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As concerns over so-called “youth takeovers” continue across Pittsburgh, city officials, community members and faith leaders gathered Wednesday evening to discuss ways to create safe spaces for young people without immediately treating them as a public safety problem.
“We’re looking for a comprehensive approach to strategy and solutions to address the issues of young people gathering,” said Rashad Byrdsong, CEO of Community Empowerment Association (CEA).
Dozens of people attended the meeting in Homewood inside CEA, where participants broke into small groups to share ideas and discuss how to give teenagers and young adults more opportunities to gather safely in public spaces.
Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Sheldon Williams said one message came through clearly during those conversations.
“That youth want a place to gather,” Williams said. “They kind of want some levels of autonomy without a lot of rules. They want more creativity. They want to own their own space.”
The discussion also turned to Market Square’s former chaperone policy, which is now at the center of a lawsuit against the City of Pittsburgh.
Renee Wilson of Homewood filed the lawsuit, arguing the policy violated constitutional rights, including freedom of movement, equal protection, and due process.
“You cannot give a private nonprofit rule over and making policy for a public square,” Wilson said. “I don’t think that’s legal at all.”
The policy was previously implemented by the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, a nonprofit organization, and the city of Pittsburgh.
It required anyone under the age of 18 to be accompanied by an adult who was at least 21 years old.
In her lawsuit, Wilson also argues the policy wasn’t detailed enough and allowed teenagers to be harassed and intimidated by law enforcement.
Byrdsong said he hopes city leaders avoid viewing every gathering of young people as a public safety issue.
“We want to make sure that our young people’s constitutional rights are not violated,” Byrdsong said. “They need to have access to the same public spaces as everybody else.”
Williams emphasized that the City of Pittsburgh does not currently have a citywide curfew or permanent chaperone policy for teens in public spaces.
He said any city-issued chaperone policy is usually temporary and oftentimes used during large events.
However, he noted that private organizations can establish their own rules for properties or events they manage.
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