Last weekend, my girlfriend and I had two friends come to town. Hoping to indulge them with some Pittsburgh nightlife, we cruised East Carson Street on the South Side to enjoy some drinks.

Next to the entrances of a number of the bars were signs dictating attire:

"No oversized clothes, sports apparel, athletic shoes, or baseball caps. We maintain the right to turn away anyone not following these guidelines," read one sign, while another more blatantly prohibited "oversized T-shirts" or "Timberlands."

With each of these signs, we could not help but think of urban hip-hop culture, how it stereotypically features such attire, and how such signs were only a step away from the ones that once labeled washrooms, "Whites only."

We decided to test this judgment at our final stop. A sign on one lounge warned that anyone wearing clothing such as baggy jeans, hooded sweatshirts or athletic shoes would be denied admittance.

Our friend, a white male new to Pittsburgh, was wearing this exact outfit, but was not particularly anxious to test the system. Nevertheless, he walked past the velvet ropes and a large white bouncer. He was not questioned at all.

The rest of us, white and dressed casually, as well, also entered with unhindered ease. The place was packed, but there were only two black people -- and one was the D.J.

•

This past year Pittsburgh was called America's "most livable city" by the Places Rated Almanac. But for whom is Pittsburgh most livable when the neighborhoods are as segregated as they might have been nearly half a century ago? Why is it that you have to be a famed Steeler or a budding rap star to gain respect as a black American in this town? Why is it that the only place to find the amiable mixing of all races, sexes and creeds under one roof is at a grocery store?

With such obvious disparities, wholly supported by the findings of a recent report by the University of Pittsburgh's Center on Race and Social Problems, it is no surprise that talk of anger among minorities has recently surfaced in the national media.

Let us meet this challenge. Let us become the Pennsylvania city that breaks from our troubled racial past.

If we are to tackle the very real issues of the collapsing economy, a volatile environment and a trillion-dollar war that has destroyed our economy and taken away our siblings, children and parents for five years now, we need to overcome segregation and provide equal opportunity for everyone in this society.

The words of Sen. Barack Obama's former preacher, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, were angry and taken out of the context of Black Liberation Theology, which many of us do not understand. And while the muckraking and incessant sensationalism focused on his statements are, unfortunately, politics as usual, the Rev. Wright issue should be an excuse to decry racism, not be indifferent to it.

Race issues should not be discussed around ancillary sound bites, but rather in view of the disparities between whites and blacks in towns like Pittsburgh -- disparities that are reflected in who is most affected by the failing economy and who most often gets sent to fight our wars.

Mr. Obama has eloquently pled his case. Let us rise above the anger and discuss the issues that are going to affect each of us, regardless of the hue of our skin. We need to unite to solve the looming issues of life and death. They go by the name: The Economy, The Environment, The Iraq War.