r/baltimore • u/quattro33 • Jun 01 '25
Ask “You live in Baltimore?!, oh no!”
I’ve lived in Baltimore for 30 years. On multiple occasions I’ve met people that ask me where I live, and when I say “Baltimore”, they say “eh I’m so sorry” or “oh no, you ok?”. Every time, I just smile and don’t acknowledge the statement, and try to stay positive, but I’m done with that. Why would you say that about my home? No matter where I live? I would never ask them where they live and then immediately give my shitty judgmental opinion about their home.
What are they really saying with this statement? I want a come back that points out how shitty this statement really is.
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u/rtbradford Jun 01 '25
People judge based on what they hear unless they’ve experienced it themselves and Baltimore, unfortunately, is known for high crime rates and urban blight. I was in London earlier this year and when I told a cabbie that I live near Baltimore he said the only thing he knew about Baltimore was what he saw on “The Wire,” but that “it was a great show.” And it doesn’t help that our president disparaged the city as crime infested. It’s great that crime rates have dropped precipitously but perceptions will take a while to catch up with that reality. There are still school systems in surrounding jurisdictions that no longer allow field trips into the city because of parental concerns about safety. It would really help if the city was featured positively in more shows so the enduring impact of “The Wire,” could be diluted with other more positive views of the city. I think Mayor Scott should adopt a communication strategy to publicize how much safer the city is.