An advocacy group is holding a Downtown Pittsburgh forum about public safety Tuesday night — just days after city officials put temporary restrictions on juveniles in Market Square and hours after a man succumbed to gunshot injuries in the first homicide in 2026 in the city’s central business district.
Rise Up 365 will host the open event, which they’ve titled “Facts Over Feelings,” at 6 p.m. at Point Park University’s Academic Hall, which stands at 201 Wood St. in Downtown Pittsburgh. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
Point Park University is providing space for the forum but not sponsoring or hosting it, a spokesman said.
The event is being billed as “a discussion on the experiences, needs and rights of Pittsburgh youth.”
Four speakers are slated to lead the event:
- Jeremy Waldrup, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership President and CEO
- Cornell Jones, group violence intervention specialist
- Sheldon Williams, Pittsburgh Public Safety Director
- Dan Barrett, Allegheny County Department of Human Services
Allyce Pinchback-Johnson, a Carnegie Mellon University alumna and Pittsburgh-based consultant, is slated to moderate.
The Alliance for Police Accountability, a group led by police reform advocate Brandi Fisher, has promoted the event on social media. The group said Tuesday that the forum is “designed to center accurate information, elevate community voice and ensure that our collective response is aligned with our city’s commitment to a Pittsburgh for all.”
For more information or to RSVP, go to bit.ly/factsNOTfeels.