The Baltimore Riots

For the most part, my blogs have been informative and lighthearted, discussing my favorite things about my hometown, Baltimore. While I enjoy sharing the wonders of my hometown with my classmates, I think it is important to mention some recent events that have occurred in Baltimore that are, unfortunately, not so lighthearted. I would like to take this opportunity to discuss the Baltimore riots of April, 2015.

The purpose of this post is not to state my opinion on the issue or say whom I think was at fault, but rather to offer a first-hand account of what it was like to be present during such a dark time in Baltimore’s history.

First, I’d like to give some background information regarding the incident that sparked chaos in my beloved hometown. On April 12, 2015, Freddie Gray, a 25 year-old African American, was arrested for alleged possession of an illegal switch blade. When he was taken into police custody and placed in a police van, he appeared to be uninjured. However, when he arrived at the City’s booking station he had sustained a spinal cord injury requiring emergency treatment at University of Maryland’s Shock trauma Center.  Mr. Gray was diagnosed with a severe traumatic spinal cord injury and quickly slipped into a coma.  A week later, on April 19, 2015, Freddie Gray passed away due to his injuries.  His death was ruled a homicide by the medical examiner, due to injuries while in police custody.

A photograph of Freddie Gray.

Over the recent years we’ve seen several similar cases of unarmed men fatally wounded at the hands of police officers. We saw this with Mike Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and in New York City with the death of Eric Garner. Once again, the purpose of this post is not to discuss my opinions on the role of police in these tragedies or to state who I think was at fault, but rather to acknowledge that the death of these men sparked protests, riots, and a movement across the country including my hometown of Baltimore.

Peaceful protesters gather in the streets of Baltimore.

Peaceful protesting began almost immediately after Gray’s death was made public on the news. Hundreds gathered with signs that read “Black Lives Matter” as they marched through the streets of Baltimore. Many thought that the medical examiner’s ruling of a homicide and the district attorney’s pledge to seek justice for Mr. Gray’s family would avert more aggressive protesting. However, on April 27, 2015, the day of Freddie Gray’s funeral, things took an unfortunate turn for the worse.

A man walks past a burning cop car.

It was 11 a.m. on a Monday morning and I was sitting quietly trying to get through my Latin class. Suddenly, Sister Mary Thomas, my school’s principle, came on over the loud speaker. “This is not a drill. We need all students to go to their homeroom classrooms so we can take attendance and get you home. Things in Baltimore have greatly escalated and it is no longer safe for you all to be here,” she said.  With that news we gathered our belongings, reported to our homerooms, and were sent home.

My school is so close to the city that I can look out the window and see the beautiful skyline of Baltimore. However, on April 27^th it was not so beautiful. Neighborhoods were shattered, engulfed in flames, and exploding in complete chaos.

When I reached my home, the first thing we did was turn on the TV. It’s shocking when your local news channel looks like a scene from a faraway embattled country. Fires blazed, young men and women ran through the streets wearing masks as they broke into stores, threw bricks at police officers, and even lit a police car on fire. Eventually, Larry Hogan, the Governor of Maryland, issued a state of emergency and called in military personnel. My cousin, a member of the Air Force National Guard, was assigned to protect the Governor as he spoke to the media. A citywide curfew was put into affect and citizens had to be in their homes by 10 p.m. every night or they were to be arrested. Oriole games were cancelled or moved to another city, conferences were suspended or cancelled, and the streets were lined with heavily armed military personnel.

A photo of my cousin from People Magazine as he stands next to Governor Larry Hogan (red shirt).

Rumors spread like wildfire claiming that gangs were going to “team up to take out police officers and purge white people.” With these threats circulating, schools were closed for two more days while the Governor, mayor, military, and police officers worked to restore peace in the city.

I will never forget how painful it was to watch the destruction, violence, and chaos in my city, to see the shattered glass and battered people fill the streets. But, I feel it is important to recognize that riots do not simply just happen. Poverty, drugs, racial tensions, and recent national events, beginning with Trayvon Martin, set the stage for these grisly riots. While I certainly don’t agree with looting and violence as a means to be seen and heard, I think we all can agree that deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Freddie Gray sparked a movement and raised our awareness of racial issues and the role of police.  Perhaps Baltimore’s experience is symptomatic of the difficult road our nation must continue to travel to seek true equality and treatment under the law.