The Body Politic (2023) Movie Script

1
[slow, introspective
music playing]
[phone ringing]
[Rich over speakerphone]
Hey, what's up?
Rich, what's going on?
How are you?
I'm good. What's going on?
Man, what the hell's
been going on today?
Well, for one is, uh...
Yeah, I-- Yeah,
Natalie told me about that.
The second one was
the body that got dumped.
We knew about that.
He took us right--
He took us to the body.
The Western ones?
No, no, no. The one, um--
The one that we ended up
finding in, uh-- In the water.
Oh, yeah. Oh, jeez.
We know he killed his roommate.
That was his roommate.
He killed him and dumped him.
-Wow.
-Um, the Western one is--
I don't know how the fuck we
get a shooting in the Western.
We were just talking about that.
I got every resource
that I have,
spare resource I have,
in the Western.
Plus, all eight districts are
sending officers there, so...
Oh, shit.
I don't know how we get
that one on Lexington.
-Right.
-So the two up here
in the Southern,
it looks like they probably--
-And just keep this between us.
-Yeah.
You know, they probably
shot each other.
Oh, Jesus.
Because we got a--
We got somewhat
of a video of the gunfight
a little bit, so...
Yeah, I was wondering if that
was gonna be connected
to the stuff from
last week down there.
Yeah, no, it's connected
to the one from yesterday.
Yeah, yep, yeah.
You can't make this shit up.
It's like a movie.
And that's only one day.
I know.
[splutters, then sighs]
I'll hit you up later
if I got anything else.
- All right, sounds good.
-All right. Bye.
Okay, bye.
[slow, somber music playing]
[crowd chattering]
[gavel bangs]
Good evening.
This 77th meeting
of the 72nd term
of the Baltimore City Council
is now called to order.
Coming into today, we have
a 17% increase for homicides
over what we had last year,
and we all know last year is
the worst year that we ever had.
We're going to make
every effort to making sure
that we're investing
in the long-term root causes
to deal with violence,
but that does not mean
that we forget about the people
that are dying every day.
I would like to ask you to honor
a moment of silence
for the victims
of homicides in Baltimore.
[slow, somber music playing]
[Brandon] Violence is
what's dominated our city
for the 37 years
that I've been alive.
[children chattering]
I'm not supposed to be here
by the statistics.
I grew up in Park Heights,
one of the most underserved
and violent neighborhoods
in Baltimore.
I saw my first shooting
before I was 10 years old.
[siren wailing]
I grew up in the 1980s and '90s,
and that was really
the beginning
of the war on drugs
and zero-tolerance policing.
If you clean the corners up
and you go after anybody
that has drugs on them,
anybody that's drinking outside
or anybody that's loitering,
then crime will just
magically disappear.
Well, they didn't.
If you were Black
and you were outside,
you could be set in handcuffs,
you could be taken to jail
for any simple thing.
We had families
ruined over nothing,
people who were
falsely incarcerated
for crimes they didn't commit.
We've been doing this
all my life,
but violence is still here.
We have to change the approach.
You cannot go anywhere
in Baltimore without seeing
the aftermath of gun violence,
a disease we have
been unable to cure.
This is not normal.
Most people
do not live like this.
Why must we?
It is unacceptable,
and we must change it.
My entire life, I've heard from
our elders that they can't wait
for my generation
to produce a leader
that is ready to take the reins,
stand on their shoulders,
and take us to higher heights.
I am that leader.
[crowd] Yeah!
I am that servant.
I am a son of Baltimore,
and today I am
announcing my candidacy
to be the next mayor
of Baltimore City.
[crowd cheering]
-[Brandon speaks indistinctly]
-Yeah. [laughs]
[Brandon] Thank you.
[woman]
Thank you. Thank you.
-It is your time.
-Thank you.
[stirring music playing]
Mm. Peace and clarity.
Peace and clarity
at the crossroads.
Peace and clarity.
Peace and clarity.
Peace and clarity.
Peace and clarity.
You live around here?
Somebody got killed
in a car this morning,
and we looking for the spot
where the car was
so we can bless the space.
[woman]
[Bridgeford] That's why we here.
-Thank you for what y'all do.
-Thank you so much.
[Bridgeford] We want
murder to understand
it cannot have the last say.
Just 'cause you showed up,
love is showing up behind.
It's like murder
gonna be persistent,
we gotta be persistent.
You gonna keep seeing murder,
you gonna keep seeing us.
Since I started showing up
at every murder space,
I done lost homeboys, cousins,
and I've had to come
and bless those spaces.
[Bridgeford] We call redemption
into this whole community.
Any toxic energy that's trying
to take hold in this space,
we've been here before
saying, "No, thank you,"
we stand here again
saying, "No, thank you."
We reclaim this space
as sacred ground,
sacred concrete, sacred grass,
sacred air molecules,
sacred birds out this bitch,
sacred everything in this space.
Because we understand
and we acknowledge
we are one with your light.
Violence is a disease.
Murder is an epidemic
that we're dealing with.
Sometimes when you're
in the midst of healing,
you don't know,
because all you see
is the pain
and the pus and the infection.
And so it looks like
things are getting worse,
but really what's happening is,
you are the--
You know,
you're part of the balm
that's actually healing things.
[slow, introspective
music playing]
[Brandon] You a baby? Hmm?
You a old-man baby?
-[barking]
-Don't hurt yourself.
[hip-hop music playing
softly over speakers]
I'm willing to do whatever
I have to to heal my city.
Baltimore is worth fighting for
because the people of Baltimore
are worth fighting for.
[volume of hip-hop
music increases]
[Brandon] Be safe out here, yo.
What's up, brother?
Take these masks, man.
That is me. The mask
throw you off, that's all.
The things that everyone's
talking about in this race,
the violence, schools
with no heat and air,
I'm the only person
that actually lived it.
I'm saying the structure
itself is broken.
Sir, information
on the candidates.
Information on candidates.
[reporter] Brandon Scott at
just 10% in this mayor's race.
He's going to need to convert
a lot of voters, and we're not
really, right now, seeing that.
The poll shows a mayor's race
that is still wide-open.
You know you're
the underdog, right?
I don't have to tell you that.
You know that.
Because you haven't been
in politics for so long,
and they're gonna be saying
you don't have no experience,
and you're a young Black man,
and all this.
So you know that's coming.
It is. They're gonna say
and do anything.
The water pump over this side.
Damn, I thought
it was under there.
Not no more.
All right, take that
from over there. Here.
Screwdriver's still in
the same place it used to be.
It ain't changed.
There ain't no way in hell
we getting it this way.
You gotta go
through the bottom.
[wrench whirring]
If they thought my ass was
bringing it into the dealership,
they sadly mistaken.
Brandon, you're headstrong.
Nobody-- You know,
you're gonna do what you want,
and that's just the way it is.
-I'm headstrong?
-You know what it mean.
[laughs]
What your mother
was telling me about
when y'all was playing ball
and somebody got killed
or something?
I was probably around...
7 or 8 when this happened.
We were just out
on the basketball court
like we would be
every day, every night,
and someone just came to the top
of the lot, started shooting.
I jumped the fence over
on the side by the church.
You know how you could
walk through there?
And just laid in the damn grass.
I just wanted to get back into
the house, which was literally,
you know, 15 seconds away,
but I couldn't get
to it that quickly.
Like, the day after,
it was like back to normal.
They thought we was just
gonna fucking go back
to life as normal.
I guess that's the way
they expected it to be for us.
And I just kept asking
my mother why nobody cared.
But she just looked
at me and said,
"Well, if you want it to change,
you're gonna have to change it.
No one is gonna do it for you.
No one is gonna come save us.
You-- If you wanna see change,
you gotta do it yourself."
And I never forgot it.
Never, never forgot it.
[foreboding music playing]
[George Floyd]
[man 1]
[Floyd]
[man 2]
[reporter 1] You are looking
live down at Baltimore City
as thousands of people
have gathered.
[protesters chanting]
[chanting continues]
In recent days,
protests have been held
in Baltimore City.
[man] But you can't just let
lawlessness take control
of the streets of a city.
[woman] Unrest is now being
compared to the riots
that rocked Baltimore
after the 2015 death
of Freddie Gray.
[Hogan] Our community's on fire.
[protesters chanting
indistinctly]
[Brandon] Yo.
[man]
[Brandon] Yo,
but you gotta understand:
Who gonna pay for it
when you tear it down?
[man] The city.
[Brandon] Where the city
get their money from?
-[man] It's our money.
-[Brandon] I know.
[man] If you feel as though
they taking your money,
don't spend your money
on the city.
[Brandon] Yo, yo, chill.
Chill. Come on, yo.
Come on down, bro.
You want to jump down?
-[man] You see this?
-Holler at me. Holler at me.
[Brandon] This does not work
for our people.
And maybe now
people are gonna wake up
so that we can
actually change it.
No one should be
hurting anybody,
punching anybody, burning stuff.
We get that.
But people also have
to understand the frustration.
People also have to understand
that this is not the reaction
of one incident
but literally of hundreds
of years of mistreatment.
It's exhausting being
a Black man in America.
We're all tired,
we all can't breathe,
because this country has been
trying to suffocate and kill
each and every one of us
since they brought us here.
We have to care about ourselves.
We have to be the solution
for ourselves.
We have to work for ourselves.
We have to change
things for ourselves
because no one's
gonna do it for us.
[horns honking]
No matter what happens
in this election,
I'm not gonna give up.
I'm gonna be here.
I'm gonna be serving
my community.
How y'all doing?
How y'all doing?
Y'all got any questions
y'all wanna ask me?
[reporter] It is election day,
and the polls are now
open across Maryland.
[gripping music playing]
What's up, man?
[man]
[Brandon] Thank you.
[reporter 1] How are you feeling
about the election today?
I'm feeling good.
Young people are
coming out in droves,
and it's such
an exciting thing to see,
because we know change
and movement in this country
always starts with young people.
[reporter 2] The votes
are still being counted.
The race for mayor is tight.
There were 10,000
more new voters
than the ones
traditionally cast.
[reporter 3] Scott stormed
from behind in the past week.
[reporter 4]
Brandon Scott really is
Baltimore's comeback kid.
Hello? I'm good. How are you?
[man] I'm good, buddy.
I just wanted to call you, man,
and congratulate you
on your win.
[all laughing and cheering]
[reporter 1] The youngest mayor
in the city's history
trying to restore
trust in government.
[reporter 2] During one of
the most uncertain times
in our nation's history,
as a city copes with
the violence and the pandemic.
We can work to right
the historical wrongs
that have divided Baltimore
for too long and held us back.
And putting Baltimore
on the right track,
like setting a new
and better course for America,
will not happen overnight.
[crowd cheering]
[James] The city just won.
Like, the city won tonight.
Like, that's crazy.
We just won the mayor's race!
[officer] I didn't see you.
You need something?
No, I was just saying,
we just won the mayor's race.
[officer] Oh. Okay, congrats.
See you guys.
Now, we have to work
together as a city, unified,
to make Baltimore better.
One person cannot fix
problems that have existed
longer than I've been alive.
Uh-- We'll see. I like the Afro.
I'm taking it back to my roots.
We believe in freedom
of hairstyle here
in the state of Maryland.
["Gonna Be Alright" by playing]
Said I got a joy
Joy in my heart to sing
And I got a song
From the air
Beneath the angel wings
I got a love, I got a light
It shines my way
Through the night
And every, every
Every little thing's
Gonna be all right
[photographer
speaking indistinctly]
Nice, nice.
Hold that right there.
-That's it. Hold that.
-[camera clicks]
Perfect.
[Brandon] And I will
diligently and faithfully
execute the office of...
[woman] Mayor of
the city of Baltimore.
...mayor of the city
of Baltimore.
I am unafraid to do the right
thing over the popular one,
even if it hurts me politically.
You will not agree
with everything that I do.
But I know you agree
that the status quo
cannot continue,
and under my leadership,
it will not.
The trauma and violence
in our city is personal for you,
just like it is for me.
And the only way forward
is together.
It's gonna be all right
Whoo-oo, ooh, oo-ooh
I feel a deep sense
of responsibility
to the legacy of George Floyd
because of the way
this election happened.
These new voters,
many of whom are young,
they pushed me to victory.
And that sends a signal to me
that I have to make
the changes now.
[Brandon] Fucking amazing
that this picture is still
allowed to be here.
That young man,
that's not his nephew.
That's not the neighbor's child.
That's someone
that worked for him
that he thinks that
he owns that person.
To have an image like that
in a majority-Black city,
in city hall, that ain't it.
-That ain't it.
-That is not it.
[staff chattering]
[woman] So this will be
your liaison office.
[Brandon] Damn.
[woman] This here feels
like a conference room.
[hammer tapping]
So that's a lot.
Get in there, girl.
-What's up, Mr. Mayor?
-[Brandon] What's up, man?
-What's up? How are you?
-Mr. Mayor.
-[Brandon] Sir, how are you?
-How are you?
[Brandon] Ma'am, how are you?
You doing all right?
What's up, gentlemen?
[workers chatter]
[Brandon] Y'all good?
Everybody all right?
Sir, you good?
I mean, man, it's just
something that should have
been done a long time ago.
[man] And then you're just
gonna set it down on the floor.
[Brandon]
If you drop it, it's okay.
[laughing]
Appreciate y'all.
Yeah, thank y'all so much.
Aw, man, they ain't got
the links. Damn it.
Don't want the spices either.
[in posh accent]
We'll not be getting that.
No, no.
No, no.
[humming]
[in normal voice]
These the only ones I rock with
now, man, the Beyond joints.
-For real?
-They that good, man.
-I'm gonna try it.
-I'm telling you.
Everything cool? I'm cool.
Let me get, uh,
two of them sockeye.
-Oh, hey, ma'am. How are you?
-Keep up the good work.
[Brandon] Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you.
[phone buzzing]
Eggs.
[woman]
-Are you--?
-He was shot on duty.
You fucking gotta be kidding me.
[somber music playing]
[officer 1] We have 12 casings
inside the bus, one outside,
so it appears the incident
took place inside the bus.
[Brandon] God Almighty, man.
[officer 1] We did a quick
canvass to talk to some
of the apartment dwellers.
They heard a brief argument.
[officer 2]
[Brandon] Fucking hell,
you're kidding me.
Uh, good evening.
Mayor Brandon Scott here,
joined by Police Commissioner
Michael Harrison.
We are on the scene
of a very tragic incident
here in Northeast Baltimore.
[Harrison] Anyone with any
information about the vehicle
and/or about the person
or persons inside the vehicle...
[reporter on radio]
The violence over the weekend
widespread and deadly.
Three people killed in separate
shootings in a two-hour span.
How are residents
expected to feel safe in a city
consumed by violent crime?
[Harrison] Tough weekend.
Nine shooting and homicide
incidents with 12 victims.
Start on Saturday.
Uh, Western District,
4 in the morning,
300 North Stricker.
It's a homicide
with a male victim.
2228 Wilkens,
nonfatal shooting, male victim.
This is...
[Brandon]
That's the 5-year-old, right?
Inside the home
of the 5-year-old
with the stray bullet.
Goddamn.
How do we really impact
what we can impact?
I'm just-- I'm really anxious
to find something to really
get at the heart of the problem,
'cause as much deployment
as we put out,
it's happening a block away.
[pensive music playing]
[Brandon] As a young Black man
growing up in Baltimore,
I was once the victim
of zero-tolerance policing.
But now I'm
the commander in chief
of the Baltimore
Police Department.
We're not gonna do what they did
before, and if you were Black
and young and breathing outside,
we're gonna put you
in handcuffs just because.
[woman] It is my pleasure
to welcome each of you
to the graduation
for Academy Class 20-04.
You are coming
into this profession
at the most trying time
probably in its history.
'Cause you're gonna
have to do your job
in a new, different way
that's understanding
of the mistakes
that we made in the past.
We have to police better because
we have to have a relationship
between our police
and our community
that allows us
to make our city safer.
[Brandon]
Good afternoon, everyone.
The goal for me is to get
our murders under 300,
and that's a reduction of 15%.
We are going to be reimagining
public safety in Baltimore.
As the mayor thinks through
what transformation
of our city looks like,
we not only need to be
focusing on intervention
but also prevention,
and that prevention
is a longer-term portion
of the work.
Some of our local analysts
do a review
of every single homicide
and nonfatal shooting case.
We hear all the time
the narrative about
the drug trade
kind of driving violence
in Baltimore City.
That is decidedly not true.
And in fact, our number one
cause is interpersonal disputes,
whether that's domestic-related
or, you know,
someone feeling insulted,
a comment on Instagram,
things like that.
We have a plan to address
violence, the Group Violence
Reduction Strategy.
But in order to start it,
we need federal funding.
We have to talk to
our congressional delegation.
People think that, as mayor,
I can do whatever I want.
But without the support
of our federal partners,
this plan won't happen.
[Brandon] Senator. Sir.
-How are you? You all right?
-Yeah, we're doing fine.
[Brandon] Sir, how are you?
-You don't mind if I'm sitting?
-You know I don't. You're good.
The homicide rate in Baltimore
is a national focal point,
and there's a lot of
gang activity in Baltimore.
A lot of this is
retribution-type violence.
How do we deal with that?
[Brandon] What--
So, senator, what I would
say to a few things:
While the common thought
is that drugs and gangs
are driving the violence,
the reality is the number one
cause of a homicide this year
is an interpersonal dispute.
It's things as simple as
the commissioner and I
have the same girlfriend,
and we don't find out
until we find out
on the Internet. Or...
[Harrison] We don't have
the same girlfriend.
[all laughing]
[Brandon] We're gonna have
the police being focused on
what they should be focused on,
but the police are never
gonna be everywhere.
We want to see lives
saved in Baltimore.
We wanna do that in a total way,
not just a policing way.
The Group Violence Reduction
Strategy seeks to call in folks
who are at the highest risk
of either being a shooter
or being, um, shot themselves,
to give them two options:
One, keep doing
what you're doing,
and we're going to
make sure that you deal
with the consequences.
Option two, ask for help.
Step away from the life.
We've got
community-based supports,
real transitional employment.
If we need to move you,
we will move you.
The city has tried Group
Violence Reduction Strategy
not once but twice, and failed.
And they failed
because two things:
One, the people
sitting in my chair
didn't really believe in it.
And they only focused on
the law-enforcement portion.
You can go out
and tell someone that,
"If you don't change your life,
we're gonna send you to jail."
And what if they raise
their hand and say, "All right,
I wanna change my life."
If you don't offer people
another way out, jobs, services,
they will revert back
to what they know.
[Jackson] This is where
we'd like to see
partnership and investment.
We're looking at
about anywhere between
a 6- and an 8-million-dollar
annual investment
in order to build something
that's going to be sustainable
across Baltimore City.
I want to just, if I might,
just kind of state the obvious.
The murder rate
here in Baltimore
is the number one issue
for people who live here
and the number one
talked-about issue
for people who don't live here
but who want to beat up
on the city.
The violence-reduction
efforts are good,
but there are gonna be
a ton of press outside the door
asking what came out
of this meeting.
If we don't come up
with results, this meeting,
like so many others
that I sat at this table for
will be looked at by people
in a very, very negative way.
[all chattering]
[introspective music playing]
The federal delegation
is committed to working
with the mayor
to provide support and help.
We have confidence
that we can do this.
We know it's not easy,
but there's no simple answer,
uh, to this problem.
[Brandon] The plan will work,
but getting it started
is complex.
We have the support
of our federal partners,
but this will not work
without state support.
We need the help
of state agencies
like Parole and Probation,
like Corrections,
like Juvenile Services,
and all of them work
for Governor Hogan.
[reporter] Yesterday, Governor
Larry Hogan sent a letter
to Baltimore mayor Brandon Scott
questioning the city's
crime plan.
You know, I don't know
whether it's smart or it's dumb.
I just hope that
they'll do something
about the violent crime
and stop the shootings
that are taking place every day.
Uh, Baltimore City will never
get control of the violence
if they don't arrest more,
prosecute more,
and sentence more.
[Brandon] I can't even get
the governor to meet with me.
I've been trying to meet
with the governor
since I won
the primary election.
That's months now.
[melancholy music playing]
When I turn down this block,
I get emotional
because many of the houses
that I grew up in
aren't even here anymore
because they became vacants.
So all of the houses
on this side
of the street are gone.
I remember double Dutch
with just bare feet
on the ground
'cause nothing slaps
the ground like a bare foot.
It's where I remember hearing
gunshots for the first time
and ducking under a car
with my cousin.
And I think that the only thing
that I remember seeing
are two things:
feet running past us
and getting out
from under the car
and my favorite shirt
having a grease stain on it.
The mayor announced
that I was going to become
the director of his Office
of Neighborhood Safety
and Engagement.
The mayor has charged me with
doing a comprehensive evaluation
of the communities.
We really need to make sure
that we can unpack
what's working well
and what needs to change.
[pensive music playing]
[crowd chattering]
[Bridgeford]
Good evening, everybody.
GVRS stands for Group Violence
Reduction Strategy.
So, what we're doing right now
is giving recommendations
from the community
to the GVRS team
as they're building GVRS.
The Group Violence
Reduction Strategy is about
helping folks who are
about to either be shot
or who are about
to be a shooter,
and say, "What do you need
in order to walk away
from the life?"
So we got a few hands, and we're
gonna take you back there.
[man 1] One thing I can tell you
is, '91, '92, '93,
the most notorious years
Baltimore ever seen.
And now we in 2021,
and ain't nothing changed.
[Bridgeford] Something
that's different this time
is that the community
is being asked to be involved
in building what it looks like,
because it is important that
people with lived experience,
specifically around
gun violence,
are in these conversations,
giving their ideas.
Question really is, people who
are about to shoot somebody,
who do they listen to?
[man 2] My suggestion
is a bit different.
If GVRS is designed
to target and stop people
that's shooting and killing,
you wanna go and get the people
that have been convicted
for shooting and killing.
They can identify with that
youngster that got that gun.
[Bridgeford]
Firefighters, paramedics...
[all chattering]
[pensive music playing]
[reporter] Mayor Scott's
strategy includes
community-violence-intervention
programs like Safe Streets.
These programs engage
violence interrupters,
often people who themselves
have been incarcerated,
to concentrate primarily
on preventing conflicts
between individuals
from spiraling into violence.
Do you see an expanded role
for the Safe Streets program
moving forward?
I am the biggest champion
of Safe Streets that there is,
actually saving it
from elimination
under a previous mayor.
We take guys who used to be
shooters and killers,
and they're now interceding
in the violence.
Safe Streets is in less than
three square miles
of a 93-square-mile city.
My goal is to expand
and deepen the program.
[Johnson] Safe Streets zones
across the city, they chosen
because they are
at the highest percentile
of violent crime.
Where we are, right here,
the Safe Streets Belair-Edison
catchment zone, we work
this whole post in orange,
looking for potentially violent
situations that could possibly
lead to shootings and homicide.
[Johnson] What's up, short?
All right.
We down here
trying to figure out
if there's some shit going on.
We see the police down here,
try to stop something
from jumping off.
What's up, short?
There are thousands of people
that live in this neighborhood,
but only seven of us work here.
We need more help.
We the peacemakers,
and everybody want peace.
I don't give a fuck who you is.
You could be the most
meanest person in the world,
at night, when you lay that
head down, you want some peace.
When they see us,
they see peace.
[man] Yeah, that's who
y'all looking for right there.
[Johnson] That's who
we looking for. [laughs]
-What's up?
-My man Dante, what's up?
We just out here having
a good time, trying to chase
some more dollar. You know?
[man 1] Yeah, I got him.
For real, 'cause y'all always,
"Oh..." well, I got him.
-Damn.
-[man 2] Yeah.
We don't, like, ostracize them
'cause they doing their thing,
but we've been there.
We understand you gotta feed
the family, so it is what it is,
but, you know, that don't mean
you gotta kill nobody
in the midst
of doing that neither.
Many of us have been to prison,
and most of us have had
experience with violence,
but now we work to defuse
violence in our community.
We work off our own
credibility in the streets.
That's how this program thrives.
But some people don't like
Safe Streets because
some of us have been to prison.
Safe Streets is
controversial because
there is nothing less valued
by the masses in this country,
uh, than a Black man
except one thing:
a Black man
that's been to prison.
[Barksdale] I've been out
of the game now for 10 years.
Not selling no drugs,
not committing no crimes,
no robberies, no shootings,
no nothing like that.
But not only
just being a citizen
but fighting for my community.
Once I got with Safe Streets,
I just thought about
everything differently.
-Where man go at?
-Yo, 6'2", son of a bitch.
I'm gonna blast him up,
blast him up.
[Barksdale]
As a violence interrupter,
man, you gotta know
who on these blocks.
Who the biggest drug dealer
on the block?
Who's the dude
that gonna shoot somebody?
You know what I'm saying?
'Cause when a shooting
take place, that's the first
thing you're gonna do.
You're gonna really talk
to one of them block captains.
-What's up?
-What's up?
[Barksdale] If Safe Streets had
50 employees in this area,
I think it would be
a major impact on violence,
because I believe that the way
you get rid of violence
is like dudes like us
having a relationship.
[introspective music playing]
[Brandon]
Good morning, everybody.
We're gonna get started.
Uh, we will go to Sonny.
[Sonny over computer] Uh, wanted
to give everyone an update
on where we are on gun violence.
The year to date,
we've had 96 homicides.
That's up 14% over
the same time last year.
We've had 183
nonfatal shootings.
That's up 8% over
the same time last year.
So, what you're saying is,
is that he's not gonna meet.
Did they give us a reason why?
Okay.
[man] So, what's going on?
Uh, Governor Hogan
still won't meet.
Uh, they haven't responded
to the request for meeting.
It's frustrating as shit,
uh, but...
the day goes on,
the work goes on.
[pensive music playing]
-[Brandon] Hey, director?
-Yes?
When we, uh, grow the pilots,
this little section of LS
and here and across the street
is perfect for them.
[Jackson] We've seen
other strategies
that are rooted in penalty,
but now's the time for us
to be doing something
that we know is gonna last.
[Jackson] Okay.
[Jackson]
Thank you.
[Brandon] We are rebuilding
from the ground up,
and that means
getting out in the streets
and talking to people.
We need the community
involved this time.
[woman] This stuff right here...
[boy]
What's the title?
So the Fish Boy, he's gonna take
care of the galactic aliens?
-Yup.
-My man.
[Jackson] So as we walk through
these neighborhoods, it would be
helpful for me to understand,
like, where the team
is spending most of its time.
[Johnson] Okay.
So this block right here.
[Jackson] It's hot?
[Johnson]
One of our main blocks.
And so all of this is
technically not in the catchment
zone across the street.
But it's hot,
so you spend time here.
Right. It's basically
petty stuff.
Stealing each other's
dirt bikes.
We recently just had
a double shooting up here.
-Over dirt bikes?
-[Johnson] Dirt bikes.
-Really?
-[Johnson] Yeah.
Yup.
[Jackson] How can I help?
What do you need?
[Johnson] We need more people.
There are only a few of us
for this whole neighborhood.
I'm working on that.
[Johnson] I think that,
at some point,
we should have people
working all day long.
[Jackson] Got it.
I'm just waiting to finish
with the evaluation.
When's the last time you did
a mediation on this strip?
Uh, probably Monday.
And the likelihood for,
um, escalation into...?
[Johnson] Very high.
[phone dialing]
[operator 1]
[woman]
[operator 2]
[man 1]
[man 2]
[operator 3]
[man 3]
[operator 1]
[woman]
[operator 1]
[woman]
[somber music playing]
[reporter 1] Tonight the city of
Baltimore is mourning the loss
of a beloved community activist.
[reporter 2] Forty-six-year-old
Barksdale, known as Tater,
was dedicated
to ending gun violence.
Tater was like
a big brother to me.
He was the heart and soul
of Safe Streets.
Tater was murdered
while working to stop a violent
situation from escalating.
-Start living!
-Stop shooting!
Start living!
-[man] What do we want?
-Safe streets!
-[man] When do we want it?
-Now!
When I think about this city...
I love Baltimore City.
We miss you, yo.
We miss you. We miss you.
[sniffles]
This shit not easy.
He was a warrior,
he was a friend,
he was a confidant.
There was no moves
I made in this city
that I didn't call Tater.
I just needed to be here
with my dude, you know, like...
[Bridgeford] Allow him
to still hug you and wrap you
in his warm embrace.
Because he's still here,
willing and ready to do it.
With a fighter and a warrior
like Tater on the other side,
there's no reason
we can't fix this city.
There are only about
80 Safe Streets workers
in a city of over
600,000 people.
Him and none of the Safe Streets
workers get enough support.
Tater was the leader
for Safe Streets citywide.
He brought me into Safe Streets.
He brought 70 other guys
into Safe Streets.
I just love the guy, man.
He's my hero.
We come together virtually
tonight, connected
by both our love for
and the light that is
Tater's legacy.
[Brandon] I was reminded
of what he would say to me:
"The most gangster shit
in the world is forgiveness."
And that level-set me
to where he would
want me to be right now.
We have to continue to invest
in the work of Safe Streets
and our violence interrupters
and all the things
that they need.
This is a reminder of how
important and dangerous
their frontline work is.
Thank you.
[somber music playing]
[Sonny over speakerphone]
Unfortunately, we are continuing
with very concerning numbers
for our gun violence
for the year.
We've had 111 homicides
this year, year to date.
That's an 8% increase
over the same period last year.
We've had 222
nonfatal shooting victims.
Uh, that's an increase of 13%
over the same time last year.
[reporter] Murders are outpacing
last year's numbers
and keep climbing.
The reaction from
the governor today:
This horrifying violence is
tearing Baltimore City apart,
and enough is enough.
The mayor who plans
to get to the bottom
of the root causes of crime,
but I'm concerned about
people getting shot this week,
and that doesn't do
anything to stop that.
It's a lack of leadership.
You can't do something
about the crime without
getting tough on the crime.
Why should folks be
at all optimistic
that this plan is, in fact,
going to turn the tide
and do what other plans
have not been able to do
over these last many years?
There are so many folks who want
to easily be able to say, "See?
This is why we have to
go back to the old days,"
to only thinking about
mass-arresting everybody.
They're looking and waiting
for me to make that mistake.
I'm not gonna give them
that pleasure,
but I'm also gonna do
what I've always done,
is do the right thing,
not the popular one,
but do it in the right pace
and right order.
[Bridgeford] How you doing?
Can I give you
a Baltimore Ceasefire flyer?
We're promoting our upcoming
Ceasefire Weekend.
We have a Ceasefire Weekend
coming up,
so there are events
happening all over the city
to celebrate life
and encourage peace.
You're still up there? So...
Okay, so, so, so, what makes--
What makes you say
that it's not working?
Well, I'm asking you.
I'm not interested
in my question.
-I'm interested in your answer.
-But your question--
So this is what's important
for media to understand.
Your question
frames a narrative.
If you understand
that it is a product
of violent systems
of racism and oppression,
then you would understand why
one thing is not going
to automatically bring
numbers down,
but that one thing
will give people hope
every single day.
Everything we're
doing right now,
50 years from now
or however long it takes,
people will know, us now,
we must have been doing
a lot of good work
in order for it to get that way.
But we have to be doing
the work every single day,
and we cannot feed
into a narrative about
"Is what we're doing
really working?"
Because that kind of narrative
encourages us to give up,
and it doesn't make us
do what we need to do,
which is vibrate higher.
-Thank you.
-[Bridgeford] You're welcome.
-[woman] Preach it.
-[Bridgeford chuckles]
It took me years to be able
to do what you saw me do
-with that lady.
-Really?
Years of being irritated
by the question
and just getting mad.
And just shutting down
or still answering the question?
Well, I would still answer it,
but I didn't have the language
yet to ask them,
"First of all, why did you
ask me that question?"
Like, I didn't know that that
was even something you could do.
'Cause you think
you in an interview, so only--
That's why she got mad.
Like, "Well, I don't care about
my opinion. I care about..."
You do care about your opinion,
'cause your opinion
framed that question.
-What you mean?
-"Is it really working?"
They look at numbers of
how many people who got killed
because that's all
they can look up,
'cause they never gonna
get in these streets
and really help people.
[somber music playing]
[helicopters whirring
in distance]
[sirens wailing]
Damn.
Hey, what's going on, man?
These motherfuckers
won't let me cross the line.
[man over phone]
Ain't nobody dead, is there?
[Williams] No,
I don't think nobody dead.
The worst person,
he got hit three times.
Is the staff good?
[Williams] Yeah, the staff good.
We got-- Just a couple of the
volunteers got scrapes because
they dived on porches and stuff.
[Williams] We was just
setting up for the cookout,
and these guys on the corner,
they were having
a big dice game.
Somebody walked up
with two guns and...
And just went off.
So we trying
to get the kids down,
the grown-ups to safety,
trying to make sure everybody
that's with us is good.
In the middle of the action,
a shot came in our direction.
Our grill got hit.
[Tay over phone]
Take the tent down, bro.
Like, the news gonna
make it look like we a part
of the shooting.
Okay.
Yo. Tay said take the tent down.
Just take the tent down.
No, 'cause the helicopter,
it's gonna be on the news.
"Safe Streets."
I'm heading to see one of
the victims from the shooting
that happened near our cookout.
He just came home
from the hospital.
It's a real touchy time
right now.
And try to talk to him about
maybe talking to his guys,
get them from retaliating,
and offer him some help
in getting through some of
these emotional stuff that
he's going through right now.
So I'm gonna go ahead, man,
and you're gonna have to kind of
shut those cameras down,
because it's like, you know,
this camera thing,
it just can't be trusted.
[engine starts]
[man] How'd it go in there?
Oh, man, I...
[sighs]
Sad, bro.
Um...
We gotta try to get
this brother some help.
He don't know what's going on.
He don't know who shot him
or nothing like that,
so at the end of the day,
he understand it was meant
for somebody else.
Um... His family
in there with him.
You know,
we talked briefly about it.
You know, he said he was good.
He was just laying back.
He's sick and tired of living
this kind of life, of being out
in these streets like this.
The good thing is he told me
he's not gonna retaliate.
Even though I do this
all the time,
one thing I'm realizing is that
these guys be really
more traumatized than
you would ever assume.
You see them out here,
they so G'd up, and, you know,
just, you know,
we go hard in Baltimore,
so we ain't used to
all of the emotions
that come along
with the wounded, man.
-[woman laughs]
-[children chattering]
[Brandon] Hi. Hi, you guys.
-[girl] Hi.
-[Brandon] How are you?
[boy] We were
learning about you.
-[Brandon] Really?
-[boy] Yeah.
[Brandon] What did you
learn about me?
-We were, like, learning--
-On the paper.
-Oh, I forgot.
-[Brandon] You forgot?
Did y'all learn
that I can play basketball?
Y'all didn't learn that?
[children] No!
[Brandon] Get it.
Get it. Get it.
Ah, ah, ah.
-[girl] No.
-[Brandon laughs]
[woman]
[Brandon] That's what
they're supposed to be.
Tear them up. Tear them up.
[cheers]
-[Brandon] Hi, everybody.
-[class] Hi.
[Brandon] How's everybody doing?
-[class] Good.
-[Brandon] Good, good.
I am honored to join you today.
This is the best part
about my job,
is that I get to come and talk
and listen and learn
from the future of our city,
which is you.
And with that,
I will let you guys
ask me any questions
that you want to ask me. Yes?
[girl]
-How is my life?
-[adults laugh]
Sandy has the question
of the year.
How is my life?
My life is wonderful
because I get to be the mayor
of the city that I love,
but also that I get
to work every day
to help and improve
other people's lives, so.
[Brandon] The first thing
you can do is continue
to dress so sharply
as you are today, sir.
Be involved in your community.
Start in your school.
Organize. Run for
student government.
So that when you become
18, 19, 20 years old,
you'll be well on your way.
Oh, yep? You want me
to come back?
Or you want me
to read it from the card?
I'll read it for you,
no worries.
Am I going to stop violence?
The answer to that question
is that we are going to
stop violence, right?
But we have to do a lot of work
to make sure that people
can have issue or conflict
but it doesn't end up in people
dying in our city, right?
The hardest part of my job
is having to be there
and deal with families
when young people
are injured in violence.
That's tough, because you never
want to see someone
go through something like that.
We had a 12-year-old shot,
and I'm just following up
with the parent.
[line rings]
-[woman over phone] Hello?
-Ms. Dyson?
Yes.
Hey, ma'am,
this is Mayor Scott calling.
-Uh, how--?
-How are you?
I'm okay. I am calling
to see how you are doing
and how, uh,
your young man is doing.
Just wanted to personally check
in on you guys and let you know
how personally sorry I am that
you guys are going through this,
but really just wanted to
check in on you guys
and see how everything is going.
Yes, ma'am.
[sighs]
Yes, ma'am. I'm...
Yes, ma'am.
Football, basketball...
He's active.
And to not have his legs...
[speaks indistinctly]
...that's a big deal for him.
[sighing]
Fuck.
Baltimore reaches the grim
milestone of 300 people killed
sooner than the city
did last year.
Today the numbers
continue to climb.
Fox 45's Mikenzie Frost
continues to demand answers
from city leaders.
Mikenzie?
[man] Mr. Mayor,
what happened this last weekend?
Too many people
got shot and killed.
After what happened
this weekend, I don't feel like
nothing's really worked.
Clearly.
[tense music playing]
I got it. I got it.
At or around 2:23
this afternoon,
uh, Baltimore police received
a ShotSpotter alert
for gunfire discharge
in the 2100 block
of West Lexington.
What we have learned
was that there were
four other individuals
who were in that block
who were shot
who went to area hospitals
by private vehicle...
[inaudible dialogue]
[man] The blood of 300 will be
on your hands, Mr. Mayor!
The blood of 300 will be
on your hands, Mr. Mayor!
The blood of 300 will be
on your hands, Mr. Mayor!
The blood of 300 will be
on your hands, Mr. Mayor!
What do you say to the families
who say that the crime plan
is just simply taking too long?
Can you handle
this crime situation right now?
We know that we can,
but it's not just
about the city.
The governor
and all these other folks,
they play a big part.
[reporter] Governor today
insisted the city's cure
will not work.
[Hogan] The city of Baltimore
is a poster child
for the basic failure
to stop lawlessness.
Crime seems to be the last thing
that they're concerned about.
We're clearing more cases
than we have in many,
many years in Baltimore City.
[woman]
What is your response to that?
Well, I'm not happy,
but I want to also say that
that includes the governor,
as so many public-safety
agencies work for him.
I have asked the governor for
meetings about public safety,
and I'm still hoping that he and
I get to discuss that at length.
[Hogan] Trying to reduce crime
by defunding police
is dangerous, radical,
far-left lunacy.
[man over computer]
DOT has put together a pothole,
you know, push proposal,
uh, that largely centers around
the equity zones called out
in the Complete Streets Manual.
We'll send that proposal, uh...
I have to make a couple edits...
[Omar on TV] Right now, Wolf,
we are at George Floyd Square.
This is ground zero for where
George Floyd's final...
[Wolf on TV]
All right, hold on, Omar.
This is the Hennepin County
judge, Peter Cahill.
-[Cahill] All rise for the jury.
-[Brandon] Come here, hurry up!
[Cahill] Members of the jury,
I understand you have a verdict.
"We, the jury,
in the above entitled manner,
as to count one,
unintentional
second-degree murder
while committing a felony,
find the defendant guilty.
[Brandon] Goddamn.
[Cahill] This verdict is signed
by jury foreperson...
-He's shocked. Look at his face.
-[woman] Yeah.
He is shocked.
[Cahill] Same caption,
verdict count three.
"We, the jury,
in the above entitled matter,
as to count three,
second-degree manslaughter,
culpable negligence,
creating an unreasonable risk,
find the defendant guilty."
Juror Number 2, are these
your true and correct verdicts?
[juror 1] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 9,
are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 2] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 19,
are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 3] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 79,
are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 4] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 85,
are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 5] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 89,
is this your--
Are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 6] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 91,
are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 7] Yes.
[Cahill] Juror Number 92,
are these your true
and correct verdicts?
[juror 8] Yes, Your Honor.
[Cahill] Are these
your verdicts, so say
you one, so say you all?
[jurors] Yes.
[Cahill] Members of the jury,
I find that the verdicts as read
reflect the will of the jury
and will be filed accordingly.
I have to thank you
on behalf of the people
of the state of Minnesota
for not only jury service
but heavy-duty jury service.
[emotional music playing]
So we are laser-focused
on one goal,
and that is the 15%
reduction of homicides.
[man] Like, what's the argument
for continuing to use this 15%?
[Brandon] Because
we already set it.
[Jackson]
What would the goal be?
[man] It would be unidentified.
Then we can't do that.
We're not gonna have
an unidentified goal,
because it'll be out of step
with everything we've done.
The media is gonna say,
"If you said that
you guys wanted to reduce
violent crime by 15%,
are you guys now saying
that you're not gonna
reduce violent crime by...?"
That's what it's going to be.
[man] So I guess
the thing that I'm trying
to wrestle with is like,
people are going to
know that this year
we're going to fall short.
And is that gonna
cause them to then
disregard the entire plan
because of this number?
That as you point out,
everyone's gonna focus on it.
What we have to do is
make sure that we tell folks
that we're gonna do
the right work regardless
and stay focused on it.
[pensive music playing]
[Brandon] Many of the folks
that came before me,
those folks would always
kowtow to the pressure.
If the forces come to get me
in four years, eight years,
and make me no longer
the mayor, so be it.
But I know when I'm done,
I'll be able to say that I never
compromised myself or my city.
[hip-hop music playing
over speakers]
[reporter] Mayor, thank you
so much for your time.
So we have to talk to you about
this issue with the governor.
The governor said it seems
as if the mayor is focusing
on defunding police.
You chuckle about that.
What's the reality of this?
For the entirety of my lifetime,
BPD has got the lion's share
of the city's budget.
Guess what. Baltimore's been
one of the most violent cities
every year I've been alive.
It's about how we can do
something that Baltimore
should have done years ago,
and that is strategically
alleviate some of the burden
on things that we put on BPD
that are not
their responsibility
and put them in other agencies.
It's not about defunding.
It's reimagining policing.
But we need everyone
at the table.
I really hope
the governor of Maryland,
who consistently says he wants
to help Baltimore City
with violent crime,
actually meets with me
so that we can talk about
the things that we can work
better together on.
The governor is not meeting
with me, because it doesn't
fit his political agenda.
Baltimore is
a majority-Black city,
a majority-Black poor city.
He has nothing to lose
by not investing in Baltimore,
supporting Baltimore,
lifting up Baltimore,
because we didn't vote for him.
Well, this crime war has become
one big political war,
and tonight politicians
are duking it out over
whose plan is the right plan.
Mayor Brandon Scott fired back,
saying in a tweet,
"Rather than relying solely
on status quo solutions
and MAGA talking points,
how about actually meeting with
me to discuss violent crime,
as I've asked before?"
The mayor says that
he has reached out to you
and he's willing to talk to you.
When will you meet
with the mayor?
I reached out to,
uh, ask the mayor
and his police commissioner,
uh, to come down to Annapolis
so we can hear what kind
of a plan they do have.
Hey, sir, we can get started.
Good morning, Mr. Mayor.
So we're all in agreement
that he won't actually talk
about reducing crime,
there's just gonna be
a bunch of talking points.
So the last two times I've been
in the governor's presence
in a meeting like that,
he really overtalks you.
As much as he tries to act
like he knows about this,
knowing that there's nothing
beneath the surface,
what we have to do
is come out swinging and
showing them what we're doing
and what the focus is,
but also letting that asshole
know that, like,
"Hey, if you guys
were doing your fucking job,
someone on parole and probation
or someone on home monitoring
wouldn't be getting
shot in a car.
[pensive music playing]
[Brandon] The governor controls
Parole and Probation,
Corrections, DJS,
even the city jail.
We need the state agencies
at the table with us
in order to reduce
violence in Baltimore.
Guess we know
that he told the media, huh?
[laughs]
[groans] The rotten fucker.
[guard] Sir.
You all right?
-I'm good, sir. How you doing?
-I'm cool.
[Brandon] So much
for a private meeting, huh?
[guard chuckles]
[Brandon] I'm shocked.
[guard speaks indistinctly]
[Brandon] Thank you.
-Thank you, sir.
-No problem.
-[Brandon] Well, good morning.
-[Hogan] Good morning.
-[Brandon] Sir, how are you?
-[Hogan] Good to see you.
-[Brandon] Thank you.
-[Hogan] Thanks for coming down.
[Brandon] Mr. Governor,
I'll say it this way.
I've had a front-row seat
of how my predecessors
have operated since 2007.
I know exactly
the mistakes they made.
I can pinpoint days
when I think, like,
that's where it took a turn.
What we're actually wanting
to implement now
is our Group Violence
Reduction Strategy.
We're here to talk to you guys
about things that we think
that we can collaborate on.
-Have a good day, mayor.
-You too. Thank you.
Have a good day.
Yes.
[man]
[Brandon] No. He's out
of his league talking
to me about that shit.
You did very well.
You didn't shut up and listen.
His responses and
his statements were totally
different than I've ever seen.
I just wanted to show him, like,
for me, this isn't a joke.
Like, this stuff impacts
people that I know.
It impacts me.
We can't play around
with this thing like it's some
kind of political football.
[upbeat R&B music
playing over speakers]
[reporter 1] Governor Hogan and
Mayor Scott finally met face-
to-face to talk about the issue.
[reporter 2] Both of them say
it was a productive meeting.
I've been governor
for six, uh, years,
and this is my fourth mayor
to come into my office
to talk about a crime plan.
And I would say, uh,
that I was very impressed
that the mayor had
actually put a lot of effort
and thought into it.
And, uh, you know, we're looking
forward to following up
and, uh, assisting them
in whatever way we can.
Hogan was an obstruction.
Uh, it was all about politics.
Now we can get
to the work of saving lives.
-All right.
-All right, good stuff.
-Hey, senator.
-How are you, Mr. Mayor?
-I'm good. You doing all right?
-I'm doing great.
-Sir. You good today?
-Mayor, good to see you.
-I'm good today.
-Commissioner.
-Whew!
-[woman laughs]
[Jackson] We'll be piloting
the Group Violence
Reduction Strategy
in the Western District.
This partnership
with agencies at the state,
city and federal levels
will allow us to focus
on those individuals
who are the most violent
in our community.
This is what a public-health
approach to violence
is all about.
It's about simultaneously
addressing gun violence
and unearthing its root causes.
[Brandon] I am not naive
to the work that we have ahead.
No single policy or initiative
serves as a cure-all
for the long legacy of violence
that Baltimore has endured.
There is no silver bullet.
However, I believe
wholeheartedly that this
transformative approach
can move the needle and make
every neighborhood in Baltimore
a safer place to live.
For the Group Violence
Reduction Strategy,
we're starting in
the Western District.
The Western District
has had more murders
than any other district.
The first step is making
contact with individuals
most at risk for violence.
We're gonna go out
and do our custom notifications.
Today we have three candidates.
We'll be knocking on doors
to deliver some notification
to citizens that may have been
involved in violence.
This letter is from
the mayor's office
trying to offer some type
of services to help them.
[Brandon] "I'm writing you
because you're a citizen
of Baltimore who,
because of your high-risk
behavior and association
with group violence,
may be at very high risk
of engaging in and/or
being a victim of violence.
As mayor of Baltimore
and as your neighbor,
I am committed to doing
everything we can to keep
you alive, safe and free.
We have tried to stop
the violence solely
with law enforcement,
but this has meant arresting
and imprisoning far too many
young men and women.
This has also hurt our families
and communities and failed
to make Baltimore a safer place.
We would like to help you."
"We can offer you education,
job training, job placement,
emergency assistance,
and other services.
We are eager
to help you succeed,
which is ultimately
all we want.
Sincerely, Brandon Scott,
mayor, City of Baltimore."
Thank you for your time, sir.
-[man] Have a good one.
-You too. Thank you.
The next step is to dedicate
people and resources
to help individuals move away
from a life of violence.
Today we're going to see
one of our participants
that has been in the program
for some months now.
We can't show this individual's
face on camera for his safety.
-[man] Hey, Miss Irene.
-Hey.
[man] How you doing?
After I was shot,
I was contacted by the program.
Do you think if I hadn't have
stepped in, you would have
retaliated for that shooting?
[man] Yeah. Probably so.
The way I was going,
it was a lot.
I was like stuck in purgatory.
With the relocation part, like,
I can sit out front of my house.
I don't have to worry
about nobody shooting at me.
I'm releasing the fear.
I wanted to come out here
and talk to you today about
getting you placed into a job.
[man] Uh, I would try again
doing mechanics again.
But then, you know,
they got some desk jobs too.
We're gonna put a plan
together, um, to see exactly
where we can go in order for--
To move forward with
the job-placement thing, right?
-If you're good, I'm good.
-Yes, ma'am.
All right.
It does work, and it is working,
and it's gonna continue to work.
Um, is it a fast-paced thing?
Not by any stretch
of the imagination.
But we are making strides,
and the word is out.
[man over bullhorn]
What do we want?
-Stop shooting!
-[crowd] Start living!
-Stop shooting!
-[crowd] Start living!
-Stop shooting!
-[crowd] Start living!
Stop shooting!
[Johnson] We're sick and
tired of y'all showing up,
killing our brothers,
shooting our sisters,
hurting our kids,
killing our communities.
We're sick and tired
of being sick and tired.
We offer job opportunities.
We offer
educational opportunities.
We offer resources.
[crowd] Safe streets!
-When do we want it?
-Now!
[Johnson] We are
expanding the program.
I'm happy to see Safe Streets
getting the support it deserves.
-Stop shooting!
-[crowd] Start living!
[pensive music playing]
[reporter 1] City leaders
announced plans to expand
a crime-fighting tactic
called the Group Violence
Reduction Strategy.
[reporter 2] Since GVRS launched
in the Western District,
data shows a decrease
in the amount of people
killed or shot
in West Baltimore.
Meanwhile, citywide homicides
still surpassing 300
for the year.
Much of our work during this
foundational year has been about
laying out the groundwork
and ensuring that we have staff
to support the implementation
of the mayor's Comprehensive
Violence Prevention Plan,
which we began
the implementation of the Group
Violence Reduction Strategy
in the Western District,
violence in
the Western District,
which has historically
been the most violent
district in our city,
is down 25%.
Other chronically violent
districts are seeing trends
in the opposite direction.
Baltimore can expect
to see the Group Violence
Reduction Strategy
be operating fully
in the Western District
and an expansion to at least
one additional police district
that will be informed
by the data.
There's a long-term approach,
a medium-term approach,
and there has got to be
a short-term approach.
And I believe that is where
the city has fallen short.
Everything is in West Baltimore.
People in my district steadily
dying and shooting every day,
and every time
you got pilot programs,
they in West Baltimore.
When are you gonna
come over here?
Because in East Baltimore,
there's violence just as bad.
And when do you expect
a reduction in crime for
the entire city of Baltimore
as a result of the mayor's plan?
Um, I think that, um...
it would be...
premature of me to speculate
at this point in the year
when we're going to realize, um,
sustained reductions.
And we stand by
the mayor's position
of a 15% reduction
of homicides year over year
and nonfatal shootings
year over year,
um, that...
We are actively working
on that and will continue to.
[Costello] I appreciate
the response. Um...
Unfortunately, on behalf of the
60-plus thousand constituents
that I represent,
I am not satisfied
with that response.
[councilor]
It is totally unacceptable.
This three-year,
four-year, five-year plan
is not the plan
that I want to see.
We need things done immediately.
It's not enough.
It's not gonna be enough
until we don't see any homicides
or any shootings in our city.
We've been really clear
about that.
I've alluded to the gains
that we're already starting
to see in the Western District.
That's short-term work.
No one, not the mayor nor I,
are happy with where we are yet.
We know that we absolutely
have more work to do.
[introspective music playing]
Baltimore is counting
on us to come together
for the greater good
and to take this moment
as one that we can look back on
and say that we moved
the city in a new direction.
[Brandon] It's frustrating.
There's 300 people gone,
but I feel
personally responsible.
And I feel like, uh,
it makes you think to yourself,
"What else could you
have changed? What else
could you have done?
Where in the system did we miss
this person that did this?"
You know,
"How did they get that gun?
Where did the gun come from?"
That's what I start to think
about when I see this,
because it just makes me
think about the responsibility
of the lives
of those 300 people.
[thunder rumbling]
Dealing with, like, the death
of people, and young
people in particular,
you start to question,
"Could I have stopped that?"
It hurts every time.
And you have to deal
with your feelings in ways
that most people don't.
And for me, most of the time,
that's just quietly.
Like, they say
I'm emotionless or detached.
They forget where I grew up
and how I grew up
and the shit that I saw.
They forget that, like,
you gotta build
those kind of walls.
I need you to be well
whether you mayor or not.
I'm really encouraging so many
people on the front lines
that when it gets bad,
that's definitely not
the time to give up.
I get that there's darkness
trying to grab on to you
in these spaces.
So I'm proud of you, Brandon.
Something that I have had
to learn early on when I first
started doing this work:
My joy is important,
even if people are devastated.
At some point, you really
have to understand, yo,
I'm gonna fucking be gone
way sooner
if I'm swallowed up
by other people's pain
every single time.
Like, murder is this arrogant
energy that make you feel,
"Ain't shit you can do
about me. I'm gonna
take you out regardless."
So your joy is
the thing that fucks up
murder's plan for you.
I wanna bless you.
Is that okay?
People want you
to go in the direction
of what they telling you.
So I want to thank you for going
in the direction of your spirit.
I want to thank you
for going in the direction
of what your heart knows,
even when it's unpopular.
And I am asking
all of our ancestors,
all of our spirit guides,
bless my brother,
stay with my brother,
and camp around him
in his silence,
in his pain, in his joys.
Young Black man,
rumble and shine.
We love him.
Let him know that he is loved
in all that he does.
Bless you.
Honk those horns.
Honk those horns.
Honk your horns
for peace, y'all.
Hey! Tat-tat-tat, yeah!
[both shouting indistinctly]
Happy Ceasefire Weekend.
How you doing? Can I give
you a Ceasefire flyer?
Have a good weekend.
What you see
happening right here
has been happening
all over the city
all weekend long.
Baltimore Ceasefire happens
four times a year.
We just have a peace challenge
asking everybody
not to kill anybody,
but also, you be peaceful.
So this is a way
that we raise the vibration
and inject joy into Baltimore.
[upbeat hip-hop music
playing over speakers]
You wanna say anything
for Ceasefire Weekend?
Nobody kill nobody.
Look who I got with me.
Look who I got with me.
Ho, hey! Hey, hey!
-[Brandon] Hey.
-Hey, Bran.
-What's up? You good?
-Organizing stuff is hard.
[Brandon] Yeah, you know I know.
[both laugh]
[Bridgeford] I forgot.
I was like... [groans]
[energetic drumming]
[pensive music playing]
[Brandon] People will say
that we failed because
we didn't reach that goal
of 15% this year in the city.
Politically, it'd be easy for me
to say, "All right, go out
and arrest everybody"
and make everybody feel safer.
But they're not
going to be safer,
because we've been there before.
This, for me, has never been
about my political career.
This is about Baltimore.
This is about me building
systems that will save lives
so that young boys and girls
don't have to live through
what I lived through.
[introspective music playing]
-How's that?
-That's cool.
Push it in as much as you need.
Stand by, folks.
-We're good?
-[man 1] Okay, boss, I get you.
-[man 2] We're good.
-All right. Stand by.
[Brandon] Three hundred
and thirty-seven homicides,
and every lost life leaves
behind a web of people
left to grapple with that pain.
And we must remember
those we lost as people
and not just numbers.
As a city, we must wrap our arms
around the loved ones
they leave behind
and commit ourselves
to collective healing,
all while working
every single day
to build a safer Baltimore.
In years past, we've read
the names of homicide victims
in chronological order
by the date of their deaths.
This year, we'll be
reading the names of
homicide victims by age.
Zorii Pitts, age two months.
Aubrey Faulkner, age 3.
Deyonte Davis, age 4.
Nivea Anderson, age 5.
Da'neria Thomas, age 6.
Daven Thomas, age 8.
Maliyah Turner, age 13.
[Jackson]
Delmonte Keels, age 16.
Tavon King, age 17.
Terry Williams, age 18.
Curtis Berry, age 18.
[voice fading]
Dayeion Diggs-Smalls, age 19.
[introspective music playing]
[stirring music playing]