Forgive my ever so quick post but I have a deadline for my paying writing gig.
Baltimore is burning thanks to an unspeakable act of police brutality. Brutality is all too familiar in America. Another young Black male is killed at the hands of the ones sworn to protect and serve him. Just like countless other cases we are all left wondering how did this happen and who’s going to pay for it. Here we are fresh off the case of Michael Brown being killed in Ferguson, Missouri due to excessive force and now this happens AGAIN. I seem to recall…getting on my high horse for a moment… seeing an article in the Washington Post about Governor Larry Hogan saying that what happened in Ferguson “really doesn’t impact Maryland”. I also remember blogging about that ridiculous statement in December.
Well what do you know. Freddie Gray is killed in the custody of the Baltimore police and we are back to square one questioning how it happened and who’s going to pay for it. Right. Here. In. Maryland. I believe this is the boomerang effect in politics.
Look. Y’all better watch this dude. He’s going around with his head in the sand, thinking that race relations aren’t a problem in Maryland while throwing the Black female mayor of Baltimore under the bus. That’s unacceptable. It’s also an example of poor leadership skills. Great leaders show empathy. They work towards presenting a united front during a crisis. Damn the party! It’s about doing the right thing for the people (forgive that hackneyed line). Not classy Larry. SMH….
#hocopolitics
From the Scratch Pad of An Urban Bushwoman 
Gov. Hogan is your typical white man who believes that incidents like this are irrelevant because they don’t directly affect them. Black people getting killed by white police officers and black neighborhoods getting looted & burned to the ground do not affect his way of life so reading his comments do not surprise me. I see protests all over, peaceful & rioting. The white media only wants to show the liquor store being robbed & squad car getting burned. Typical!
Exactly!!! This protest is much deeper than that.
Wow. I don’t think Baltimore is being burned due to police brutality. Its being looted and burned due to a few taking advantage of a situation and its not acceptable. They are not making a statement about the police or police brutality by destroying the places that they shop at, live near. Protests were and are about the police and issued of brutality- yes. About being heard and trying to make others aware.
Burning is about hate. The black female mayor is being questioned by many people. Of all races. How can you not question her leadership over the past days? Hogan seems to have taken charge when no one else could/would. Give him a chance in the current situation.
I definitely think Baltimore is being burned due to police brutality and a lot more. It’s not the most appropriate response but it’s their reaction to years and years of oppressive conditions. They’re fed up. Have you ever been so fed up with something that you just wanna punch something? I liken the riots to the same kind of scenario. This is deeper than a few people throwing rocks at police officers and burning cars. Think about the real reasons why they are doing it. And yes I do question Mayor Rawlings-Blake’s leadership skills. Many, many people do. But as a leader and fellow politician, Gov. Hogan could have handled it a lot differently as opposed to making it seem like she dropped the ball. It’s so Martin O’Malley meets Anthony Brown post election to say she is at fault in public. Have some decourm.
Also, what exactly has he initiated that gives you a hint that he is concerned about the unemployment, poverty, homelessness, drug addiction, racism, sexism, or poor performing schools in Baltimore? If I’m missing something let me know.