BETTY ROBINSON, RIGHT, HOLDS A COLLAGE of photos of Jamel Austin, the 6-year-old hit by a car in Hazelwood on July 26. (Photos by J.L. Martello)
THIS ‘DIDN’T HAVE TO HAPPEN’
There was one child missing Sunday evening, July 31, from the pick-up football game on the grass near Johnston Avenue, in Hazelwood.
And if you ask Saundra Cole McKamey, the death of 6-year-old Jamel Austin “didn’t have to happen.”
6-YEAR-OLD JAMEL AUSTIN
Austin was struck by a vehicle around 8 p.m. on July 26 on Johnston Avenue. He died about an hour later. The driver of the vehicle stayed at the scene, and Pittsburgh Police are still trying to determine whether charges will be filed.
A vigil and balloon release was held for Austin on July 31. Reverend Michael Murray of Second Baptist Church in McKees Rocks led a prayer with the kids who were present—the kids repeated the prayer as Rev. Murray spoke it.
“I wanted them to start envisioning that they can dream,” Rev. Murray told the New Pittsburgh Courier. “Too many children don’t get to that place anymore, and some of the dreaming will keep them out of areas that they would not be in once they start realizing that it’s true. Some of them are going to remember that prayer, even if it’s just the part that says, ‘God, I’m a kid, help me.’”
ADULT JAMES COLE, BACK ROW, CENTER, WITH KIDS FROM THE HAZELWOOD COMMUNITY. ALL WERE PRESENT FOR JAMEL AUSTIN’S VIGIL, HELD JULY 31.
McKamey, who is with the organization P.O.O.R.L.A.W., which stands for People of Origin Rightfully Loved and Wanted, led the balloon release.
SAUNDRA COLE MCKAMEY
But that wasn’t all. Following the vigil, McKamey and another member of P.O.O.R.L.A.W., James Cole, who serves as program coordinator for the Hazelwood Cobras Youth Development Program, blasted city officials for not acting fast enough to get speed bumps in the Hazelwood/Glen Hazel area.
A VIGIL WAS HELD IN MEMORY OF JAMEL AUSTIN IN HAZELWOOD, JULY 31. HE WAS STRUCK BY A CAR ON JULY 26 AND LATER DIED. (PHOTOS BY J.L. MARTELLO)
“We have within a six-block radius, three playgrounds, three basketball courts, a full football field, a tennis court, an after-school program, summer camp, and a school, and we also have subsidized housing which has (many) single parent homes,” Cole told the Courier’s J.L. Martello. “I’m a little angry because I’ve been speaking on this, I’ve been having the community call 311,” demanding that speed bumps be placed along Johnston Avenue.
“All of this stuff, and still nothing,” Cole said. “But if we go to our sister neighborhood, Squirrel Hill, if you go to any of their schools, you find speed bumps. When we complain about it, we get nothing. Now I have a kid (from the program) who is gone because of the negligence of these people like (City Councilman) Corey O’Connor and (Mayor) Ed Gainey, who promised us that they’re going to help and do the things that we need done in our community, but didn’t. We have a child who’s gone because they’re not putting things in place to keep our kids safe.”
“We have been asking Corey O’Connor for years to get us speed bumps up and down Johnston Avenue, Mansion Street, Glenwood Avenue, wherever our kids go to school or there’s a lot of traffic,” McKamey added. “We have one sign that says ‘Speed Limit 25’ and ‘children’ but we don’t have anything in this area (of Johnston) where all the children are.”
Cole described Austin as a kid who was “full of life,” with a “beautiful smile.”
Councilman O’Connor recently left City Council to become Allegheny County Controller.
“Do your job,” Cole said, directed to the officials. “You’re supposed to be here doing stuff for the people and we know what we need. This should be first priority on your list. You’re supposed to be helping the people. Do your job. Period.”
A GROWING MEMORIAL FOR JAMEL AUSTIN, THE 6-YEAR-OLD HIT BY A CAR ON JOHNSTON AVENUE, JULY 26.