Why Children of the Hood trick or treat in the Suburbs

Today is Halloween and all over America kids are planning their night and excited about Trick or Treating. The children in the hood have to leave their neighborhood because its to dangerous in their own neighborhood. Parents don't want to leave but they are afraid of loosing their children to violence so they travel to the Suburbs and Trick or Treat in neighborhoods that are safer.

Braddock has an annual Halloween party and that is an alternative to leaving the hood when you have no money for bus fare or in my case no longer able to walk that far.

There has been a lot of push back by people in the Suburbs because of all the children coming into their neighborhood even though the kids do not cause any problems and just enjoy the holiday as most kids do. I wonder if the people who complain realize that these children have difficult lives as it is and this is the only way they  can go trick or Treating safely. I can hear them complain on TV on why people can't stay in their own neighborhood. These children, all of them, have either lost a loved one to homicide; witnessed a shooting, or have multiple experiences with gun shots being fired in their neighborhoods. Our children deserve a night of fun too.

Most Hoods don't have an alternative to Trick or Treating. Braddock has one because of the Mayor, John Fetterman, and his wife Gisele Fetterman.  I get why people complain but instead of complaining how about helping out at in the ghettos give them an alternative. Trust me if a bunch of middle class white people came and guarded the kids they could. Trust me no one will shoot up a neighborhood when the hood is filled with White Middle Class people.  Maybe you could have an Halloween party in a community Center and take donations for prizes but especially candy. Hot dogs are a great meal for kids.

Think about what it would be like if it were your kids and grand kids. How sad you would feel if you weren't welcome in the Burbs and your parents wouldn't let you go Trick or Treating in their own neighborhoods.

Happy Halloween everyone stay warm and safe.

When you have a choice that needs to be made?

I am partially employed because I am disabled and in the appeals process for Social Security Disability.  I can only earn a little bit of money.  I work causal for the same job I worked at when my disease progressed to what it is today. I work on an as needed basis and although my job is pretty regular I often times lose money because I'm sick and must call off.  When that happens I must often choose between rent and gas.  I will always choose gas because I need electricity and water and when it is warmer the gas is only heating up the water.  I didn't owe that much and I could get help from Charity.  Well Charity is dependent on donations and because donations are down that means I did not receive help.  I then contacted my gas company and had them fax the medical form that would help keep my gas on.  She did fill it out but it was to late because they shut off my gas. 

The horrible thing about waiting for Disability is they deny everyone unless you have heart problems or are on Oxygen.  I was first turned down in 2010 when it was discovered that I had Sarcoidosis, an autoimmune disease that caused me to have Splenic Cancer.  I lost my spleen on September 24, 2010. That is how they diagnosed my condition. They denied me and I appealed.  I lost my case and I went back to work.  I was fine for a few years although I still suffered from nausea and pain.  I was OK and was able to hold down a job for three years.

On March 7,2015 I passed out at work and my co worker had to call an ambulance.  It was then that I found out I had something wrong with my heart, and kidneys.  They also discovered that my immune system was failing.  I spent months going from specialist to specialist. I had to many people on my immune system with my kids and grandchildren, 7 Co Workers, and 8 Consumers in small homes. I lived with my children and grandchildren in a small house and I worked in a house with 7 Co Workers and 8 Consumers in tight quarters.  I put in my 2 weeks notice on 7/10/15 and my last day was July 24, 2015.  I never wanted to quit but I felt I had no choice.

I was given Unemployment but when that ran out I had no income.  My best friend helped me make ends meet and paid all but my rent. I did not have an income from Feb15 until June when I got a check for $60.  I have been working every sense when I could but still became homeless.  I have spoken out about that before.


Now I have a decent place to live but when I get sick and miss work I am forced to make a decision no one would ever want to make. I had to chose between gas or rent.  Now I am waiting on the Gas Company to work with me because it is cold in the house.  My Social worker and Nurse was there the day the gas got cut off and they called CYF who because the house had one space heater in my granddaughter's room that they found the conditions to be safe.  I have figured out to make heat until CRISIS opens up on November 1, 2017 and working with the gas company to get it on faster than that.  I am not able to work full time as I can barely walk now and have Congestive Heart Failure along with Liver Disease.


Social Security is something you pay into every pay day and for them to make you go through hoops trying to get something you paid into makes me sick.  My hearing is on November 21, 2017 in Pittsburgh PA and I pray it comes through for me because I do not know what I will do.

Sometimes the its not the Numbers its the Question.

Today my friend Carol and I were talking about the numbers of births outside of marriage and the high black numbers. People read those numbers and think our babies are all born to single parent households. That is not true. The majority of homes are actually One Man one woman and children. They are not married but they have been in a long term relationship of 10 or more years. The children in this sort of family are in two family homes. They should not be included in data relating to single parent homes. So why are they included? The person asking the questions for the data asked just one question "Are you married?" They did not follow up with "Are you living with the child's father?" This failure to address this question in my eyes adds more to the numbers. I'm calling this as I see it racist. Not only does this remove numbers from the black folks but also White, Hispanic, Asian, and mixed Race groups as well.

 Just like it's a lie when they assume that most of these children have no fathers. Again no one asks the women "are you still with your child's father? If the answer is yes than its the same as the above senero. If the answer is NO the follow-up question should be " is the father present in the Child's life? Most of the time the answer is yes. They should also be removed from this list because you can't be a single parent if the parent is involved.

My son and grandson

Marriage is a Religious ceromony. Not everyone believes in God and so the only question they ask should be removed.  There are a lot of reasons why people do not marry. The number 1 reason is that marriage is new in the hood has declined since the 70s, so we are talking two or three generations back.  Marriage is no longer a point of reference. This is changing and will continue to rise.

These numbers are used against the hood by everyone from Conservatives to justify blaming the Liberals for all the problems in the hood. It's also used to justify hate. The White Nationalists use it to prove that blacks lack the moral fiber of whites. They ignore the fact that the numbers of poor whites are on par with blacks and Hispanics for the same reasons the parents are not married. Whites have larger numbers and are grouped together when you remove middle and Upper class whites you have higher numbers. It's the same for black folks remove the upper and middle class black people and the numbers go down a lot. So what in fact is a poor issue has become a race issue.

This being said, Hood our numbers are still to high. We as a Community need to come to grips with this issue. Young men and women need to start getting married if they love each other.

Sometimes you just need to ask follow up questions if not than you are serving a Racist system.

Can we talk about what's going on in the hood?

Can we talk about what is going on in the hood? Can we organize and take on the murderers and shooters that devasate our Community as much as we protest the Klan? Can we come up with a stradagy that will stop the Violence, have real Criminal Justice system that gets away with the Plea Bargain which puts scared lower income people serve time for a crime they did not commit.

A few months back the Klan was coming to Pittsburgh and boy did the hood and Groups like Anafa and Black Lives Matter planned to show up. The Activists in the hood had to tell both sides that they were guests in our city and if they caused problems they will have problems. We didn't want any fires set, no riots, and no violence. The Zklan did not show up but the other two groups did. Shame neither group shows up to protest the murders of people who lose their lives to violence. Man if their numbers really cared about the hood we would be cooking with gas.

Conservatives are more likely to show sympathy to our cause but they also don't show up to protest. Liberals are more afraid of being labeled Racist than they are of standing up for the very people who would vote for Democrats in larger numbers if only they care.

We need to demand that Politicians serve us. That is their job to serve us. A choice is going to have to be made by the Democrats to address our problems or lose our votes. In order to get that power we have to vote every election like President Obama was on the ticket. We have to vote in local and state elections. I do believe the hood loses by voting one party. This is something we need to do like the white folks do like we say in the hood. We need to hear what the Republicians say and let them know we will give them a chance but they must show up for more than photo opps. This will shake the Democrats know we ain't putting up with being ignored.

We also need people from outside the hood come to the hood and help. Come out and Protest the killings. Find out a way you can help people in these Communities. Come and volunteer to teach people basic education and change their lives. We do not care your not a teacher, we don't care that your not perfect. All you need is basic skills.

Another way you can help is teaching Financial Literacy classes. They are very helpful. Do not assume they got this from their parents assume they didn't. I hear Conservatives talk about teaching a man to fish. How do you expect to teach them if you don't come to these neighborhoods.

If only we could have this Conversation we would survive.

Several young men died this week. The media looks away

Last Wednesday, a fifteen years old was killed in Duquesne he was from North Braddock. He was shot to death. He had a bookbag full of books. http://www.post-gazette.com/local/south/2017/10/12/Lezra-Rice-homicide-Duquesne-North-Braddock-Propel-shooting-Allegheny-County-police/stories/201710120193
He played football for the Wolverines last year and attended Propel in Braddock Hills.

A few days later a 14 year old was shot by another teenager. He was not killed but got shot in the legs. Another teenager was taken into custody. I am a very good friend of his mother. Our kids are so used to this type of tradagy that they are numb to it. This shooting is two lives ruined one may never walk or will live with a bullet for the rest of his life. The other will serve time. https://www.google.com/amp/amp.wpxi.com/news/top-stories/14-year-old-shot-by-another-teen-in-north-braddock/625313338

A lot of people have this attitude that somehow the kids who live there must deserve it because after all this is where they choose to live. I'm not going to lie yes people choose to live here because their family live here and they like the place. No one deserves to die and for people to assume they deserve it because of where they live.

The next thing people, who do not understand, is blame the parents. It's not easy raising kids here because you have to decide between your children safe and as allowing them to have normal lives. Again, stop blaming the parents because some kids have problems that are ignored. Perhaps a family in denial and so they do not take their kids.

These babies are getting younger and younger. When does it stop.

An 11 year old was shot in Hawkins Village, a public housing projects, where my daughter and granddaughter lives. He was asleep on his sofa when a bullet came through the window. He is OK but when does this stop? https://www.google.com/amp/amp.wpxi.com/news/top-stories/11-year-old-reportedly-shot-while-sleeping-on-couch/624964867

All Memorials are not appropriate

My newsfeed was full of outrage the past two days because someone decided that he wanted to paint a mural in the Homewood section of Pittsburgh.  Homewood, the place where at least a thousand people have died over the past 31 years.  A man decided that the mural wanted to be a memorial for the latest mass shooting.  It might have been nice in another neighborhood but not in Homewood. The residents were outraged because most people felt that they lost loved ones to gun violence and that their loved ones deserve to be honored in their own community unlike the people in Las Vegas they lived in died right in that community. So let me get this straight you think you can come into a community and sell them a service or open a business but you think that its OK to disrespect an entire community. I could truly understand if the owner was related to anyone killed in Vegas but he didn't know anyone.
 

A lot of people wondered why if he must honor victims of mass shootings why he did not pick The Wilkinsburg shooting that happened in the next town over from Homewood and most of the victims killed were from Hilltop in HOMEWOOD.  I guess that was to much like right for the owner.  Its bad enough that the Wilkinsburg shooting was downplayed anyway but the National Media but to bypass our own dead for outsiders.  What was he thinking?

Now the hood has compassion for the people who are killed in these mass shootings, however, they get all the attention but do not have anywhere near the body count that normal every day shootings in the hood have. The causalities are caused because the Media teaches Middle America they should run.  Your actually murdering your own fellow citizens because you and others are trampling people who hit the ground.  You do NOT run nor do you keep your head up.  I bet there is not a cop in America who would have people run to get away from a shooter. We do not generally have angry men and women who decide that they want to end their lives and take as many as they can.  I also believe that they love the mass shootings because it makes the Media relevant.  I personally would never even publish his name or anything about the man because he doesn't deserve to have his name known. I bet if you did that you would not have anyone shooting up places.


Property owners do not have the right to do whatever they want most suburbs have laws stating what you can and cannot do in your neighborhood.  We also have the right to tell property owners what not to do in our neighborhoods.  All we want is some common decency when it comes to what is appropriate because I am sure that most people are aware of the problems in the hood.

Just another day in the hood.

I was walking down the street going to catch my bus to go to work.  I have to walk three blocks to catch my bus and today it was warm and sunny about 71 degrees.  I love walking through my hood and talking to my neighbors. 


I live in on of the last few houses on my street.  The house on the corner of 13th and Bell the Row houses on this street used to be an eye sore but finally someone fixed them and made them decent places to live.  The House across the street from me was abandoned for several years. A housing redevelopment company fixed it up and turned it into a farm house.  This house recently sold for $80,000 which is high for houses in my community.  I walk to the next corner walk pass the bar which is open from 10 am until 2 am.  I pause at the field on Robinson and Bell and say a silent prayer for Jamal Holyfield who was shot to death at that spot on July 7, 2009 at the age of 17. There are a lot of places that have become make shift memorials of young and not so young people who have had their lives stolen in homicides.  Jamal was set up by some girl and shot several times. Several people were out that night yet no one saw anything or so they say.  His case remains unsolved.  His mother will never be the same and every year on the anniversary of his death she is consumed with anger at the girl who set him up.  All we know is her name is Meecka.

A fist fight breaks out on the second block close to the pizza shop.  Two women fighting over money for beer.  The kids are in school so at least only adults are around.  I see the same women sitting out on the porch every day they are always drinking and fighting loudly.  I often wonder if they lived on this street in July of 2009 when Jamal was there and if they saw what happened.  No matter what time I walk past their home these same two women are sitting out on their porch or fighting in the street.  I feel bad for them because they seem as though they have nothing to do that is productive.  I wonder if they have ever held jobs or do they received SSI.  I wonder why they don't find something positive to do with their time rather than sit outside and drink all day.  I feel sad because these women seem to have no life at all and all welfare even SSI keeps you broke and hungry.

I come to the Hoarder House where they have at least 20 or 30 broken lawn mowers and bikes locked on the iron fences.  I remember the husband used to sell these mowers but he died a few years ago and no one has yet to clean up the mess or sell them.  They could have taken those to Josh's steel and could have made some money now its just an eye sore. The trees are overgrown and are hanging on the Power lines.  I wonder when they are going to cut it before the power line breaks and people lose power.

Finally I reach the end of my journey the playground and park and my bus stop.  A shooting had taken place earlier this week a few blocks down on Verona.  The oldest son of my friend Desiree was shot inside his house.  He survived.  Today at the park was three girls and a boy smoking weed and talking about various subjects.  I love my neighborhood and my community.  I have lived in the same zip code my whole life.  Yes I am tired of the violence and watching people I love lose their children or have their child shot.  Every day I pray that we can say that Urban Violence is a thing of the past.  We are always going to have our problems but we can solve them working with each other like the old days. 

My vacation off the grid both good and bad

I have been trying to move my due date for my cell phone for the longest time but for several months I couldn't do either I was homeless or was having health problems, my daughter is pregnant daughter has had the babies. Then of course I needed to get in touch with my attorney. This week was the perfect time or so I thought.

It was wonderful my friend Carol was sailing and my bestie is teaching. Monday was my granddaughter turned three and we were having birthday party. Monday I was busy getting ready to the party. I was actually enjoying not being able to access fb and being without the phone. I could think. I was planning to work on Wednesday but a big swelling that occurs with my disease caused me to have a heart attack. Luckily I took six 81 mg of baby aspirin and a lasax before I called 911. I was in the hospital for 22 hours while they assessed me. I had to urinate all the fluids away for the pain and pressure to go away. I still have shortness of breath during activity and some pressure. I also have an annoying cough and swollen feet. Worse I couldn't call my kids or my boss to let her know what happened. I will not ever make that mistake again.

There was a shooting of a teenager his mom is a long term friend. He's alive but a 15 year old young man in Duquesne was not so lucky. Fifteen years old should not be shot in a back alley shot multiple times in the head. This happens far to much in the hood. His killers will not be caught and the family denied answers.

I got my phone back on Wednesday night and got on fb. Most of my friends were ranting about politics but strangely I didn't care. God woke me up and I am not going to waste it on two sets of stubborn people who are intolerant of other points of views. To much hate out there and not enough love. No one thinks about the two Republician women who gave a damn about a Democrat Hillary Supporter. One side will call my friend a Racist for being a Republician and the other side will call me a God hating immoral Liberal. We can do better than what we are doing. Stop yelling and start talking. Life is to short. He may not wake you up tomorrow.

How the hood deals with murder and what America can learn from us during a mass shooting.

Last Sunday was the Mass shooting in Las Vegas.  My 7 year old granddaughter asked me why the people didn't drop to the ground instead of running.  I explained that there were to many people there for people to drop because other people could step on them while they were trying to escape.   She knew that they should have gotten as low to the ground as they could get in order to survive.  She then wanted to know why they didn't seem to know this.  I had to tell her that most of the people who were there do not live in violence prone neighborhoods.  Aleara pondered that for a little while then asked. "Why not?" she looked at me puzzled. I explained to her that middle class people do not have shootings every day or most days.  She then looked at me and asked why it was like that in the hood.
"I can't go play with my friends in the back now because they were shooting there." I knew it was only a matter of time before Aleara started asking me the same thing my kids asked me back in the early days of the new Century and actually as far back as the early 90s.

Aleara knows what to do when shots are fired because she has to remember that.  She knows that if she forgets that she may die.  We do not need drills because our reality is that we have a lot of shots fired between the first and last warm days. A period of time I call the Killing Season. Little kids learn what to do when they are 3 and 4 because they go out without their parents to the back yard. 


Aleara is right people in Vegas should have ducked down but since he was so high up in the air I doubt it would have changed things in the least.  When shots are fired and its not a massive crowd then you should hit the ground and if necessary then play dead so that if he does come by you he doesn't shoot you again.  You should also listen for sounds but do not open you eyes until you see someone that you can trust.

My granddaughter wanted to know why someone wanted to just kill all those people and why did he do that?  She stuck to the known problems that will get you killed in the hood.  Drugs and gangs I told her no one knows why he shot those people. She got a little sad because she is her mother's child and is very tender hearted. 


I also want to know why people shoot people?  I want to know why our children have to know what to do to survive a shooting but with all the knuckle heads who cant deal with life wants to take as many people out with them as possible.

Money Management a Skill that doesn't exist in the Hood.

In February of 2017 my friend Carol asked me if I budget my money. I do know what a budget is because of my job but I didn't do one for myself. Carol talked to me about saving money and putting away money for an Emergency. At the moment I don't have enough to save. I make just enough to pay my bills and for needs. However, I should be getting a settlement shortly and then I will be able to start a Savings Account.

Now I think before I purchase anything. Carol taught me to ask myself if I need it or want it? If its a need then put it in the budget if it is s want then no if I didn't budget for it. I find myself saying No a lot. Its hard to do that.

She asked me if my parents taught me to budget but they were poor so they didn't know themselves. My parents were generational poor like I am. We are barely taught basic subjects in school and often we are the victims of low expectations because research shows poor children have low IQs. Both of my parents were labeled Learning Disabled. My parents are not alone so many poor people are never taught how to balance their check books. I get paid on a pre paid debit card. I do not have a checking account.

Maybe if we had these skills we would put a part of income tax check in Savings and not lose an Utility later in the year.

The Urban League who helps poor people get a Security Deposit does require a Financial class that teaches budgeting but no one else does.

Carol, is my Accountability partner if she says she doesn't advise it. I don't do it. Its hard and I'm sure mistakes will be made but its a good idea to do this.

When Will Hood Lives Matter to John and Jane Q Public

During the mass shooting in Las Vegas, a young man in an accusing tone basically asked me of I had ever been in a mass shooting. I live in the hood of course I've experienced a lot of gun violence. In 2012, during an afternoon street shootout a bullet wizzed by my head. I was walking to the store school busses were unloading and two young men began firing at each other from cars. I was lucky I didn't get shot that day. I have lost friends and children I watched grow up. I have held in my arms mothers who lost their sons or daughters.

It is due to this that mass shootings affect me. I have no tolerance for politics about anything when this happens. I always end up feeling some kind of way that anytime this happens the gun control issue comes up. If every Liberal in the United States would be as impassioned about violence in the hood we may be able to solve this issue. If Liberals and Conservatives would march with us during peace March's we would know that you care. Most people in the hood say this about those outside the Hood. It comes from Boyz in Da Hood. "Either they don't know they don't show, or they don't care about what goes on in the hood". Ice Cube said this in 1991 and 27 years later it still is relevant. I have been online for nine years preaching about this and unlesse they are from the hood or they are Conservative, people read but they either are afraid of being labeled racist or they do not know what to say. People are silent. Conservatives are called racist so they are more free to speak out. This is a warning to Liberals if you do not stop ignoring us we will not vote for you. We are getting tired and trust and believe Republicans will come to our hoods and they will care and you will lose us. Do not take us for granted anymore.

Every year in the US we lose thousands every year to gun violence in the hood and thousands more are injured. That is 100 times more than all the mass shootings put together. When are people gonna care about our lives?

Hood lives matter and we are dying. Please care about us.