Ervin Dyer

Oct 4, 2024 | publicsource.org | Ervin Dyer

In 1994, I moved into the historic Hill District, a neighborhood often considered to be the cultural soul of Black Pittsburgh. I lived a short walk from Freedom Corner, an inspiring monument at Centre Avenue and Crawford Street. Dedicated in 2001, it recognizes the rallying point that launched many of the city’s social justice marches and honors a pantheon of activists who helped to halt the avalanche of development that demolished much of the Lower Hill.

Aug 9, 2024 | newsone.com | Ervin Dyer

“Playing the Cosmic Strings,” a 1,200 square-foot mural, sits high on a wall outside of Heinz Hall in downtown Pittsburgh’s busy Cultural District. Commissioned in October 2021 by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, the mural is an homage to a West African mythology of how the universe began.

Aug 7, 2024 | pitt.edu | Ervin Dyer

It is a warm morning in May, and the worshippers make their way into Bible Center Church in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood. Pastor John Wallace, in his dark suit, stands at the front offering devotions. Sunday after Sunday, concerned about the congregation’s well-being, he dispenses prayers and practical wisdom from the Bible, everything from tips on educating children to building generational wealth.

Jul 31, 2024 | pitt.edu | Ervin Dyer

On any day, the nonprofit Latino Community Center in East Liberty buzzes with activity. Health workers advise on care for newborns. Youth stop by for bilingual story time. Caseworkers help new arrivals navigate courts, schools, housing and employment. If it seems the most welcoming place in the world, that’s what Founder and Executive Director Rosamaria Cristello designed it to be. Cristello was an infant when her family first immigrated from Guatemala City in 1989.

Jul 22, 2024 | pitt.edu | Ervin Dyer

The ABC News journalist strides onto the United Nations Plaza in New York and, in his sonorous voice, details the escalating U.S. missile crisis with the Soviet Union. It is Oct. 28, 1962, and the nuclear weapons standoff has America — and the world — on edge. It is a tense moment in history, one that overshadows the other history being made that day.