Baltimore

... "and we gave those who wished to destroy, space to do that as well." Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake

Isn't that permission to destroy? I would like to believe, since she was under a lot of pressure and was responding to a question, that she didn't mean to say those words in exactly that way. BUT those words represent such a twisted logic that it makes me question the intelligence of any leader who would even suggest it.

Not to mention dented presumably voted for the person who said, "Rarely is question been asked: is our children learning?"

Updated On: 4/27/15 at 09:46 PM

Once again violence begets violence. Not an isolated instance.

Oh, for JFC's sake.

There's no excuse for the violence and looting that took place. It was "advertised" on social media as a "Purge", based on the film. I don't care how mad these people were, every one of them deserves to be in jail for breaking & entering, destruction of property, theft, arson, etc.

We need to see MASS arrests and jail time for these people to show the rest of the country that no matter how mad about something you might be, destroying your city will NEVER be an acceptable solution.

Updated On: 4/28/15 at 09:34 AM

Updated On: 4/28/15 at 09:40 AM

Baltimore’s disgrace is its history of police violence

I'm pretty sure the youth in Baltimore are used to mass arrests.

I'm not condoning violence or destroying property. But what happened last night should been seen as a symptom of larger problem.

I've mentioned on here that I work with youth in an impovrished urban area. And what happened in Baltimore last night could easily happen here and any other city with similar circumstances anywhere in the country.

These youth feel like they have nothing to lose. I've witnessed them being harassaed by police just walking down the street. They live in violent neighborhoods, don't trust the police that are suppossed to be there to protect them, and feel like thier economic future is hopeless.

It's the perfect receipe for this kind of thing.

Updated On: 4/28/15 at 10:09 AM

Youth Poverty 2014: Baltimore Teens Worse Off Than Children In Nigeria?"

"A study by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found impoverished youths in five major cities, including one in the U.S., face similar challenges and those without sufficient support from friends and family fare the worst. Despite having the 19th highest GDP in the country, youths in the most troubled neighborhoods of Baltimore reported some of the worst conditions among youths in the five cities."

^That's a great article.

"Now, tonight, I turn on the news and I see politicians calling for young people in Baltimore to remain peaceful and "nonviolent." These well-intended pleas strike me as the right answer to the wrong question. To understand the question, it's worth remembering what, specifically, happened to Freddie Gray. An officer made eye contact with Gray. Gray, for unknown reasons, ran. The officer and his colleagues then detained Gray. They found him in possession of a switchblade. They arrested him while he yelled in pain. And then, within an hour, his spine was mostly severed. A week later, he was dead. What specifically was the crime here? What particular threat did Freddie Gray pose? Why is mere eye contact and then running worthy of detention at the hands of the state? Why is Freddie Gray dead?

The people now calling for nonviolence are not prepared to answer these questions. Many of them are charged with enforcing the very policies that led to Gray's death, and yet they can offer no rational justification for Gray's death and so they appeal for calm. But there was no official appeal for calm when Gray was being arrested. There was no appeal for calm when Jerriel Lyles was assaulted. (“The blow was so heavy. My eyes swelled up. Blood was dripping down my nose and out my eye.&rdquo There was no claim for nonviolence on behalf of Venus Green. (“Bitch, you ain’t no better than any of the other old black bitches I have locked up.&rdquo There was no plea for peace on behalf of Starr Brown. (“They slammed me down on my face,” Brown added, her voice cracking. “The skin was gone on my face.")

When nonviolence is preached as an attempt to evade the repercussions of political brutality, it betrays itself. When nonviolence begins halfway through the war with the aggressor calling time out, it exposes itself as a ruse. When nonviolence is preached by the representatives of the state, while the state doles out heaps of violence to its citizens, it reveals itself to be a con. And none of this can mean that rioting or violence is "correct" or "wise," any more than a forest fire can be "correct" or "wise." Wisdom isn't the point tonight. Disrespect is. In this case, disrespect for the hollow law and failed order that so regularly disrespects the community."

Updated On: 4/28/15 at 10:44 AM

The Mayor is really being slammed for that comment but if you listen to the whole press conference I think it's pretty clear that she didn't mean they purposely gave room for protesters to destroy property.

She was trying to say that a result of police giving space for peaceful protesters it also, inadvertently gave space for the people who were looking to cause trouble.

Bad choice of words. But I don't think the Mayor purposely let this happen.

"Wimington and PRS fail to recognize the impetus behind the initial riot that began Monday's chaos, which was a a flash mob organized via social media and based on the movie The Purge. It was in no way created to fight for justice or speak their minds. It was to intentionally cause chaos."

That's kind of simplistic and doesn't take into account the conditions the youth in Baltimore have been living under for years that would inspire them create such a meme in the first place.

I did't say that. But good straw man argument I guess.