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When the Uprising happened in Baltimore, buildings got broken into, burned, and things were taken from.
But it wasn't random.
But it wasn't random.
A CVS was burned.
I had been in that CVS, and noticed how they treated their customers.
It was not good.
I had been in that CVS, and noticed how they treated their customers.
It was not good.
A check cashing place was destroyed. Check cashing places are known to prey on the poor.
A Chinese food place was wrecked.
I'd been in that place, and noticed how they treated their customers.
It wasn't always good.
I'd been in that place, and noticed how they treated their customers.
It wasn't always good.
Not even a block away, a Black staple of the neighborhood, a book, clothing, and wellness store called Everyone's Place stands.
It wasn't touched.
It wasn't touched.
Directly across the street from the CVS is the Enoch Pratt Library, were dozens of kids come in to do their homework every day.
It wasn't touched.
It wasn't touched.
Also right there is the Arch Social Club. For over 100 years, Arch Social has been a fixture of Black Baltimore's civil society.
It. Was. Not. Touched.
It. Was. Not. Touched.
"They're destroying their own communities" is a false narrative meant to depict Black communities as savage and unruly and untamed.
That is not true here.
And I'll bet you an entire armload of lamps from @Target it's not the case in Minneapolis.
That is not true here.
And I'll bet you an entire armload of lamps from @Target it's not the case in Minneapolis.
One year after the #BaltimoreUprising happened, a group of activists held a rally in front of the @CVS, which was now up and running.
It was ran by new management, a tall Black man with glasses.
He knew we were coming.
It was ran by new management, a tall Black man with glasses.
He knew we were coming.
He came out bearing gifts.
Bottles of water for the protesters.
It was a hot day. Poster board to make signs.
An extension cord to power the PA system that was brought, and access to his outlets.
He asked the cops who were milling about to give us space to set up out front.
Bottles of water for the protesters.
It was a hot day. Poster board to make signs.
An extension cord to power the PA system that was brought, and access to his outlets.
He asked the cops who were milling about to give us space to set up out front.
I do not know if that instruction came down from corporate or if it was his own initiative.
But it is how you begin to slowly rebuild trust in a community that has had so much taken from it for so long.
But it is how you begin to slowly rebuild trust in a community that has had so much taken from it for so long.
@Target does not have a great history when it comes to the Black community in Baltimore.
They had a store at the Mondawmin mall that a lot of people relied on, and they suddenly closed it.
After benefitting $17 Million in TIF bonds from Baltimore.
They had a store at the Mondawmin mall that a lot of people relied on, and they suddenly closed it.
After benefitting $17 Million in TIF bonds from Baltimore.
I wonder what the history of @Target in Black communities in Minneapolis is...
Welp.
THIS is fascinating: https://twitter.com/IanColdwater/status/1265867904844693505?s=20
(hat tip @inner_be)
THIS is fascinating: https://twitter.com/IanColdwater/status/1265867904844693505?s=20
(hat tip @inner_be)
And then also; there's THIS: https://twitter.com/k3lese/status/1265871849310900226?s=20
Undercover cops were very present during the #BaltimoreUprising too, and several cops we recognized would often show up in the crowd with protestors.
Undercover cops were very present during the #BaltimoreUprising too, and several cops we recognized would often show up in the crowd with protestors.
