Naomi Girson & Ember Duke |staff writer & layout editor

In a room of her constituents, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee stood at a pulpit and preached a way forward, addressing several community member’s questions and concerns over the Trump administration. Her remarks centered on community and policy response and reminding the public they still have influence in politics.

The crowd at the town hall forum at Ebenezer Baptist Church in the Hill District on March 20 was vocal, responding often with cheers and applause.

“It is important to remain anchored in our collective power,” said Lee, D-Swissvale.

Where’s the money going?

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to dismantle the Federal Department of Education (DOE), delegating its functions back to the states, just hours before the town hall.

Pittsburgh Public Schools, which in the last two decades have already closed 42 schools, according to Public Source, outlined a plan to close 14 more schools and 10 facilities, as stated in a Feb. 25 news release from PPS.

For local parents, such as Vanessa Dagavarian whose daughter is in second grade at Woolslair Elementary School, the closures are becoming a detriment to the community.

“This is too many [schools]; this is not a vision for growth,” Dagavarian said.

Valerie Webb-Allman, whose child is in sixth grade, accompanied Dagavarian to the town hall. Both are concerned about the longevity of Title I, II, IV and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Dismantling the DOE would redirect funding from federal Pell grants, Title I funding and resources for children with disabilities to “various other agencies and departments,” Trump told NBC News.

“National education is not the fat that needs trimmed, it’s the protein that actually sustains the nation,” Webb-Allman said. “If you cut one side you cut them for everyone.”

Similar concerns arose during the forum.

“All children, irrespective of their zip code, should be educated in the wealthiest nation on earth,” Lee said.

Federally funded research is also on Trump’s chopping block. A proposed executive order, which is being stalled by lawsuits, would cut indirect funding from The National Institutes of Health (NIH) for university research to a flat rate of 15% — indirect costs go to operational resources such as lab facilities and equipment.

“If we cut NIH funding, then the economy of Pittsburgh starts to fail, and the economy of Pennsylvania starts to fail,” Lee said.

When Pittsburgh transitioned from steel to science, new careers and academic pursuits arose including at the University of Pittsburgh which is ranked 6th for NIH funding nationally, according to CBS News. A cut to Duquesne’s current 38% indirect funding cost would mean a few hundred thousand dollar loss to research, according to university Provost David Dausey.

“I’ve talked to a lot of students at the universities who are in limbo right now, they’re students who are budding scientists, and they’re afraid, or they’re not sure that they’ll be able to move on with their career,” Lee told The Duke.

Did the Dems drop the ball?

Wendy Roithner, a volunteer for Put People First — a human rights organization focused on Medicaid for all — said many politicians aren’t doing their jobs.

“With the instability of decisions being made, and seeing how much [Trump] disrupted so far. I feel we just need someone else there,” Roithner said.

Others also questioned the current political arena and players.

Riley Mahon, a Point Park University political science major, said that, though he helped canvas for Lee’s last campaign, he is hesitant to say he is a fan of any politicians.

“I’m really hoping she will talk about how weak her party’s leadership is,” Mahon said.

And she did.

“We hear the call that Democrats need to do more — I’m in Democratic Congress — that we need to show up louder, that we need to show up stronger, that we need to be more clear and direct,” Lee said.
Move over Musk

Lee said one of the main issues in politics now is the money lining people’s pockets. Elon Musk’s newfound power, she said, is one of “the most bizarre” occurrences she’s seen.

Lee sits on the House Committee for Oversight and Accountability — a checks and balances panel which has filed over 130 lawsuits against Musk and Trump, according to Just Security legal tracker, a public resource for tracking the Trump administration’s charges.

“We’ve seen them stop some of these executive orders, such as his ending birthright citizenship,” Lee said. “We’ve seen judges say that is illegal, we heard a judge say that, ‘This is not an autocracy,’ and you cannot just fire whoever you want.”

The crowd booed as she talked about the committee’s investigations into DOGE, but cheered at her dismissal of Musk.

“We cannot be the party of our own corporate billionaires and the party of working class people at the same time,” Lee said.

Some people, such as Isaac Bunn founder of the Braddock Inclusion Project, still feel left behind. He said he felt Lee had begun pandering, partially in the form of campaign donation requests, to the wealthy over the working class constituents who got her in office.

“Nothing’s been done [for Braddock] since she’s in political power,” Bunn said. “We need more than activism … things need to be done now.”

One foot in front of the other

Lee said the community needs to act as a united front through organized efforts, education, empowering the voter electorate, reviving the filibuster and pressuring Congress.

“The first thing that I hope people will do is take a breath, take a look at the landscape and figure out where they fit in,” she told The Duke. “I want folks to be connected right now. When we work in silos, it is so much harder to combat the things [Trump’s] doing.”

In a time of change and unpredictability, she said the path forward is paved by those ready to roll their sleeves up.

“We have to help the Democratic Party to be stronger, but also we have to call some people to go home,” Lee said. “If you are uncomfortable in this moment, then this moment is not for you, and there’s no shame in that. If you’re not going to shut down sessions, then maybe it’s okay to step aside.”