Tales from Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery: #211
No Justice for Martha
By SUE HUNTER WEIR
Gilbert Seashore, the Hennepin County Coroner, ruled Martha Rossa’s death as an “intentional homicide.” But despite the fact that Nick Piritano, the man who shot her, confessed, her case never went to trial. Instead, the county prosecutor devoted his efforts to prosecuting Piritano for killing Nick Bruno, a man who was in the same house as Martha on the night that she died.
The transcripts of Piritano’s trials, both of them for the murder of Bruno, appear to no longer exist. And newspaper accounts about what happened on the night of May 5, 1913, are confusing and contradictory at best.
What is known is that on that evening she was at the home of Nick Piritano. The papers referred to her as his housekeeper but suggested that there was more to their relationship than that. They referred to Piritano as a “jealous slayer.” Martha was referred to not as Miss Rossa or even Martha but as “the Rossa woman,” a term that reporters often used to suggest that a woman was of questionable character.… Read the rest “Tales from Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery: #211”
Something I Said: Juneteenth
By DWIGHT HOBBES
This month, across America and a few other places around the world, black folk plan to jump for joy at Juneteenth celebrations of freedom from slavery. There’s a bittersweet aspect to that.
The sweet, of course, is liberation. Early revelry presented opportunities for political rallies to give voting instructions to newly freed African Americans. Also, baseball games, fishing, rodeos, street fairs and, of course, cookouts. Much later, black people tied the holiday to fighting for civil rights. In 1968, called by Dr. Martin Luther King and, after his assassination, led by Rev. Ralph Abernathy and Coretta Scott King, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference made June 19 the Solidarity Day of the Poor People’s Campaign. Nowadays, in addition to a good time outdoors, there’s teaching African-American heritage, arts and literature showcases, and more. As Karen M. Thomas intoned in Emerge, “Community leaders have latched on to [Juneteenth] to help instill a sense of…pride in black youth”.
The bitter is how it came to be named. Abe Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation was issued January 1, 1863 (in Delaware and Kentucky slavery remained legal for another six months). There was no mass media except newspapers, which slaves had been forbidden to read.… Read the rest “Something I Said: Juneteenth”
Food is the Great Unifier
By DANETTE BILLUPS
Outside, a woman sits on a bench and has her wagon. She is waiting for this week’s free meals to be delivered. She feels fortunate to be part of the program offering the meals. When her food box is delivered, she quickly opens it to see what is inside: Swiss chard, ground turkey, canned beans, grits, tomatoes, and bell peppers! What a lovely surprise! And she received a bonus: there are two recipe cards in the box as well! She hurries inside with her food and tells everyone in sight about what she has received for the week.
At the community meet and greet, community members come together to see who is new in the neighborhood. There is a nice spread of food on the tables. Across the street, there is a city bus, covered with pictures of food. It is the Twin Cities Mobile Market! The Mobile Market visits different locations in the Phillips neighborhood, bringing the grocery store to the community. People shop for their weekly food and chat afterwards about what’s for dinner.
Whether shopping for groceries, receiving free food or sharing a meal with a friend, food is the great unifier in the Phillips neighborhood.… Read the rest “Food is the Great Unifier”