Almost two years after her son Antwann was shot and killed in Homewood at the age of 21, Sheryl Jackson still finds it hard to talk about his death. And what continues to add to the pain of her loss is that her son’s killer has not been arrested.

Jackson did not say much, but said because the pain of her loss it is still great, “I do not like to talk about it. It still depresses me.”

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH—Sheryl Jackson, mother of Antwann Jackson, holds her son’s 2-year-old daughter, Maia Jackson, in front of his billboard. The sign states a reward is offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual who murdered her son.

Like Jackson, there are many out there with the same story. The loss of a loved one with no closure or justice because the killer is still out there. And many times, some in the community know who it is, but do not say anything.

Out of approximately 42 homicides in the city of Pittsburgh for 2009, Police Cmdr. Thomas Stangrecki said 15 of those homicides are still unsolved and all of them are Black males. And this year there are 17 homicides in the city—seven of those are unsolved and six of those are Black men.

April 29 saw the completion of the city of Pittsburgh’s month-long series on diversity and inclusion. As part of the DiverseCity 365 initiative, women in leadership positions around the city led the HerStory Discussion at the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh, giving others insight into how they had shattered the glass ceiling.

LUKE RAVENSTAHL

DiverseCity 365 began in October 2007 as a means of increasing diversity and inclusion throughout the city. The Department of Personnel & Civil Service Commission created a taskforce to develop strategies toward this goal and establish monitoring programs.

So far this year, April has had the lowest number of homicides and even more, the lowest number of Black homicides. This month, there was only one Black murder. Although the numbers were low, the senseless factor remains. Many of the homicides were due to disputes that got out of hand and took a wrong turn. Whatever happened to stepping back and taking a deep breath during an argument? When did it get to the point of picking up a gun, a knife or even a bat? Although there was only one Black homicide, even one is one too many. We, as a community, have to unite and continue the efforts, so that one can be turned into none.

With most of the gubernatorial candidates having participated in multiple public forums prior to the African American Chamber of Commerce event April 29, there was little chance anyone would hear something new.

But independent candidate Robert Mansfield, an African-American U.S. Army veteran from Phila­delphia, took that little chance and ran with it as far as he could, which led to a few raised eyebrows from those previously unexposed to Libertarian viewpoints.

AIRING DIFFERENCES—State gubernatorial candidates prepare to make opening statements during the candidates’ forum at the Rivers Club. From left: Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Hoeffel, Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, independent candidate Robert Mansfield, state Auditor General Jack Wagner, state Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams and state Attorney General Tom Corbett.

“The old way is over. We need a ‘new normal,’” he said. “We need less regulation and less tax. We should phase out business taxes by 2016.”