On Saturday, September 24th, 150 labor and community activists gathered to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 to October 15) with the Pittsburgh chapter of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA). Attendees enjoyed great Puerto Rican cuisine, fine Chilean wine, Spanish Flamenco music and dancing, and choral music from the Coro Latinoamericano of Pittsburgh. The event was held at the Roberto Clemento Museum, a private museum in Pittsburgh featuring artifacts from the career of the great Puerto Rican baseball player. Clemente spent his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates and died tragically in a plane crash in 1972, while trying to bring relief supplies to the victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua. Major sponsors of the event included the United Steelworkers International as well as USW Districts 1, 4, 10, 11, 12, 13, USW Local 3657, and USW Local 1693, who donated a Steelworker-made Louisville Slugger replica Roberto Clemente bat. The bat given as an award to an outstanding community activist in the Pittsburgh Latino community. The event also raised more than $10,000 for Casa San José, a local community organization that provides vital social services to Latino immigrant families.
