Former Baltimore Mayor and Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley has been getting slammed in the media and by some here for what happened to Freddie Gray and for the Baltimore riots. His critics say that his zero tolerance policy on crime is what created the situation in Baltimore these past few weeks. I'd say that is too simplistic and ignores what Baltimore was before O'Malley became mayor and what Baltimore was like when he left the Mayor's office.
In the weeks that come, it will be worth talking about O'Malley's tenure as Mayor in depth. There is the good - lower crime rates, more diverse police force, decrease in police-involved shootings, and excessive force complaints, creation of community boards to police the police, increased funding for after school and community programs to keep kids off the streets. The bad - zero tolerance and areas of Baltimore that were left behind. That won't be enough for those eager to blame all of Baltimore's woes on O'Malley. But, I hope others will be interested in that discussion.
But, that isn't what I want to talk about tonight. I want to talk about leadership.
O'Malley was in Europe to give a series of paid speeches when the riots broke out in Baltimore. He released a statement on the riots:
I'm saddened that the City I love is in such pain this night. All of us share a profound feeling of grief for Freddie Gray & his family We must come together as one City to transform this moment of loss & pain into a safer & more just future for all of Baltimore's people
He cancelled his speeches and headed home. Today, he walked through the city and offered his help and listened to people's concerns and criticisms of him as well as kudos for his job as mayor/governor.
Via NYT (Please click through to read entire article. I could only include 3 paragraphs but whole piece is worth reading):
A few seconds later and a couple yards closer to the intersection, a young man named Chris Dickens read to Mr. O’Malley a list of young black men who he said had been victims of police brutality. “I’ve heard of them all,” Mr. O’Malley said. “I think it’s tragic and I think we all need to search for a deeper and better understanding. ...I buried 10 police officers too, half of them were black and half of them were white.”
Next came Ernest Taylor, who thanked Mr. O’Malley for getting him off drugs through a government prison program. “Ah, good man,” Mr. O’Malley said. “Say that again. Give me a big hug.”
When a reporter asked about some of the criticism he had encountered on the street, the potential presidential candidate said: “Most of the people have been very nice to me. It’s actually — you’ve got to be present in the middle of the pain, man. Everyone’s needed right now in our city.”
To me this is a sign of leadership. He didn't make the easy call and stay in Europe and send out tweets or statements through his spokeswoman. He didn't give a safe interview to a national network. He went out on the streets and stood with his city. For me, this is a prime example of why I am supporting O'Malley for president. Good leaders need to be present. They need to take the abuse of angry citizens and not be shut off from the American public. They need to hear from everyone and not just supporters or donors.
As O'Malley said today “Right now I just wanted to be present.”