Author Archives: Roberto Alejandro

(Updated May 1, 2014) Unemployment, dilapidated buildings, a dearth of municipal services, an overabundance of police, lack of healthcare, and hunger defined the social conditions that compelled Marshal “Eddie” Conway to join the Black Panther Party in the late 60s. Forty-seven years later, Conway remains politically active, continuing a life-long struggle against social realities he […]

Twelve years ago, at age 58, sculptor and traditional doll maker Paula Whaley purchased a property near the intersection of North Charles and 21st streets. Her neighbors at the time consisted of a methadone clinic and boarded up houses. “Because I was from Harlem and I had gone through the ’50s with the whole heroin […]

Michael Mayfield had only played the baritone horn for about a year as a member of the Edmondson-Westside High School marching band. But he took to the instrument so quickly that of the two scholarships he had been offered by different colleges, one was for band. Mayfield was murdered on April 16, gunned down as […]

War ravaged infrastructure, inconsistent power, and a shortage of hot water were a few of the obstacles Morgan State University School of Architecture and Planning students had to overcome in designing a library and student center, called an E-brary, for William V.S. Tubman University in Harper, Liberia. Thuy Do, Zoia Jenkins, and Zahra Naserdeghan were […]

A planned demonstration on May Day seeks to advance a number of labor rights issues in Baltimore City, including a request for a raise in the minimum wage to $15 an hour. While Maryland’s minimum wage is now set to rise to $10.10 an hour by 2018, workers who currently rely on similar wages say […]

As police evacuated KIPP Academy in west Baltimore following reports of a possible gunman at the school April 3, anxious parents waited behind police lines for news of their children. “Heartbreaking. You don’t know what to do,” said Tierra Young, mother of a six-year old in the academy. “This is the worst experience I could […]

Natalie Hickman, a 23-year-old resident of Baltimore City, makes $8 an hour working at a McDonald’s located in BWI Airport. Only afforded four hours of work a day, Hickman spends as much time commuting to and from her job on public transportation as she does working her shift. She makes less than $480 a month. […]

For many Baltimore City residents, accessing dental care is a journey fraught with prohibitive co-pays, lack of coverage, and difficulty finding practices accepting new patients. Outside of a social services center on North Broadway, a bus converted into a full-service dental office is helping to address the lack of access to dental treatment for Baltimore’s […]

Allegations by a Baltimore Police Department detective detailing harassment after he testified about wrongdoing on the part of two colleagues have highlighted challenges the department faces in attempting to enforce reforms instituted by Commissioner Anthony W. Batts. In February, Det. Joe Crystal told WBAL-TV 11 that he was castigated by fellow officers after coming forward […]