The truth behind the Baltimore riots

On Sunday, curfew was lifted in Baltimore, the largest city in the US state of Maryland, six days after it was rocked by the riots after death of black man Freddie Gray. A peaceful gathering held prayers for him.

Baltimore is home to large number of black people. The population of Baltimore is 6,22,000 and 63 percent of its population is black. The city was rocked by ethnic clashes after funeral of balck man Feddie Gray.

It was the worst such violence in the US since the unrest that erupted last year over the death of Michael Brown, the unarmed black 18-year-old shot by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.

It was for the first time since 1968 that the National Guard was called to deal with the situation in Baltimore.

African-Americans are the second-largest racial and ethnic minority in the US and most African Americans are of Western and Central African descent.

Baltimore, home to large number of black people, has unemployment rate of 30-40%. With the U.S. gun culture, shootings, gangs, and gun-related crime are common in these ghettos.

Does these riots are by-products of unemployment? That same area has not only a high rate of homicide assault, and burglary, they have a high drug use and arrest rate.

According to data available, almost 80 per cent of the children born in those areas are have unmarried mothers.

Fathers generally remain absent from the home in those areas and the children are often raised by their grandparents.

The schools in those areas are not only often dangerous places to work, they are the worst in the city. So, you have a cycle of poverty where kids are not getting educated and they have a low chance of getting jobs.

The drop-out rate is very high in those areas and few kids finish high school. Because of the crime rate there is a heavy police presence in those areas.
There are "bad apples" in police departments and sometimes those guys like to rough up or even kill people, especially when they work one of these high crime areas.

There is deep sense of hopelessness in those areas, and some say it is coupled with an entitlement mentality where people have given up on finding jobs and they accept what welfare they can get.

Freddie Gray, a native of Baltimore was arrested by police on April 12 on a weapons charge. He suffered a severe spinal cord injury that led to his death a week later on April 19. It's unknown what caused the spinal cord injury that led to his death.

Violence and looting took place in Baltimore on April 20 after the funeral of Gray. An investigation has been ordered in the case. At least 15 officers have been injured, six of them seriously. More than two dozen people were arrested.

Six officers were suspended.

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