In the Post-Gazette: "BPEP leader calls for ‘game plan’ to fix Pittsburgh’s racial inequities"
BPEP leader calls for ‘game plan’ to fix Pittsburgh’s racial inequities.
Published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Oct 21, 2019
Citing a report out last month that detailed glaring deficiencies in the quality of life for Pittsburgh’s black residents, Tim Stevens, chairman and CEO of the Black Political Empowerment Project, on Monday urged local leaders to act.
During a morning press conference at the group’s Hill District headquarters, Mr. Stevens implored Mayor Bill Peduto, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and leaders of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development to “create a game plan for action” in response to findings in the city’s Gender Equity Commission report released last month.
Led by University of Pittsburgh researchers, the report found that black residents here suffer in myriad ways, including in rates of maternal mortality, poverty, employment, college readiness, homicides and cancer and cardiovascular disease.
The examination — part one of four such reports — showed that black residents have a lower quality of life in Pittsburgh than in almost any other U.S. city of comparable size.
“Over the years, many African-Americans in Pittsburgh, when we frequently hear the words describing Pittsburgh as ‘A Most Livable City,’ ” Mr. Stevens said in prepared remarks, quoting the city’s self-proclaimed moniker, “react and can’t help but ask the question: ‘For whom is it most livable?’ ”
He said of the divides: “We are all at fault.”
Among the grim statistics outlined in the report, deaths among black female babies outpace 70% of other cities, a rate that Mr. Peduto characterized last month as “third world.” “There shouldn’t be anybody in the city of Pittsburgh that can accept that fact and not be asking ‘What am I doing?’ ‘What’s my company doing?’ and ‘What is my organization doing in order to change that?’” he said at a press conference last month announcing the report’s findings.
Mr. Peduto said that all sectors must consider the research.
The report, which officials described as “unique,” weighed race and gender data from census and Education Department records, along with birth and death certificates in its comparisons.
Mr. Stevens said Monday that one potential remedy to the divides already exists, pointing to a report by the Pittsburgh Corporate Equity and Inclusion Roundtable, an initiative aimed at improving opportunities for people of color in the region.
The document, which was updated in June, calls for area businesses, colleges and universities, and nonprofit organizations to abide by several pledges. Those include: considering black candidates for all job openings – widely known as the "Rooney Rule" – and accepting applications from candidates with criminal histories, or "ban the box."
In a statement Monday, Timothy McNulty, the mayor's spokesman, said the city "has already implemented his requests for a Rooney Rule and 'ban the box' efforts, and regularly works with the Corporate Equity and Inclusion Roundtable."
Stefani Pashman, CEO of Allegheny Conference on Community Development, said Monday that the region's success depends on a "strong economy that is diverse and inclusive" and that those values have been a key part of her organization's efforts the past two years. "From conducting supplier diversity workshops and partnering with Vibrant Pittsburgh, to examining hiring practices, to advocating for legislation that can help level the playing field for current and future workers, inclusion is core to our regional strategy," she said in an emailed statement.
Vibrant Pittsburgh is a nonprofit focused on diversifying the workforce.
Ms. Pashman's statement also said that despite those efforts, "we know as a region we need to do more ... We look forward to building on our partnerships so we can continue to create a next generation economy that is truly FOR ALL.”
Researchers said last month that a list of policy recommendations is pending.
Matt McKinney: mmckinney@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1944, or on Twitter @mmckinne17.
Tim Stevens gestures from a podium, surrounded by fellow local African American leaders.