As I begin my segment on the ‘Focus on Baltimore,’ I would like to thank the many new friends I have met. And I hope that we continue to support and comfort each other in times of need in 2005.
Street Sense has made it for one year, and hopefully it will go for another year. It takes work and the help of many people to make the paper work. There will be continued rejection, because it is a newspaper sold by homeless and formerly homeless people.
But what the general public doesn’t seem to realize is that when they purchase a copy of Street Sense they are promoting job growth. Their dollar is being put to good use. When I am out there selling Street Sense on the street corners of Baltimore, I am promoting job growth for the homeless.
In Baltimore, like D.C., it is very hard to convince many of the homeless that they can make a reasonable income. The problem is that it is the drug haven of Maryland and the first thing that comes out of a person’s mouth is something about drugs, where to get them, how to use them, and when to sell them.
As I do my research on the drug and homeless problem in Baltimore, it really saddens me to see young men and women with so much to live for throw their lives away on drugs and alcohol.
As I hop from one section of Baltimore to another, I can’t help but notice how many homeless men and women are chronic drug users and severe alcoholics.
Not long ago, I attended a conference for homeless veterans. I was shocked and appalled by the fact that a great majority of chronic drug users were African-American males, which makes up over 80 percent of the incarceration rate in the Baltimore criminal justice system.
I have talked with three major employers in the Baltimore area that have conducted drug tests of potential employees. One employer tested 40 African-American applicants and all failed. The second employed tested about 60 African-American applicants and just two passed. The third employer tested about 109 applicants and only one passed.
Sometimes the drug and alcohol problems can escalate into a vicious brawl when people check into shelters and drop-ins. As I take notes at places like Beans and Bread, Our Daily Bread, The Franciscan Center, and Manna House, I can feel the tension that many people let on. They are a walking time bomb ready to explode at any given moment, constantly bickering back and forth.
Although the staff tries to maintain control, things very often get out of control. I remember walking into one of the shelters to speak with the staff. No sooner had I sat down, two guys got into a slugfest. Suddenly I saw a body flying through a door, nearly catching me in the crossfire. I crouched down to keep from getting hit myself. All I could see were four fists swinging back and forth. The staff managed to jump in and get control of the situation.
But all of this is what happens when tempers flare from alcohol, drugs and a lot of other things that happen on the streets of Baltimore. Harford Road has a one-block radius where nothing but drugs are sold. As I was walking through I was approached and asked, ‘are you looking for something?’ I politely replied. ‘Nothing really,’ and continued on my way.
This year will be a very challenging year for this city. I am hoping that Mayor O’Malley will implement new plans to fight the drug addiction in this city.
August Mallory is a vendor for Street Sense and has won the Vendor of the Year award for his dedication and commitment. Please email him at [email protected].
