By Sherry Pasquarello,WWH/CJE - This was one of the saddest times in Pittsburgh’s history as well as the nation’s.
The hill district is an old neighborhood in the uptown section. It has a long and vibrant story (a great site to check out is Wylie Avenue Days with Chris Moore). Riots broke out in 1968, after the assassination of Dr. King. The hill was a black neighborhood, full of life and many many legends of the African American community came from or frequented it.
I was in high school. A predominantly white suburban high school, But, as I’ve written, I spent a large chunk of my time downtown. I had black acquaintances there. I can’t say, friends. I can say we hung out and I learned from them and I hope they learned from me. Ten years behind the times. That was my town.
I remember one late afternoon, a guy that I knew offered to walk me to my bus stop and wait with me till my bus came. Just in case the bus was running late. That was kind of him. It wasn’t a come-on, just kindness. We waited at the stop. The bus came. I said goodbye, smiled and thanked him. As I rode home I couldn’t help noticing this older white man staring at me from across the aisle and a seat behind.
I could feel the hate. Hell, he looked like he had bit into a lemon. I couldn’t understand why. Really, I was pretty naive. I should have guessed. A few blocks down the man got up to exit at his stop. He paused by me and spit at me and called me “nigger lover.” and walked to the door and got off.
Yeah, there were people like this–still are but I doubt they’d be that obvious. I was just stunned. I almost couldn’t catch my breath.
Well, it wasn’t all that long after, Dr. King was murdered. The hill was set on fire in the rioting. The cops walked two at a time. A lot of them with dogs. The black people that I knew were not sure what was coming down and neither did the white kids. It was tense and hurtful. Sad to say, a lot of the white adults really did believe the government’s carefully crafted lies about MLK. They bought into them the same way they bought into the lies about the anti-war movement. It took a long time for everyone I knew, to sort out just who was for and who was against brotherhood and peace.
We did though. We learned, but at what cost?
About the Author
Sherry Pasquarello is an eclectic little woman who has been published in the Individualist Newsletter, Black Roses, online at the Amateur Poetry Journal and the Alchemy lit. mag, and elsewhere. Sherry is a member of the international PK poetry kit list workshop and has been included in many of their projects. For more about Sherry check out her blog After the Bridge.