CAUSE lecture

FEB. 12—The Department of History at Carnegie Mellon University’s Center for African American Urban Studies and the Economy will host their Lecture and Discussion event with Dr. Okezi T. Otovo from 4:30-6 p.m. at the university’s Steinberg Auditorium, Baker Hall A53,  5000 Forbes Ave., Oakland. Her topic will be “Making Better Babies and Perfecting the Race: Mothering and Nation-Building in Brazil.” The lecture is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served before the lecture and discussion. For more information, call 412-268-8928.

(AP)—The city of Pittsburgh has suspended three White police officers while officials investigate accusations that they beat up a Black teenage arts student who was walking to his grandmother’s house after dark, the mayor said Monday.

LUKE RAVENSTAHL

The city agency that handles police misconduct allegations has agreed to complete its investigation of the Jan. 12 confrontation by month’s end, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said. It must do so before any decision is made on whether to fire the officers.

BHM speaker series

FEB. 10—PNC Financial Services will host the Black History Month Speaker Series, “A Conversation in Courage” from 8:15-9:30 a.m. at the August Wilson Center for African-American Culture, 980 Liberty Ave., Cultural District. This event is in celebration of Black History Month. Renee Powell, the daughter of the late golfer, entrepreneur, and visionary William J. Powell, will be the keynote speaker. He was the only African-American to design, build, own and operate a golf course. And she was the second African-American woman to play Ladies Professional Golf. The event is free and open to the public. A continental breakfast will be served and registration is requested. For more information, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

This month the count is lower than that of January 2009.

With a new year comes a new start and new hope. While even one senseless death is one too many, this month’s count of six is lower than the seven this time last year. This is a step in the right direction. Now we, as a community, need to come together and continue this step. Hopefully, this will prove to be a record year for the least deaths by homicide.