What you did not see in yesterday’s Coverage of Baltimore

So much has been made about the rioting and looting seen in Baltimore, Maryland Monday, April 27, 2015 and many had decent questions and concerns but to a person those questions and concerns still remain because nothing was done to address them because so much energy was spent trying to make sure that yesterday was not a repeat of Monday.  All those meetings and not one to address the true concerns of those living in that community.  All those resources and not any of it was lent toward fixing the problems those citizens endure each and every day.  All that news coverage and nothing solid to help those who live and love that community feel better about their community.  All that money and none of it to be used to locate more jobs in that area or secure local financing to where those from that community to borrow and grow these jobs with a services that they know is greatly needed in that area.  So much time, effort and money wasted on reacting to an issue instead of being proactive and resolving it.  History truly does repeat itself because we still can’t seem to learn from it. 

Unfortunately for the news agencies who gathered around Baltimore like a buzzard over a dead carcass, the footage that they wished to get did not materialize and one would have then thought that they would cover the other side of the coin but that didn’t happen either.  What we would have like to seen was a simple glimpse of those who are trying to do the right thing like that mother who recognized her child and went down there to get him.  We would have loved to see the hundreds of residents who showed up to clean up but that was just a few of the things we did not see and there were many more.

What you did not see was the real parent of children who may have been involved in the rioting and looting the day before, step up and takes full control of their teens to make sure that they were not a part of anything yesterday. What you did not see was the true meaning of community as the two most rivaled and violent gangs in America came together to guard police against those instigators and troublemakers.  What you did not see is the unity of that Baltimore community as it came down early in the morning to clean up the streets of their community.  What you did not see was the many non-violent protests that took place before and directly after Freddy Gray because there was no news there until the rioting and looting.  What you did not see was the silent heroes who provided shelter and a place for kids to be while school was out and so many safe places for them to be were closed. What you did not see was the employers who allowed their employees flex time to handle any personal business that they needed to because of the turmoil in Baltimore. What you did not see were those courageous and daring reporters, having the stones to venture toward those troublemakers and agitators to interview them and find out why they felt the need to keep instigating instead of going home.

So now we must ask ourselves why we didn’t see these things which would have put a more positive spin on coverage of Baltimore.  Was it because it was not deemed news by those who do not live in those communities, never been there and don’t truly care to understand the plight of anyone else unless that plight includes or directly affects them?  Whatever the reason, one thing is clear.  There were more cops and news agencies there than people and possible those who stayed because of the news cameras.