Trans Teen Killed In Baltimore Suburb

[Carolyn Marie]

http://www.newnownext.com/transgender-teen-killed-baltimore-bailey-reeves/09/2019/

 

Wrong place at the wrong time.  May she rest in peace, and may justice be administered for her killer.

 

Carolyn Marie

[Lexi C]

wow I can't believe 17th trans people have been kill just in this year.  Sometimes I feel so helps with my voice. I wish I know who to reach to and get some kinda of bill or something...Wow 17..thats so tragic it just makes my heart sink

[Josie Beth]

Baltimore is a very violent city. It’s one of the reasons I no longer live there. It’s one of the few places where people would rather shoot someone over petty disagreements than live and let live. And there’s also a very distinct culture of male dominance and false bravado there in spite of some of the more progressive movements there. It’s also seen a very large surge of ultra radical new black panther sentiments in the last several years and they have no love for anything outside the sexual binary. These negative opinions about lgbtq are openly voiced in public. Black Hebrew nation members preach on street corners condemning sodomy and Edomites equally while wearing pseudo biblical priest outfits and passing out their pamphlets with more of the same condemnation. By and large most of the male population has an identity crisis, they don’t know where they fit in society and grasp for any mentorship that seems like a solid foundation to build an identity upon, but more often than not it’s ripe for ill guided behavior. So who’s the usual role model for these lost individuals? Drug dealers, felons (both in and out of jail), gangs, hate groups, radical religious movements. Coupled with the need to prove their manhood, it’s pretty obvious why this metro region is dangerous. Even the gay culture there is not acceptable unless they “keep to themselves” but it doesn’t stop men in the closet from going to the local gay cruising spots to cheat on wives and girlfriends. Those are perhaps the most likely to lash out in protection of their fragile egos. See it’s ok if it’s behind closed doors and over there, just stay over there with it. But the minute it threatens to encroach on the territory of the heterosexual identity they have built, it’s a dire threat. Even if they share the responsibility for crossing the imaginary border they see as a very strict wall. It’s not their fault, nope. Blame it on the person that they used and tricked into thinking they were different. Get rid of them and then all those dirty little secrets will just melt away. It’s a complex issue, but it’s also not surprising in a largely adolescent minded population. The more enlightened people there seem to be the exception rather than the norm. I’m saddened that this girl was cut down at a young age, but I also, unfortunately, am not surprised it is a recurring problem in Baltimore.

[Lexi C]

• Hey J.B unfortunately you just describe every large and small metropolitan city. I grow up in Queens N.Y 30min from the city and it was the same there as it is here in north hollywood C.A....I am hoping with time, with the right progressive thinkers and  a moderation of love and compassion that lives Neighborhoods  and broken culture will eventually be cured. Be Proud, Stay safe and Kick Ass

[Josie Beth]

Queens might be old suburbia, but it’s still in the city. The Bronx and Brooklyn are just a train ride away. Manhattan is probably the only relatively “safe” borough and that’s even shaky at times. The difference is really population densities. But LA and New York are both huge. It’s not uncommon to find violence in Baskin-Robbins 31 flavors.

 

Baltimore is dangerous in much the same way but the dynamic is slightly different because it’s a smaller city, but it’s also between two major areas, New York and DC. There’s a reason why the drug epidemic is so catastrophic there, it’s a thoroughfare for all kinds of trafficking.

 

I remember living in Detroit and having Mexican restaurants on every block. Baltimore, in contrast to that, has recovery houses, and recovery meeting places on just about every block, but there’s still a huge epidemic. Everyone is an addict, and even if they are not, everyone is saying “you are too, you just don’t want to admit it yet.” It’s a culture of victimization. Everything is an addiction that “you” need a meeting for. It’s ridiculous. People prey on others either directly or indirectly because of drugs, or they are trained to put on the robes of victimhood. That’s also an addiction, claiming everything is the fault of some kind of addiction, or addictive behavior. I personally got burned out being surrounded by the perpetual pity party of people who just wouldn’t own their behaviors. Say that 5 times really fast. It’s such a deeply ingrained part of the local culture that they should have the most successful recovery programs in the country but for all that funding and support, compared to other places, it boggles the mind just how ineffective these programs really are. Everyone is familiar with the 12 steps and the lingo of addiction and recovery. But, it’s like a revolving door. Sure Detroit has addicts and recovery too, but it’s different, not the same undercurrent. For all it’s faults I never really saw it being as ridiculous as Baltimore is.  Detroit is like a bigger version of Queens, it’s spread out and more single homes as far as the eyes can see, except downtown which reminds me of a better version of Baltimore downtown. 

 

Baltimore has got a lot more in common with the Bronx. Funny thing is that Baltimore actually (for the most part) is much better looking than the Bronx. It’s just a weird little city. But the cosmetic facelift belies the dark side of it.

 

Johns Hopkins campuses are in the worst neighborhoods, because the founders thought they were being philanthropic at the time but it has contributed to serious criminal problems. Eventually gentrification solves the problem but it just pushes it away from immediately being apparent to the casual observer. Even though the city has gone out of its way recently to even bus homeless people out away from their historical stomping grounds or the downtown area, they head right back to where they are used to hanging out once they get their three hots and a cot. Other non governmental shelters are encouraged to send their guests to the bus pickup locations to get them out of town. But it’s just a visual bandaid. It’s not really dealing with the root of the problem and now suburbs have to deal with the influx of hobos that don’t want to keep making the trip back and forth. It’s turning into a population shuffling experiment. Wherever they move undesirable people it creates a clash of culture that has negative consequences. Drugs, crime, and prostitution are then foisted on people who worked hard to get away from it. And yes that’s true in many cities, but not to the degree of stupidity and carelessness of Baltimore.

 

Charm city is only charming to people who either visit the harbor or stay within the circle of the upper crust.

 

Just to make it even clearer, if the city really wanted to boost the economy, create better employment opportunities for lower income families, and give them better access to quality of life, they could simply put 2 more subway lines in and solve many problems. Instead they used the public transportation system as a form of segregation because only people that live along the route of the one line have easy access to some of the best jobs. That excludes anyone in south Baltimore, east or west and definitely northeast. The light rail somewhat solves the south side problem because it goes to BWI, but it’s a cobbled together half measure. So instead of having choices it creates a hugely competitive atmosphere where many more people than a system can handle are all trying to get the jobs along these routes and everyone else is either left to alternative forms of income, or they have to travel bus lines for hours to get to jobs nobody wants without a car. That’s very lopsided. It also helps feed the drug problem even more. I’m not saying that it would solve all these problems but it would definitely help improve the quality of life for a significant number of people and take some strain out of the equation. It’s also bound to create several jobs, such as more train drivers and the need for more police riding the trains, which is handled by the state police, not the city (the state transit police are usually better officers). It’s also good for the roadways and the environment because it’s fairly economical to ride the train with a monthly pass. Instead of thinking big picture like this, city council is usually dumping time and money into downtown venues for entertainment, which is based on residual income of tourism and sports, instead of basing city revenue on the more steady needs based expenditures, like transit and the use of businesses along daily travel routes. It tries so hard to be flashy, but when the makeup comes off it’s a one armed toothless hag.

 

Unfortunately that’s probably just a microcosm of most cities in America where outdated roadways and transit systems are used to further segregated cities. But it’s really obvious in Baltimore. And a major reason for the strain there is an inept city council who are more concerned with embezzling funds than fixing the short sighted visions that they have implemented. 

 

Contrast this with European cities, where in spite of the older architecture that they have to work around, and a much different financial model, they have managed to make the most out of infrastructure and public transportation systems, which definitely improved the quality of life and cleanliness of their urban centers. It’s not going to fix everything, but it’s definitely an excellent example of what benefits can be achieved with proper planning.

 

But just to prove that this doesn’t always fix anything, the recent influx of refugees and immigrants are creating culture clashes that undermine the previous efforts of good planning. Ultimately, it falls on the shoulders of the people who are apt to playing social experiment games with humans to stop doing that and figure out how to implement programs that reduce the violence of these changes. After all that is also a very much overlooked variable. Perhaps it’s up to us to start building our own think tanks and bring back the more touchy-feely and spiritual aspects to government and public planning, I’m not sure. But instead of bemoaning what happens to us because of ham handed public policy, we should contribute to better ideas that benefit the whole population and cement our value in culture and society. It’s time for forward thinking of a different kind. 7th generation thinking.

[Lexi C]

Yeah but John Waters is from Baltimore that something..Am I right or Am I right. Hugs ….Go Gaints

[Josie Beth]

Yes, John Waters is a Baltimore native. His neighborhood is just West of JHU and probably considered one of the quirkiest areas in the city. But it’s also considered outside the traditional city limits. The other side of JHU to the east is still kind of rough around the edges where Greenmount and 33rd meet, and there’s still a very busy market area with family owned businesses and some seedier shops. It’s kinda like Lexington market downtown but without the dedicated market space. It’s called Waverly, the old home to the Colts. The stadium is long gone now but it’s been replaced by a community recreation center in the shape of the stadium that boasts a pretty decent gym to workout in. I used to live nearby at one time. It’s not as bad as some places further south on Greenmount, but the clash between suburbia and hood is palpable.

 

From there to North Avenue, it’s an odd mixture of brick storefronts, trendy restaurants, and seedy motels, with older houses in various conditions peppered intermittently.

 

North Avenue has a reputation for being rough. I used to live 2 blocks away from that street and Pennsylvania Avenue, where a CVS was burnt in the riot that coincided with Ferguson in St. Louis.

 

That neighborhood also skirts another university: Coppin State, which is traditionally an African American college. Funny thing is that the area used to be an entirely different demographic when my grandfather lived nearby and took the trolley to Middle River in early WW II to build sea planes. When I lived there I was the minority, one of just a few “white” people in the whole neighborhood. Let’s just say it was not as ethnically diverse as another area I lived in south of downtown. 

 

But I’m rambling away from my initial thoughts. John was always a part of that upper crust society, although he did push the boundaries of decency, there’s definitely a difference between his circles and the lower class. That’s the luxury that being artsy afforded him and those who he rubbed elbows with. The theatre realm is a magical dimension that lives on the fringes but is accepted by the affluent because it’s art.

 

It is, however, art that is difficult for the majority of the population to access or even appreciate. Not until recently has there even been an attempt to create more cerebral screen writing by representatives from the inner city residents. But they are also considered on the fringe by their own peers, even if what they are presenting is appreciated on a casual level. They often miss the depth of the discussion that these artists are trying to convey, and condense it to a cliff notes interpretation, often discarding the solutions entirely and content to take home a more “NWA/ F the police” message than discuss strategies to rise above such sentiments.

 

So that’s the predicament of the long established racial/class boundaries between people, it’s as if it’s so ingrained now that people cling to it while at the same time they gripe about it. Which points back to this weird dance with addiction, where the victims worship their captors in a sort of Stockholm syndrome. It’s entirely a mental hang up that plagues the city. True insanity that rears it’s ugly head all too often. It’s this kind of self imposed mental segregation that keeps people from appreciating higher thinking and perpetuates the separation of arts.

 

So John Waters is still mostly an oddity that doesn’t really cross as many boundaries as we would think. Unless you take a cross section of the queer population. We might appreciate him, but that doesn’t mean that the majority of Baltimoreans appreciate or even understand their own native son. They would rather go spend way too much money and time watching the Ravens and Orioles lose games than think about breaking the cycle. 

[reyindium]

The violence directed at transwomen of color sickens me. American culture propagates violence and marginalized minorities are such easy targets. With so few resources, institutionalized racism, and rampant transphobia, these poor women didn't stand a chance.

 

[Josie Beth]

It’s not always such a cut and dry issue. If you read anything that I posted here, living in Baltimore really opened up my eyes to a lot of things including the injustice there. But it’s not just directed at one race or one marginalized group and sometimes people who are assumed members of said groups are themselves the predators. Take city council for one example. Many of the movers and shakers at that level are guilty of exploitation and corruption. They pay lip service but stab their own adoring fans in the back with a smile and a photo opportunity. The other side of this is the perpetual victimhood crutch. And I have been guilty of that as well in the past. Baltimore literally chewed me up and spit me out from day one. But I was determined after being stuck in depression for a few years to pick myself up and dust myself off and think outside the box. It’s a toxic environment definitely, but I was in no position to stick it out and change anything but myself and where I was. I struggled for ten years of wasted time to make it work but it didn’t. So I got away from the place because that was the only thing I could do. I left behind friends, possessions, and my home. Sometimes survival is more important than anything else. Unfortunately many people who are born and raised there are unwilling to give up on the toxic relationship they have with Baltimore and think that that’s all life has to offer. It’s a seductive lie that will make excuses for you to keep you immobilized. I’m not rich but I was resourceful enough to get public assistance and turned it into a ticket out of there. I had nothing else to lose. Sometimes we choose to enslave ourselves mentally and that’s par for the course in Baltimore. Just ask the average person on the street if they have ever visited anywhere else outside of Baltimore and most people will say no. They don’t even entertain the idea. It’s almost seen as a way to lose street credibility. Maybe some will hop on a Chinese bus to go visit New York but that’s just to go spend money on big name knockoff fashion. It’s about comfort zones. People get used to their routine. They lose sight of what is really important in life. It’s a part of the programming.

 

Now I'm not saying that the deck isn’t stacked against them. It certainly was against me. But I also shed the illusion that there was no way out. It wasn’t comfortable or even easy to find a way to get out. But I did. I realized that there was a trade off for any hope of saving my own life, and that takes sacrifice. Sometimes you have to come to terms and realize that the little you have that can tie you to a place isn’t worth it. Unfortunately many people still there are not able to jump that mental hurdle. They want to keep the things that tie them down. And it’s very seductive. Constantly the culture, media and everything around you is putting the latest fashions and possessions on a pedestal. Those shallow items are the prize everyone is clamoring over each other in a selfish race to grab up. Baltimore is the poster child of ghetto fabulous.

 

Granted, someone 16 years old isn’t going to consider that seriously. And perhaps in this case getting out was not even a factor that could have been a reality. But it’s an option many people who can make the choice never do.

 

We don’t have all the answers for any of these tragedies. Sometimes the victims have contributed to their own problems. Sometimes they simply were in the wrong place at the wrong time. And yes, sometimes they are deliberately targeted because of their identity, but sometimes it’s because they are witnesses to other crimes. It’s not always a direct answer to the question. It’s a symptom of much larger overarching issues that plague all facets of society and not just one segment. I think we do these women an injustice if we oversimplify their tragedies. Yes it does bring to light the discussion of the right to be who we want without fear of being attacked, but it’s not the only issue in the conversation, and neither is the disparity of race and class. It’s a conversation about the human condition and human cost. But there is one underlying theme to it all: the preservation of dignity and respect for each individual to self determination. That’s an issue that effects everyone because it’s little understood and even less practiced. Until that truth sinks in to the human mind, these things will continue to happen to all kinds of people. Perhaps the best advice I have ever heard with respect to this single issue of respecting others right to their own agency is “be the change you want to see in the world”, and another is “each one teach one”. It’s a battle of ideas, dialogue, and ethical actions. That’s not going to happen with Facebook posts decrying the injustice of it all or protesting and hurling pejorative phrases. That just creates a spectacle. It’s almost as morbid as parading a corpse down the street. It’s going to take a demonstration of dignity and respect extended to others if they are willing to listen. It’s not dominoes lined up yet, but a little work can bring it there.

 

But in the meantime what are we doing to help each other and reduce the chances of tragedy like this? Are we thinking about creating safe spaces for each other? Are we pooling any resources to even the odds? Are we creating community proactively? Are we paying attention to our surroundings? Are we living under false assumptions? Are we engaged in risky behavior? These are serious questions for deep examination. 17 tragedies is more than enough of a wake up call. It’s obvious that we can’t count on society to fix the problem. It’s also obvious that we can’t keep reverting to being oblivious until the next tragedy happens. 

[Kris-Boston]

I have been to Baltimore its a nice city  but  crime occurs everywhere .  General reason lack of hope , resources and ability to earn a living .  Once someone has a criminal record the odds of them being gainfully employed in a postion that pays a living wage is a very tough path .  When I was in law enforcement one of the sources I had was a very honest thief , he earned his living braking into peoples homes . His cousin was the elected District Attorney and I know that the man I spoke to often even though he was a convicted felon was a much more decent person .  But basic things such as street lights and buses and trains that run on time help deter crime but when the elected officials put their hands in the cookie jar less funds to fix the  priorities of the community .  They stay in office pitting one group against another they are the ones who should be shamed . 

[Josie Beth]

I’ve never been to a city that I absolutely loved. Detroit came close but only for a short time. I guess I’m still searching for something to call home, and that’s part of it, but I’m also not really impressed by the illusion of a nice downtown. The casual visitor doesn’t have to deal with the darker side of most cities most of the time.

 

I get what you’re saying. It’s not easy to hold down a job once you have a record. I was almost on the same path until I really looked in the mirror and realized that the only person who is going to look out for my well being is me. Not the cool kids claiming to be my friends or promising to bail me out if I took the fall. But for many in Baltimore it’s a struggle to choose the right things. It’s not impossible to find a living wage, it’s just not easy. So faced with a job they hate, when they could get money a lot quicker... it’s a numbers game to them. But once they get caught, it’s harder to make that easy money the next time, and even harder the next. Diminishing returns get smaller and smaller. Until they paint themselves into a corner and have to take that job nobody else wants all the way across town for even less money. But it still boils down to a choice and seductive options. Keep making bad choices and then the opportunities get thinner. At that point the dealer turns to depression and then the drugs or the alcohol, then life under a bridge. It’s repeated over and over. It’s not just that life isn’t fair, it’s that people don’t learn from mistakes. I agree that often times the thief is a better person than the politician, but that’s because they don’t lie about what they are. The politician is usually just a thief with a fancy title who treats people badly when the cameras are off. They aren’t being truthful about what they are. And often times the people who plan city projects are dipping into the funds yes, but they also have wealthy investors pressuring them to approve projects that add little real value to a city and certainly won’t improve the overall quality of life. So they can get the new stadium but not a decent housing project or additional rail line. They can remodel the city hall or a museum but can’t even fathom rehabbing a few blocks of abandoned houses, at least not until they turn them into condos at 10 times the reasonable price. It’s a disconnect between reality and fantasy of the return investment. It’s why stupid rules like no tailgating unless you have an overpriced ticket to the game are being implemented: because people just don’t buy it anymore. It’s why dinosaurs like cable tv and printed newspapers are losing customers. The ends don’t justify the means. It’s the same bad choice that the drug dealer made above when they chose between a steady job and quicker money in the short term. It’s just at a higher level of stupidity. 

 

So so as I was saying earlier, since the deck is stacked, it’s time to start thinking with the longer view, with sustainability in mind. And these tools of thinking are not taught in school. Instead we get fed either a fantasy or get bombarded with reality to hopelessness. We are distracted by pointless exercises that rob us from true wisdom. Then one day after earning a degree we find out that all we got from the deal is mountains of debt and an unpaid internship. So back to the mundane job that doesn’t pay squat. It’s not always that way but often enough to see a pattern emerge. So what do we do with this information? Do we dwell on the negativity and wallow in depression? Do we just let the current carry us out to sea? Or do we think proactively and really do something besides moan and meme. Cliches and slogans only go so far. 

 

I’m not saying any of this to be combative or dismissive at all. I’m hoping that this spurs some ideas for solutions. I’m asking questions and making points to cultivate the mind. I’m saying that if this is an issue that concerns us, then we should be willing to steer the discussion in a more thoughtful way. We should be building solutions instead of relying on a broken system to bail us out. And that doesn’t mean tearing it down or voting people in or out because the legwork is still on the street where it’s most effective. People building their own positive trends will drive political changes. 

[Kris-Boston]

I think in the end its the basics of life ,  a few weeks ago was in Bangor ME , it still has canals going though the center of town and there and many parts of upstate Maine , one can buy a home for less than 100,000 .  Homes in MA, much of the East Coast and West Coast now run 500,000 and up , and you do not get much . Wages have not gone up much since the 1970's .  But even there you can see the poverty but I think more pride and spirt than what I saw in Baltimore .  Saddest city I have ever been to was St Louis , someone tried to mug me . Called 911 and its been about 10 years and still no response .  Been to Colombia and felt much safer and some people are still using animals to move scraps .  Have not been to Detroit yet but its coming back in some ways . Kind of like rural Maine . 

 

Some fun things I do is grow some vegetables and on occasion fish . It does not save much but makes me happy.  

Going for walks , a bike ride , a swim and volunteering  for some things makes my day .  Still dealing with fool at work in which some days I think the modern workplace is more like a zoo .  

 

But big pharma got a lot of people hooked on drugs , in the prior generations  it was mostly beer or the other spirits .

 

But voting is key . Getting good people to run for office with new ideas and common sense would be fantastic .

 

[Josie Beth]

Detroit was great until Kwame Kilpatrick basically ran it into the ground during the recession with embezzlement. He was corrupt, had a girl murdered at a mayoral party and the cops suspected him but somehow the case was bungled. He was the snobby kid of a politician family who got elected in spite of his troubled youth selling drugs and then he acted like that in office. He was called the hip hop mayor. After the damage he did the city was forced to auction off exhibits at the Detroit institute of arts museum just to get out of trouble. It’s also why they had the utilities crisis in the city not too long ago. I’m still not sure it’s ever going to be the same as it was back in 2000. 19 years later and it’s limping along still. But that’s another great example of people voting in someone who they thought might help change things for the better who ended up raping the city. 

 

St. Louis is definitely on the list of don’t live there. I begged my parents to move away from there and finally they did. I only lived and worked on the outskirts. The inner city inside the interstates is something I absolutely avoided. 

 

It’s great if you can vote the right people into office but historically that hasn’t gone very well for the last 16 + years. Some things have improved but then someone else comes along and destroys whatever progress was accomplished, so does it really matter? It’s definitely important but it’s not always going to work. I’m talking more about creating safe houses (like in the show Pose) and networking to find employment for people who don’t want to live on the street. Creating safe spaces when the existing ones are inadequate for whatever reason. Stories like this girl who was taken in and adopted by a couple on this forum is a good example. Growing vegetables and fishing is a good idea but it’s not really for everyone and sometimes impractical. For transgender people toothpaste and toiletries are great but that’s not really adequate either. Maybe it’s time to start something up. You know, network with organizations in bigger cities that are already doing what I’m talking about, ask them to explain their model, then after figuring out the ins and outs, seek donations. Throw our own money into the pot. Or just ask people within the community. It’s not just going to some anonymous charity but to ourselves. Baby steps at first but something besides waiting for election season. I have to get ready for work so for now I’ll have to put this down for a while. And no I’m not asking for money here. I’m just brainstorming. 

 

[Maid In Bedlam]

This channel is not available.

 

Seems very suspect that the channel is no longer avaliable.

 

thats what i get anyway.