In a scene from the new Masterpiece adaptation of “Les Miserables,” Jean Valjean takes the young Cosette out of the safety of their convent hideaway for the first time in many years and into the bustling streets of Paris. We see a seedy 19th-century Parisian neighborhood swarming with beggars and thieves and con artists in a swirl of unsavory activity. It reminded me of Baltimore.
With the same urgency as those French indigents, bands of Baltimore's homeless and squeegee kids regularly approach cars stopped at busy intersections all over town hoping to score a buck or two. It is a daily annoyance, especially for those of us unable to contribute. The homeless at least are polite. But a squeegee kid once called me a "f-ing racist" when I declined his service. Ahh, the joys of city living.
And then there's the muggings, a dreaded rite-of-passage for far too many a Baltimorean. Mine happened late one night last September on a poorly lit midtown side street. I was confronted by an apparently-armed young man while getting out of my car and, foolishly perhaps, I ran. Thank God another car came by, causing my attacker to flee the scene. I was extremely lucky — I walked away with my life and my car and my wallet and my cellphone. Too many crime victims are not as fortunate. People are shot and killed nearly every day in this town.