Shootings Not Good For Pittsburgh Image

Some Say Racism, Violence A Persistent Problem

PITTSBURGH, Updated 10:59 p.m. EDT May 1, 2000 -- Images from two race-related shootings in the last two months were beamed out to the nation and to the world, casting the Pittsburgh region in a less-than-favorable light.

WTAE Action News’ Shawn Yancy reports that the reaction at home is mixed: Some see the shootings as isolated incidents, while some say they’re more indicative of a bigger problem.

"I liked it here until all this came up," Penn Hills resident Sue Broadus said of last week’s slaying of five people and the Wilkinsburg shootings of two months ago.

Richard Baumhammers, who is white, shot six people of African-American, Asian and Indian descent, killing five of them Friday. In Wilkinsburg on March 1, Ronald Taylor, who is black, went on what authorities believe was an anti-white shooting spree, killing three and wounding two.

"Now, it makes one leery, wherever you’re at," Broadus said.

Others said violence comes with the territory in cities, but Pittsburgh is still overall a good city in which to live.

"I think Pittsburgh is overall a good place to live. I think like any city or state, violence is a subject. It’s something that’s happening nationwide," Pittsburgh resident Deanna Turner told Action News.

Diane Palmer, of Bethel Park, agreed.

"You have some people around that give it a bad name every once and awhile, but basically, I still think it’s a good place to live," she said.

While local leaders surely wish the violent image of racial hatred in Pittsburgh weren’t being broadcast worldwide, some residents say it reflects Pittsburgh’s past and its present and needs to be addressed.

"I think Pittsburgh probably is at a point that it needs to address those issues immediately," said John Ford, an African-American history expert and lifetime resident.

Ford said that, while 40 years has passed since the civil rights movement, Pittsburgh still has segregated neighborhoods and schools.

"I would like to see diversity training for the whole of Pittsburgh in our schools, as well as our corporate structure," he said.

Allegheny County Executive Jim Roddey announced Monday that he is convening a committee of local religious, corporate and community leaders who will look at violence in the community and will look for ways to prevent it.

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