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Latest Weekend Roundup Editions
❤️💙The Hill CDC wishes you a Happy 4th of July
As many gather today to celebrate Independence Day, we are also reminded that the meaning of freedom has not always been shared equally.
In 1852, Frederick Douglass delivered his powerful speech, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?", challenging the contradiction of celebrating liberty while millions of Black Americans remained enslaved. More than 170 years later, his words continue to encourage us to reflect on the distance between our nation`s ideals and the lived experiences of many Americans.
For many, Juneteenth has become the truest celebration of freedom, commemorating June 19, 1865, when the last enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Together, these moments in history invite us to consider not only how far we have come, but how we can continue building a nation where freedom, opportunity, and justice are experienced by all.
As we celebrate today, may we honor our history, reflect on its lessons, and recommit ourselves to creating stronger, more equitable communities for future generations.
Watch James Earl Jones reading of the full speech here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xX-AlsQcZgs
Read the full text of the speech here: https://loveman.sdsu.edu/docs/1852FrederickDouglass.pdf
❤️💙The Hill CDC wishes you a Happy 4th of July
As many gather today to celebrate Independence Day, we are also reminded that the meaning of freedom has not always been shared equally.
In 1852, Frederick Douglass delivered his powerful speech, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?", challenging the contradiction of celebrating liberty while millions of Black Americans remained enslaved. More than 170 years later, his words continue to encourage us to reflect on the distance between our nation`s ideals and the lived experiences of many Americans.
For many, Juneteenth has become the truest celebration of freedom, commemorating June 19, 1865, when the last enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Together, these moments in history invite us to consider not only how far we have come, but how we can continue building a nation where freedom, opportunity, and justice are experienced by all.
As we celebrate today, may we honor our history, reflect on its lessons, and recommit ourselves to creating stronger, more equitable communities for future generations.
Watch James Earl Jones reading of the full speech here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xX-AlsQcZgs
Read the full text of the speech here: https://loveman.sdsu.edu/docs/1852FrederickDouglass.pdf
‼️ Reminder: Our monthly Community Food Distribution is next Friday!
Hill District residents are invited to join us for FREE fresh food on Friday, July 10 at 11:00 a.m. at the Nafasi on Centre (2145 Centre Ave.).
🥬 Free food will be distributed on a first come, first served basis, so we encourage you to arrive early!
🛍️ Please bring your own tote bag or carry box to help transport your groceries.
📍 Nafasi on Centre
2145 Centre Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15219
🕚 Friday, July 10 | 11:00 a.m
‼️ Reminder: Our monthly Community Food Distribution is next Friday!
Hill District residents are invited to join us for FREE fresh food on Friday, July 10 at 11:00 a.m. at the Nafasi on Centre (2145 Centre Ave.).
🥬 Free food will be distributed on a first come, first served basis, so we encourage you to arrive early!
🛍️ Please bring your own tote bag or carry box to help transport your groceries.
📍 Nafasi on Centre
2145 Centre Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15219
🕚 Friday, July 10 | 11:00 a.m
🏡 Don`t forget! Your path to homeownership starts this month.
If you`ve been thinking about buying a home, now is the perfect time to take the next step. Join us for Operation Home, a free homeownership workshop presented in partnership with the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh.
📅 Saturday, July 18
🕘 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
📝 Register today: hilldistrict.org/register
🏡 Don`t forget! Your path to homeownership starts this month.
If you`ve been thinking about buying a home, now is the perfect time to take the next step. Join us for Operation Home, a free homeownership workshop presented in partnership with the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh.
📅 Saturday, July 18
🕘 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
📝 Register today: hilldistrict.org/register
🏊🏾♀️Weekly Weekend Round up Spotlight:
“The initiative is run by the City of Pittsburgh, PPS and the anti-violence nonprofit Operation Better Block. Since the program’s inception in 2021, the city has paid teens roughly $400,000 to intervene when conflict and violence are brewing at their school.
But while the group celebrated this progress at their year-end meeting on Monday, they also noted that more work must be done to reduce violence off school grounds and over the summer.
Outreach workers, community "violence interrupters" and public safety officials will be on hand at every city pool this summer, according to City of Pittsburgh STOP the Violence coordinator Ian Reynolds.
‘The main thing is just having people in the space that are familiar to our youth and just making sure we just have a safe summer,’ Reynolds said.”
Read the full story here: https://www.wesanews.org/education/2026-06-16/pittsburgh-youth-violance-school-safety-initiative
👩🏾💻 Sign up for the Hill District Weekend Roundup here: https://www.hilldistrict.org/signup/
🏊🏾♀️Weekly Weekend Round up Spotlight:
“The initiative is run by the City of Pittsburgh, PPS and the anti-violence nonprofit Operation Better Block. Since the program’s inception in 2021, the city has paid teens roughly $400,000 to intervene when conflict and violence are brewing at their school.
But while the group celebrated this progress at their year-end meeting on Monday, they also noted that more work must be done to reduce violence off school grounds and over the summer.
Outreach workers, community "violence interrupters" and public safety officials will be on hand at every city pool this summer, according to City of Pittsburgh STOP the Violence coordinator Ian Reynolds.
‘The main thing is just having people in the space that are familiar to our youth and just making sure we just have a safe summer,’ Reynolds said.”
Read the full story here: https://www.wesanews.org/education/2026-06-16/pittsburgh-youth-violance-school-safety-initiative
👩🏾💻 Sign up for the Hill District Weekend Roundup here: https://www.hilldistrict.org/signup/
🏡 Want to make a difference on your block? Now`s your chance!
The City of Pittsburgh`s Love Your Block program is now accepting applications for the 2026 grant cycle!
Community organizations can apply for:
💰 $500 grants
💰 $1,000 grants
⭐ A limited number of $1,500 grants
Love Your Block empowers neighbors to work together to combat blight, beautify public spaces, and strengthen communities, one block at a time.
🗓️ Applications close July 15, 2026.
📝 Apply here: https://www.pittsburghpa.gov/Resident-Services/Community-Programming/Love-Your-Block
If your organization has a project that can make a lasting impact, don`t miss this opportunity to invest in your neighborhood.
🏡 Want to make a difference on your block? Now`s your chance!
The City of Pittsburgh`s Love Your Block program is now accepting applications for the 2026 grant cycle!
Community organizations can apply for:
💰 $500 grants
💰 $1,000 grants
⭐ A limited number of $1,500 grants
Love Your Block empowers neighbors to work together to combat blight, beautify public spaces, and strengthen communities, one block at a time.
🗓️ Applications close July 15, 2026.
📝 Apply here: https://www.pittsburghpa.gov/Resident-Services/Community-Programming/Love-Your-Block
If your organization has a project that can make a lasting impact, don`t miss this opportunity to invest in your neighborhood.
🏠Weekly Weekend Round up Spotlight:
“The bill, called the 21st Century Road to Housing Act, passed 358-32 in the House. The Senate approved it Monday with similarly overwhelming bipartisan support.
But that unity was threatened Wednesday morning when President Trump posted on social media that he was abruptly canceling a signing ceremony for the bill unless Congress passes a strict voter ID bill called the Save America Act.
In an interview with NPR, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a co-sponsor of the bill, said housing affordability has become a priority for Congress.
‘Every time every member of Congress goes back home they hear how urgent it is to bring down home prices. And that`s what the bill does,’ she said.
A number of factors have made homes out of reach for many U.S. buyers. According to the real estate broker Redfin, a family needs an income of about $117,000 a year to afford the typical home on the market, almost $30,000 more than what most U.S. households earn.”
Click this link for a reminder of how a bill becomes a law from School House Rock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZ8psP4S6BQ
Read the full story here: https://www.npr.org/2026/06/23/nx-s1-5867575/congress-passes-housing-affordability-bill
👩🏾💻 Sign up for the Hill District Weekend Roundup here: https://www.hilldistrict.org/signup/
🏠Weekly Weekend Round up Spotlight:
“The bill, called the 21st Century Road to Housing Act, passed 358-32 in the House. The Senate approved it Monday with similarly overwhelming bipartisan support.
But that unity was threatened Wednesday morning when President Trump posted on social media that he was abruptly canceling a signing ceremony for the bill unless Congress passes a strict voter ID bill called the Save America Act.
In an interview with NPR, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a co-sponsor of the bill, said housing affordability has become a priority for Congress.
‘Every time every member of Congress goes back home they hear how urgent it is to bring down home prices. And that`s what the bill does,’ she said.
A number of factors have made homes out of reach for many U.S. buyers. According to the real estate broker Redfin, a family needs an income of about $117,000 a year to afford the typical home on the market, almost $30,000 more than what most U.S. households earn.”
Click this link for a reminder of how a bill becomes a law from School House Rock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZ8psP4S6BQ
Read the full story here: https://www.npr.org/2026/06/23/nx-s1-5867575/congress-passes-housing-affordability-bill
👩🏾💻 Sign up for the Hill District Weekend Roundup here: https://www.hilldistrict.org/signup/
📊 Turn data into action this summer!
Calling all 9th–12th graders: Join Pitt`s Big Data Boot Camp and learn how to use data, art, and journalism to tell powerful stories and create change in your community.
Over four interactive days, you`ll explore how big data can be used for advocacy while building valuable skills alongside peers.
📅 August 10–13
🕘 9:00–11:30 a.m.
📍 Pitt Community Engagement Center (Hill District)
💵 Earn a $150 stipend upon completion
Ready to make an impact? Scan the QR code or register here: https://tinyurl.com/4kcpv8cm
📊 Turn data into action this summer!
Calling all 9th–12th graders: Join Pitt`s Big Data Boot Camp and learn how to use data, art, and journalism to tell powerful stories and create change in your community.
Over four interactive days, you`ll explore how big data can be used for advocacy while building valuable skills alongside peers.
📅 August 10–13
🕘 9:00–11:30 a.m.
📍 Pitt Community Engagement Center (Hill District)
💵 Earn a $150 stipend upon completion
Ready to make an impact? Scan the QR code or register here: https://tinyurl.com/4kcpv8cm
🧔🏾♂️Weekly Weekend Round up Spotlight:
“The gathering was part of the Fatherhood Initiative, a partnership between the Kingsley Association and Steel Smiling, a Pittsburgh nonprofit focused on Black mental health. The program uses the National Fatherhood Initiative’s evidence-based “24/7 Dad” curriculum, designed to help fathers become more engaged and effective parents. The program is structured around the three components: healing, education and putting knowledge into practice.
Hill District resident Rakeem “Keem” Collins first connected with Steel Smiling in 2019 as a facilitator through its Beams to Bridges mental wellness program. His ability to translate complex psychological concepts into everyday language eventually led him into facilitating men’s groups and later the Fatherhood Initiative.
‘I could take ideas like Pavlov’s theory on conditioning and explain it in a way that people from our neighborhoods could immediately understand and relate to,’ he said.
He believes society conditions Black men to believe they are lesser than others and destined for incarceration. He said that kind of conditioning damages people and, without support, the men can end up in dark places. Collins, 36, sees this firsthand through his work in violence prevention.”
Read the full story here: https://newpittsburghcourier.com/2026/06/25/in-this-circle-black-fathers-dont-have-to-carry-it-alone/
👩🏾💻 Sign up for the Hill District Weekend Roundup here: https://www.hilldistrict.org/signup/
🧔🏾♂️Weekly Weekend Round up Spotlight:
“The gathering was part of the Fatherhood Initiative, a partnership between the Kingsley Association and Steel Smiling, a Pittsburgh nonprofit focused on Black mental health. The program uses the National Fatherhood Initiative’s evidence-based “24/7 Dad” curriculum, designed to help fathers become more engaged and effective parents. The program is structured around the three components: healing, education and putting knowledge into practice.
Hill District resident Rakeem “Keem” Collins first connected with Steel Smiling in 2019 as a facilitator through its Beams to Bridges mental wellness program. His ability to translate complex psychological concepts into everyday language eventually led him into facilitating men’s groups and later the Fatherhood Initiative.
‘I could take ideas like Pavlov’s theory on conditioning and explain it in a way that people from our neighborhoods could immediately understand and relate to,’ he said.
He believes society conditions Black men to believe they are lesser than others and destined for incarceration. He said that kind of conditioning damages people and, without support, the men can end up in dark places. Collins, 36, sees this firsthand through his work in violence prevention.”
Read the full story here: https://newpittsburghcourier.com/2026/06/25/in-this-circle-black-fathers-dont-have-to-carry-it-alone/
👩🏾💻 Sign up for the Hill District Weekend Roundup here: https://www.hilldistrict.org/signup/
