FREEDOM HOUSE AMBULANCE: THE FIRST RESPONDERS

In 1967, inner city Pittsburgh produced America’s first EMT service. Comprised solely of Black men and women recruited from the city’s Hill District neighborhood, the paramedics of Freedom House Ambulance became trailblazers in providing pre-hospital and CPR care. Freedom House initially developed to respond to the needs of Pittsburgh’s African American community, which often could not rely on police and fire departments during an emergency. Their groundbreaking work became the basis for all paramedic training in the country. However, despite its success, racism and power dynamics in the city shut down Freedom House in 1975, leaving its legacy almost lost to history. FREEDOM HOUSE AMBULANCE: THE FIRST RESPONDERS explores the rise and fall of Freedom House Ambulance.