I've been obsessively following the news and social media over the past few days in Baltimore. Over and again, the question of "safety" keeps coming up from residents and outsiders. As a Baltimore city resident and a parent, I can't help by wonder: what does it mean to be safe?
I live in Federal Hill, a neighborhood adjacent to the site of this week's protests in the Inner Harbor. It was one of the first to be redeveloped and is central to the city's re-branding as historic and hip. This neighborhood is more than 80 percent white and has a median income of $93,000 (compared with Baltimore's median income of $38,000). The community associations are active, and there are several beautifully kept parks, grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants, shops, and a well-maintained library within walking distance from my home. We have access to the highway, regular public transit, and adequate public schools. This neighborhood has one-third the crime rate of the rest of the city.
As protests erupted across Baltimore's downtown and northern sections of the city, both peaceful and violent, the alarm bells sounded across the city's neighborhoods listservs and community groups. On Federal Hill, there were businesses that suffered broken windows and theft, but there were no incidents of violent encounters or residential disturbances. Volunteers came out across the city in waves to help with cleaning up streets and businesses.
Despite feeling a marginal impact from the protests, I've been reading and hearing people in my neighborhood (and others like mine) asserting that "we need to take back our city" or work "to make Baltimore safe again." It's clear who "we" are in these statements.
But what are we actually talking about?
An interdisciplinary approach to complex issues facing us today
Summer Session II – Six Weeks
Class Number - 2556
July 6th – August 14th
Mondays, 1:00 – 4:10 PM
The critical challenges of our time involve a tangle of disciplines: from pollution to crime, cancer to climate change. Tackling those problems requires knowing how to effectively integrate different areas of knowledge.
“Ways of Knowing” provides interesting, fun and wide-ranging experiences in constructing big-picture analysis of the important issues facing us today. Using real-world examples, you’ll practice creative thinking and problem solving by learning how to integrate complex information across multiple disciplines. It helps students transform the way they think, learn and write.
Professor and philosopher Jim Thomas, who was previously featured in the Baltimore Sun as “one of the most popular college instructors in the nation” teaches the summer course. He is known for “pushing students to laugh and think” and INDS 330 will be no exception.
For all official Kinetic Sculpture Race updates follow: KineticBaltimore.com.
We’ll give give more race details as we have them.
Thank you for your continued Race participation, dedication, understanding and support."