‘Don’t Clip Our Tails,’ a Pittsburgh poet’s reflection on racial justice
In late May, as Pittsburgh activists were planning the first of many protests following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, rapper and poet Shyheim Banks received a text from local organizers. Their request: Could he speak or recite a poem at an upcoming demonstration? Banks, who performs under the name Treble NLS and is the head teaching artist for 1Hood Media, wrote a poem called “Don’t Clip Our Tails.” The piece stems from a conversation he had recently had with a white woman on the topic of race in America, specifically how she felt young Black men should act in the presence of authority figures. This is a collaborative visualization of that poem, produced for PublicSource. This video won a 2021 Mid-Atlantic Chapter Emmy in the Arts/Entertainment — News (Single Story) category.
‘Dear coronavirus’: Watch Pittsburgh’s open letter on life in quarantine
Lost loved ones. Shuttered schools. Isolation. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic has cut deep, and what lies ahead remains uncertain. We asked people from around the Pittsburgh region to share with us what they’d say to the coronavirus if such a confrontation were possible. This is an open letter in a time of quarantine. Produced for PublicSource.
Paddling 300 miles to protect the waters of Ohi:yo’, the ‘good river’
For degawëno:da’s, paddling the length of the Allegheny River over the course of four months this year was to be a “witness to the raw element of the natural world.” The roughly 300-mile trip began on May 18 at the river’s headwaters near Coudersport, Pa., and ended on Sept. 21 by the Point State Park fountain in downtown Pittsburgh. The 49-year-old New York resident is a member of Defend Ohi:yo’, a grassroots organization committed to protecting the Allegheny River and all waterways. “Ohi:yo’” translates to “good river” in the Seneca language. Produced for PublicSource.
The Only Constant Thing, Ep. 1: A Daughter of Penn Plaza
Crystal Jennings’ life was thrust into Pittsburgh’s affordable housing fight when her father, Jerome, was one of more than 200 Penn Plaza residents forced to move from the apartment complex. At the time, her father was in failing health. He died of liver cancer in May 2018, a little more than a year after being displaced. However, Crystal’s ties to the Penn Plaza community would only grow stronger over time. She is a core organizer for Penn Plaza Support and Action and helps take care of former residents as if they’re family. To live in Pittsburgh now is, in many ways, to see a city change before your eyes. There’s new construction and redevelopment, but also gentrification and displacement. Such changes can have profound impact on the communities we call home. This is the first episode of The Only Constant Thing, a new documentary video series focused on these stories of change, seen through the eyes of those directly living it. Produced for the PublicSource.
‘This was my bouquet’: At Tree of Life, a violinist offers up music as a means to mourn
Pushing past cold fingers and the occasional breeze that would flap her sheet music, Monique Mead visited the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill to grieve with others. Taped to her music stand was a photo of Leonard Bernstein and, joining it, this quote from the iconic musician: “This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” And so, on a recent Sunday afternoon at the site where 11 people were killed on Oct. 27, Mead did just that — playing her Italian violin as dozens of mourners quietly paid their respects. Produced for the PublicSource, this piece was nominated for a 2019 NATAS Mid-Atlantic Chapter Emmy.
Growing up in the McKees Rocks area, “We’re all one big family.”
Drey Frenzley has grown up in Stowe Township, just a few minutes’ walk from Sto-Rox Junior-Senior High School. The 17-year-old says he likes the close-knit community where he lives, but he describes it as “rough-ish” — not the safest place but still not as bad as the world perceives it. Drey is about to start his senior year at Sto-Rox and plays defensive tackle on the school’s football team. Produced for the PublicSource project Failing the Future, this piece is one in a series that was awarded a 2019 NATAS Mid-Atlantic Chapter Emmy in the Education/Schools - News Story or Series category.
Amid crime and blight, Natalie Thomas plants peace and community in Beltzhoover
Since 2011, longtime Beltzhoover resident Natalie Thomas has been the caretaker of the Unified Positive Effect Community Garden at the corner of Climax Street and Estella Avenue in Pittsburgh. Thomas, 57, said the space used to be a jungle of overgrown weeds and grass that attracted neighborhood crime. Now people know not to “mess with” her garden, and she said she’s noticed a reduction in crime on the block. This video was produced for PublicSource and was awarded a 2018 NATAS Mid-Atlantic Chapter Emmy in the video essay (single camera operator) category.
The Towboater
Amherst Madison deckhand Ryan Gilleran describes life on a towboat pushing barges full of coal, and often other materials, up and down America's waterways.
No Place But Home: Tony Buba
For more than four decades, filmmaker Tony Buba has chronicled the good, bad, and absurd in his hometown of Braddock, Pennsylvania, establishing an unmistakable filmography that foregrounds the plight of the working class while defying simple classification. No Place but Home, a documentary short by Ryan Loew and Matthew Newton, examines Buba’s storied career as told in his own words. Produced as a collaboration between Carnegie Museum of Art and 90.5 WESA. The CMOA also screened this piece at the museum in August 2016.
Portrait of an Ironworker
Standing nearly 30 stories above downtown Pittsburgh, Al Williams — a third-generation ironworker with 36 years of experience — is in his element. The 54-year-old has logged roughly 70,000 hours working on countless structures around the city of Pittsburgh. That's included PPG Place, Consol Energy Center and the Liberty Bridge. Now he's working on the latest addition to Pittsburgh’s skyline, the Tower at PNC Plaza. Produced for 90.5 WESA.
Rubber Duckie, You're the One
Artist Florentijn Hofman's Rubber Duck Project floated down the Ohio and Allegheny rivers, kicking off Pittsburgh’s Festival of Firsts in late September 2013. Video by Ryan Loew, with additional sound by Katie Blackley. Music by Podington Bear. Produced for 90.5 WESA.
What's Old Is New Again
Brandon Boan, co-owner of the Tip Type letterpress print shop in Wilkinsburg, Pa., shares his thoughts on using and maintaining old pieces of equipment such as a linotype machine. Produced for 90.5 WESA.
Martinsville: A Visual Essay
"It's like a marriage, you know," said Jomo Lucas, a laid-off worker turned boxing coach. "What you put into Martinsville is what you get out of it." Located in Southwest Virginia, Martinsville's population is declining, graying and growing poorer by the year; its unemployment rate is the highest in the state. But there's beauty in the landscape, loyalty from residents and hope for the future. This is part of a larger project about the loss of manufacturing jobs in Southwest and Southside Virginia. Produced for The Roanoke Times, with photography by Jared Soares and video by Ryan Loew.