Baltimore is a city with problems.
This is true of any city, but not every city routinely ranks number 1 in the occurrences of murder and violent crime within it's borders. Nor does every find itself publicly shamed by the leader of the very country in which it resides, as Baltimore was so recently by President Trump.
The knee jerk reaction to Trump's words was to condemn him. Yet another boorish gaffe by a president prone to them. Yet another statement fraught with racist undertones, badmouthing a city with a majority black population as a place "no human being" would choose to live in. However there was another response, from long time residents like, luminaries of the city that once laid claim to the slogan "Greatest City in America", and that response was one of frustrated agreement with much of what was said.
Is it fair to call areas of our city rat infested? Yes. Take a stroll down North Ave, or any of it's cross streets, and count the number of long uninhabited homes with broken or boarded over windows and doors. Note the ever-present trash tumbling along with the breeze, overflowing cans, and forming piles in every alley or alongside every stoop. Take this walk at dusk or later and you will see the rats.
Our Rep. Elijah Cummings once lamented the sight of residents he used to know now shuffling along like zombies, victims of drug abuse. On your walk through the city you will likely see the same, a person standing, bent over, staring vacantly and swaying. Maybe they are fortunate enough to have a friend to stand over them while they come back from wherever it is they've gone, or perhaps they are all alone on the steps leading to a boarded up row home, oblivious to the world around them.
This is state of Charm City, where in too many places that charm has rubbed off to reveal instead a place in dire need of change.
Baltimore is a city with problems, and the purpose of this blog is to dig down to the heart of them. First we have to enumerate them, and then perform a sort of triage. What needs to be seen to first? Is it the violent crime, the drug crime, or the property crime? Is it the crumbling infrastructure of our buildings, our streets, or our sewage system? Do we focus on identifying and correcting socio-economic disparities on the citywide level, or do we start at home, in our neighborhoods?
Going forward I will delve deep into each topic on a weekly rotation. I will present all the objective facts that I can find, and I will seek dialogue with residents from all sides of this issue, including those in positions of legislative power, and those who are widely known for their meaningful additions to the conversation about our city's future.
The point is not just to identify the issues, however. The point is to determine the right form of action to combat these problems. I will endeavor to provide you with information on organizations that are actually impacting the nature of our city with their work. We'll figure out together how to best contribute, whether via time or money, or some other resource. And if it turns out that there are missing pieces, we will figure out who among us can best fill those gaps, and see to it they receive any assistance they need in making it happen.
Notice that I take for granted there will be people who are ready to do this, ready to collaborate to fix these problems. This is because my experience in Baltimore has shown me that the people who live here, the human beings who choose this city, know that it can and should be better than it is. People here want to fix these problems, and I believe if we can come together with that in mind we Will fix them.
Please, please leave comments if you have anything to say about this. If you want to suggest areas for me to visit, people for me to speak with, or subjects for me to highlight, I want to hear it. This is meant to be a focal point for collaborative effort. I am certainly not the heart of Baltimore, but We are, Together.
This is true of any city, but not every city routinely ranks number 1 in the occurrences of murder and violent crime within it's borders. Nor does every find itself publicly shamed by the leader of the very country in which it resides, as Baltimore was so recently by President Trump.
The knee jerk reaction to Trump's words was to condemn him. Yet another boorish gaffe by a president prone to them. Yet another statement fraught with racist undertones, badmouthing a city with a majority black population as a place "no human being" would choose to live in. However there was another response, from long time residents like, luminaries of the city that once laid claim to the slogan "Greatest City in America", and that response was one of frustrated agreement with much of what was said.
Is it fair to call areas of our city rat infested? Yes. Take a stroll down North Ave, or any of it's cross streets, and count the number of long uninhabited homes with broken or boarded over windows and doors. Note the ever-present trash tumbling along with the breeze, overflowing cans, and forming piles in every alley or alongside every stoop. Take this walk at dusk or later and you will see the rats.
Our Rep. Elijah Cummings once lamented the sight of residents he used to know now shuffling along like zombies, victims of drug abuse. On your walk through the city you will likely see the same, a person standing, bent over, staring vacantly and swaying. Maybe they are fortunate enough to have a friend to stand over them while they come back from wherever it is they've gone, or perhaps they are all alone on the steps leading to a boarded up row home, oblivious to the world around them.
This is state of Charm City, where in too many places that charm has rubbed off to reveal instead a place in dire need of change.
Baltimore is a city with problems, and the purpose of this blog is to dig down to the heart of them. First we have to enumerate them, and then perform a sort of triage. What needs to be seen to first? Is it the violent crime, the drug crime, or the property crime? Is it the crumbling infrastructure of our buildings, our streets, or our sewage system? Do we focus on identifying and correcting socio-economic disparities on the citywide level, or do we start at home, in our neighborhoods?
Going forward I will delve deep into each topic on a weekly rotation. I will present all the objective facts that I can find, and I will seek dialogue with residents from all sides of this issue, including those in positions of legislative power, and those who are widely known for their meaningful additions to the conversation about our city's future.
The point is not just to identify the issues, however. The point is to determine the right form of action to combat these problems. I will endeavor to provide you with information on organizations that are actually impacting the nature of our city with their work. We'll figure out together how to best contribute, whether via time or money, or some other resource. And if it turns out that there are missing pieces, we will figure out who among us can best fill those gaps, and see to it they receive any assistance they need in making it happen.
Notice that I take for granted there will be people who are ready to do this, ready to collaborate to fix these problems. This is because my experience in Baltimore has shown me that the people who live here, the human beings who choose this city, know that it can and should be better than it is. People here want to fix these problems, and I believe if we can come together with that in mind we Will fix them.
Please, please leave comments if you have anything to say about this. If you want to suggest areas for me to visit, people for me to speak with, or subjects for me to highlight, I want to hear it. This is meant to be a focal point for collaborative effort. I am certainly not the heart of Baltimore, but We are, Together.
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