ketchup, mustard, and barbecue sauce with mayonnaise. Now, Heinz is at…
Former Pitt director of emergency management indicted for stealing and selling PPE supplies
A former University of Pittsburgh employee has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of stealing thousands of dollars worth of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) meant for students and school employees and selling them on his private eBay account. The indictment alleges that Christopher Casamento, a Pittsburgh resident who previously served as Director…
Pittsburgh to deliver thousands more blue recycling bins to homes by end of summer
The summer in Pittsburgh could see a lot less refuse and a lot more recycling when the city distributes thousands of new blue curbside bins to residents. On March 16, Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto announced that come May, the Department of Public Works Environmental Services will launch the second phase of its Blue Bin Rollout…
Charges against 16 Black Lives Matter protesters arrested by Pittsburgh Police renewed a month before new report reveals police bias
According to court documents, “failure to disperse” misdemeanor and other charges against at least 15 people who were arrested by Pittsburgh Police while participating in Black Lives Matter protests in Pittsburgh on May 30 and June 1 of 2020 have been refiled. These refiled charges occurred over a four week span from late January to mid-February,…
Lynn Cullen Live – 3/23/21
Video Archive Lynn and Susan are touching upon a bunch of topics today including immigration, vaccine availability at the VA, statehood for Washington DC, the science of snowflakes, and a library book returned 63 years overdue. Audio Only Archive Stream or download the last 5 shows on the MP3 downloads page.
Song Spotlight: “Bike” by Andrew Chris ft. Dante. and Juice
Andrew Chris’ “Bike” is a jazzy song about taking time to relax and get away from the workload of our day-to-day living. Chris plays the guitar and sings over boisterous drums, giving the song energy and bite. Towards the end, a horn comes in and plays a sort of racing back track to the video…
“Well, it’s 50% morphine”: A Pittsburgh professor discusses the role of women in early drug regulation
In 2001, a crew working on what was once the Lazarus building in Downtown Pittsburgh unearthed a strange discovery — an abandoned well containing thousands of empty medicine bottles from the Victorian era. The artifacts were analyzed and reported on by a team that included Dr. Jacqueline M. Cavalier, a professor of history at the Community…
Lynn Cullen Live – 3/22/21
Video Archive Vaccine distribution, and the unwillingness of drug companies to share formulas to ramp up production is Lynn’s first topic of the week. There are a large number of countries that haven’t been able to administer a single vaccine dose yet. She is also talking about the New York Times survey ‘How the pandemic…
Stop Asian Hate protest against anti-Asian racism emphasizes love and solidarity in response to Atlanta shooting
More than 300 people gathered in Oakland on Sat., March 20 for a “Stop Asian Hate” protest against anti-Asian racism. Thrash the State, a skate collective run by queer people of color and trans and gender nonconforming people, organized the action. The protest was organized in response to the March 16 shooting in Atlanta, Ga.…
Pa. arrests more than 20K for marijuana possession during 2020; just a slight decrease during pandemic
According to Pennsylvania State Police data compiled by marijuana advocacy group NORML, there were 20,200 adults arrested for marijuana-related violations in the commonwealth in 2020. This just 7% decrease compared to 2019, according to data compiled by the Philadelphia Inquirer. Even though a pandemic disrupted Pennsylvania, and the rest of the world, for most of…
Pennsylvania state House passes bill upping penalty for spitting on police officers
A central Pennsylvania lawmaker’s bill to potentially give prison time to anyone who intentionally spits on a cop is on its way to the state Senate. The state House voted 146-56 earlier this week to approve the bill sponsored by Rep. Louis Schmitt (R-Blair) earlier this week. Under existing law, spitting on a police officer…
Pittsburgh service group wants restaurant workers prioritized for COVID vaccine
Earlier this week, Gov. Tom Wolf announced that Pennsylvania’s restaurants can raise their indoor capacity from 50% to 75% starting on April 4. However, a group providing service and support to Pittsburgh restaurant, service, and hospitality workers is concerned that employees who work in those restaurants and indoor spaces won’t receive the vaccine by April…
Pitt group joins daughters of missing scholars to sound alarm on China’s persecution of Uyghur people
Akeda Pulati’s mother, Rahile Dawut, left Pulati a voice message on Dec. 12, 2017, that she had to go to Beijing. The Uyghur ethnographer from Xinjiang University then vanished, and Pulati has not heard from her since. Pulati joined Jewher Ilham, whose father Ilham Tohti has been imprisoned since 2017, at “Daughters of Dissidents,” a March…
Allegheny County expands COVID eligibility to residents 50-64 with underlying health conditions
On March 17, the Allegheny County Health Department announced changes to its vaccination site priorities that would expand eligibility to more residents. During a weekly briefing, ACHD director Dr. Debra Bogen said that starting Fri., March 19, individuals 50 to 64 with underlying medical conditions will qualify to receive the vaccine at certain points of…
New restaurant concepts in Bakery Square, a Victorian bar in Allentown, and more Pittsburgh food news
Openings Bakery Square Galley 6425 Penn Ave., LarimerThe new dining hall coming to Bakery Square, part of the same group that owns and operates Federal Galley in the North Side, recently announced the four restaurant concepts that will be occupying the space: Somi offers “nutrient dense, progressive Asian cuisine,” GG’s Café will serve modern takes…
Kingfly Spirits brings live comedy back to Pittsburgh
One of the first in-person stand-up shows since the pandemic began is set to happen on Fri., March 26 at Kingfly Spirits. The show will feature comedians Terry Jones, Amanda Averell, Joey Welsh, and Marcus Cox. The show will be hosted by Derek Minto, a stand-up comedian who was named Pittsburgh City Paper’s best comedian…
Port Authority proposes increasing transit fares, but wants to eliminate transfer fees for some users
The Port Authority of Allegheny County proposed a slew of potential fare changes on March 18 that include a fare increase for many riders, but also addresses some equity concerns. Port Authority CEO Katharine Kelleman presented the proposals to the board’s finance committee, who then recommended that the full board commence a 40-day public comment…
Lynn Cullen Live – 3/18/21
Video Archive Lynn is revisiting a topic she talked briefly about yesterday, the filibuster. Democrats in the Senate are talking about getting rid of or reforming it. Lynn is looking at its history, uses, and responses to a New York Times editorial about ending the filibuster. Other topics Lynn is covering include the vote to…
Lynn Cullen Live – 3/17/21
Video Archive The Atlanta area spa shootings is the first story Lynn is discussing today. Eight people have been killed, six of whom are Asian women. Authorities are still trying to determine if these were hate crimes. The number of anti-Asian racist incidents has continued to rise during the pandemic. Lynn is also talking about…
Soulshowmike’s Album Picks: Women’s History Month
During Women’s History Month, I’m honored to highlight two albums I’ve enjoyed over the past few months. One is the very recent release from Gayelynn McKinney and McKinney Zone. McKinney is a percussionist out of Detroit, the daughter of noted composer and pianist Harold McKinney. This album, Zoot Suit Funk, ranges from straight-ahead to slightly-smooth…
Ocean Vuong, one of the “most important writers of the early 21st century,” to headline virtual Pittsburgh event
There is no single way to categorize Ocean Vuong’s first novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous (Penguin). It is by turns a coming-of-age novel, an immigrant’s tale, a LGBTQ story, a fictionalized memoir. While writing the novel, Vuong was told by editors and peers to pick a single subject or theme. Instead, On Earth is…
Page Dairy Mart is open for the season, and the Chocolate Chip Cookie Sundae is a can’t miss
A golden retriever that needs to be picked up and held in its owner’s arms, an entire high school softball team, and loud motorcyclists. These are all the things you might see while waiting in line at Page Dairy Mart, the popular ice cream stop located on the far edge of Pittsburgh’s South Side. On…
Pittsburgh designer rolls dice on new tabletop gaming company Possible Worlds Games
Like many fans of tabletop role-playing games, or RPGs, Tyler Crumrine’s introduction to the community was through Dungeons & Dragons. However, the Pittsburgh-based game designer says the first game that really hooked him was Lasers & Feelings by John Harper, what he calls a “simple Star Trek RPG where all the rules fit on a…
A Pittsburgh journalist helps discover a missing piece of research on the health impacts of fracking
Multiple studies across several different regions have shown links to increased health risks for those living near natural gas infrastructure, aka fracking. Living near fracking wells in Pennsylvania increases the rates of severe and moderate asthma attacks, according to a 2016 study from JAMA Internal Medicine. A 2014 study out of Colorado suggested that living…
Seven Days in Pittsburgh: March 18-24
Thu., March 18 TALK • VIRTUAL Join the magnanimous, well-regarded, and sometimes controversial former Allegheny County Coroner Cyril Wecht for an evening of fascinating conversation that will explore Wecht’s memoir The Life and Deaths of Cyril Wecht: Memoirs of America’s Most Controversial Forensic Pathologist. The virtual talk, hosted by the Heinz History Center, will include Wecht’s…
Chandra Rhyme gets her day in the spotlight at Sunstar Music Festival
Sunstar Music Festival, Sunstar Festival, Chandra Rhyme, INEZ, Clara Kent, Brittney Chantele, Girls Running Shit, Kelly Strayhorn Theater, Pittsburgh Music
Manos Gallery welcomes all artists to Tarentum, just north of Pittsburgh
Growing up, Ernesto Camacho dreamed of owning an art gallery. With the November 2020 opening of the Manos Gallery in Tarentum, Camacho and his partner, Brian DeFelices, have fulfilled that goal, with plans to keep the dream, and the gallery, going. The gallery, about 22 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, was once the location of the…
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY: March 18-24
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): No one had ever proven that there was such a thing as electromagnetic waves until Piscean physicist Heinrich Hertz (1857–1894) did so in 1886. He was the innovator who first transmitted and received controlled radio waves. Alas, he didn’t think his breakthrough was useful. In 1890, he confessed, “I do not…
