Freddie Gray's death is a tragedy for his family, a wound in Baltimore's social fabric and another reminder of the systemic racism that has oppressed people of color in America for some 400 years. Hopefully a full and fair investigation will determine how and why he died ("Preventing the next death in police custody," April 24).
Yet when Gene Ryan, the president of the local Fraternal Order of Police, describes those protesting Mr. Gray's death as a "lynch mob," the depth of ignorance so prevalent in our society is on full display.
Mr. Ryan justified his statement by saying "when you're trying to put somebody in jail before all the facts [are presented] and the investigation hasn't been completed, that's wrong."
Whatever happened to Mr. Gray, is it really any wonder that citizens of Baltimore — especially those disempowered economically and targeted due to their race and ZIP code — are fed up?
The police said Mr. Gray was in a high-crime area and fled from the police. Is it a surprise that someone who lives in a high-crime area would flee from the police given the devastation of entire neighborhoods caused by the so-called "war on drugs" over the last 40 years?
However this incident gets resolved, let's remember the bigger picture: The system in Baltimore, in Maryland and across the nation, needs to be fixed.
Our racially-biased criminal justice system is an insult to the ideal of equal justice under law and it is an obstacle to the creation of an ethical culture.
Hugh Taft-Morales, Baltimore
The writer leads the Baltimore Ethical Society.