Editorial | Gab back online: a public safety hazard
By The Pitt News Editorial Board
November 29, 2018
Gab was taken down last month after it’s ties to the Tree of Life gunman were revealed to the world — but it’s back up as of this weekend, which should alarm anyone who cares about public safety.
Professors examine gun violence, mental health correlation
By Maggie Young, For The Pitt News
November 27, 2018
After 346 mass shootings in 2017, 321 have occurred so far in 2018 — and studies continue to show an increasing number of these incidents.
Donate blood all year round
By Mackenzie Oster, For The Pitt News
November 19, 2018
When mass tragedies strike, the prevalence of violence in our world resurfaces and the first impulse is to find a way to help. This is often why the influx of blood donations heighten around times that such unfortunate incidents occur.
Trump’s inadequate response to the Tree of Life shooting
By Mackenzie Oster, For The Pitt News
November 16, 2018
Trump’s initial response to the Pittsburgh shooting was to suggest the addition of armed guards in places of worship and a stricter implementation of the death penalty. Both of Trump’s suggestions model the behavior that they seek to prevent — the addition of more violence and death to society.
Editorial: Remember mental health of shooting victims
By The Pitt News Editorial
November 12, 2018
Pittsburgh is still feeling the damage a mass shooting can have on a community. We’re tired of reading about it. We’re tired of writing about it. And we’re acutely aware, after having lived through it and after one person was a part of two of these events in the span of a year, that mass shootings have become a cultural problem that must be fixed.
Trump protests disrespectful to shooting victims
By Josh Beylinson, For The Pitt News
November 5, 2018
I was shocked to see so many protesters near where Trump paid his respects to the fallen. A memorial to the Tree of Life shooting victims is not the place to stage a political protest, and is downright disrespectful to Jews.
#CallItWhatItIs: An open letter from Jewish university students in Pittsburgh
November 5, 2018
The Pittsburgh and Jewish communities are hurting. But we are strong. In Pittsburgh, in Squirrel Hill, and in Judaism, we honor resilience and connection — we are the City of Bridges after all.
Obituaries: Tree of Life shooting victims
By Elise Lavallee, Contributing Editor
November 2, 2018
The obituaries of each life lost in the Tree of Life shooting last Saturday, Oct. 27.
Suspect in Tree of Life massacre pleads not guilty
By Janine Faust, Managing Editor
November 1, 2018
Robert Bowers, 46, had been indicted on 44 counts by a federal grand jury Wednesday relating to the killing of 11 members of the Tree of Life synagogue last weekend.
Pittsburgh rallies, unites against hate
By Dylan Giaccobe, Staff Writer
November 1, 2018
When President Donald Trump visited Pittsburgh on Tuesday in the aftermath of the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting, Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto stayed far away – as did many other local elected officials. But a student-organized Unite Against Hate rally in Schenley Plaza Wednesday night brought the...
Gab: a dangerous haven for white supremacists
By Neena Hagen, Assistant Opinions Editor
October 31, 2018
Gab, a fringe social media site frequented by Tree of Life shooter Robert Bowers, was taken down on Saturday — a great first step towards eradicating hate on the internet.
Trump’s visit inspires community protests
By Kieran McLean and Jon Kunitsky
October 31, 2018
Activism became part of Pittsburgh’s mourning process Tuesday, as more than a thousand people gathered in Squirrel Hill to protest the arrival of President Donald Trump. In response to Saturday's Tree of Life Synagogue massacre, activist groups in Pittsburgh organized multiple simultaneous gatherin...
SGB stands behind Jewish community
By Emily Wolfe, Staff Writer
October 31, 2018
Kathryn Fleisher wants to make sure last weekend’s massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue won’t be forgotten. “Our community is still mourning,” Fleisher, a sophomore majoring in GSWS and politics and philosophy double major, said. “We’re still attending funerals, we’re still doing ...
Jewish Greek life honors Tree of Life victims
By Jon Moss, Staff Writer
October 31, 2018
After Saturday morning’s massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill, some Jewish Pitt Greek life organizations are helping support their fellow Pittsburghers. A coalition of several historically Jewish Pitt fraternities and sororities — Alpha Epsilon Phi, Sigma Alpha Mu, Alpha Epsilon Pi...
President Trump arrives in Pittsburgh in wake of Tree of Life shooting
By Janine Faust and Hannah Schneider
October 30, 2018
As Air Force One touched down at the Pittsburgh International Airport around 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, thousands of Pittsburghers gathered in Squirrel Hill to make their dissatisfaction with his visit known. But the two didn’t overlap — Trump made no public appearances in his time in Pittsburgh, and the...
President Trump plans Tuesday trip to Pittsburgh
By Christian Snyder, Editor-in-Chief
October 30, 2018
Despite an open letter signed by more than 60,000 people telling President Donald Trump — in plain terms — that he is not welcome in Pittsburgh in the wake of the Tree of Life Synagogue massacre, the White House confirmed today the president and first lady plan to visit the Steel City on Tuesday. ...
Pitt community responds to synagogue shooting
By Emily Drzymalski, For the Pitt News
October 30, 2018
The sounds of sirens and phone alerts informed Pitt students of the active shooter situation happening a few neighborhoods over in Squirrel Hill at the Tree of Life Synagogue Saturday morning. In the wake of Saturday’s shooting, Pitt students and organizations are taking action. After the shooting that claimed the live...
Tree of Life: how students can offer help
By Sarah Shearer, Assistant News Editor
October 30, 2018
Pitt students can have a role in mending their city -- whether it's sitting with a grieving friend or giving blood.
PERSEPECTIVE | How the Jewish community hopes to heal
By Brian Gentry, Contributing Editor
October 30, 2018
The Jewish community has been strong in the face of such a horrific tragedy, a testament to its resilience and virtue. As community members mourn the loss of 11 of their family and friends, they look to heal their wounds.
Editorial: Pittsburgh doesn’t welcome Trump
By The Pitt News Editorial Board
October 30, 2018
If the president had any respect for the victims and their families, he would stay away and allow them time to mourn without his heavily politicizing presence.
Trump to visit Pittsburgh on Tuesday in wake of synagogue massacre
By Christian Snyder, Editor in Chief
October 29, 2018
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed the President and First Lady will visit Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
11 dead, 6 injured in massacre at Tree of Life Congregation in Squirrel Hill
By The Pitt News Staff
October 29, 2018
11 are dead and 6 injured after a shooter attacked a synagogue in Squirrel Hill on Saturday. The suspect will 29 federal charges at his scheduled appearance in court on Monday.
President Trump responds to Tree of Life massacre
By Jon Moss, Staff Writer
October 29, 2018
After 11 Pittsburghers were killed in a mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill Saturday morning, President Donald Trump publicly renounced the act and pledged his support to the victims. The president responded to the incident on Twitter at at 11:08 a.m, about an hour after the fi...
Affidavit reveals details of synagogue shooting
By Hannah Schneider, Assistant News Editor
October 29, 2018
After 11 people were killed and six were injured at a mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill Saturday morning, the U.S. Attorney’s office filed 29 federal charges against suspect Robert Bowers.
Community mourns shooting victims at weekend vigil
By Emily Wolfe, Staff Writer
October 29, 2018
At Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, the Pittsburgh community gathered to remember the victims of the Tree of Life Synagogue massacre, which claimed the lives of 11 Pittsburghers.
Victims identified in Tree of Life shooting
By Emily Wolfe, Staff Writer
October 29, 2018
The names of the 11 people killed by a gunman who opened fire Saturday in the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill were released Sunday morning. Among the victims, who ranged in age from 54 to 97, were a married couple from Wilkinsburg and a pair of brothers who lived in Squirrel Hill. [Re...
Gab: Its history and influence in the Tree of Life shooting
By Erica Guthrie, Staff Writer
October 29, 2018
Shortly before entering the Tree of Life congregation in Squirrel Hill, Robert Bowers, a Baldwin resident and Saturday’s shooting suspect, posted a message on social media site Gab that said, “I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics. I'm going in.” As details of the massacre unfolded, more anti-Semitic messages that Bowers had posted on his Ga...
Editorial: Pittsburgh will heal
By The Pitt News Editorial Board
October 28, 2018
We didn’t expect to be thrust into the national spotlight in this way. We didn’t expect we’d become another member of a long, growing list of cities that have been the victims of mass shootings. Squirrel Hill is a peaceful, historically Jewish neighborhood about a mile away from Pitt’s campus — too close to home for it to happen to us.
Community support necessary to recover
By Ana Altchek, Staff Columnist
October 28, 2018
It is in bleak times like this that members of the community need to be proactive instead of reactive in order to bring comfort and safety to their fellow neighbors, and to prevent acts of violence like this from occurring in the future.
Community hosts vigil to mourn victims of Squirrel Hill synagogue massacre
By The Pitt News Staff
October 27, 2018
Hundreds of Pittsburgh community members gathered to mourn the victims of the deadly shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue on Saturday, which authorities are investigating as a hate crime in one of America's most deeply rooted Jewish neighborhoods.