Commentary

Symbols are powerful, but it is flesh, blood and grit that bring them to life. Dating back centuries, Lady Justice symbolizes the ideal of impartiality in our justice system. She is blindfolded and holds a set of scales and a sword. The blindfold signifies that justice should be administered equally (although, to some, it may signify blinders to injustice). The scales represent the balance between competing interests in a dispute, and that the interests of the victim, the defendant and society must all be considered.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had a lot to say about Baltimore the other day. During his technologically shaky presidential campaign announcement on Twitter Spaces, DeSantis dismissed the NAACP’s travel advisory for Florida by bringing up us and fellow bogeyman city Chicago as places “kids [are] more likely to get shot than to receive a first-class education.” You know what DeSantis, who was my governor for a year before I left Florida to return to my native Baltimore, hasn’t said anything about?

The lyrics to a song that became popular at the end of World War I chronicled domestic concerns about U.S. soldiers’ reluctance to return to their family farms after experiencing European city life and Parisian culture during the war. Today in the wake of the pandemic, many businesses across the country may be experiencing similar sentiments. Employees who had no choice but to work from home when Covid forced a national shutdown have gotten used to the freedom and flexibility remote work affords.

The most recent weekly report from City Hall shows spikes in the number of squeegee workers at some Baltimore intersections — Light and Lombard, for instance, and along President Street. But the overall trend since January, when Mayor Brandon Scott rolled out his big plan to address the issue, has been fewer reports and complaints about workers with spray bottles and squeegees in city streets.

House Bill 588, which would have allowed immigrants without documentation to gain access to health coverage through the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange, failed to gain approval in the General Assembly this year. This unfortunate result spells trouble for many state residents who are at high risk for delaying essential care. While advocates regroup to try again next session, what are families to do?

Back in the 1970s, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed an enormous functioning hydraulic model of the Chesapeake Bay. Although long ago replaced by much more accurate computer simulations, there was one extremely valuable lesson passed along to the busloads of schoolchildren who would visit the 14.5-acre indoor facility on Kent Island: How shallow it all was. Sure, the deepest part of the bay (in real life, a 174-feet “hole” near Bloody Point not far from Annapolis; in the scale model, 21 inches deep) was impressive, but most of the display would hardly raise a splash if you stomped on it.

As Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) embarks on a new chapter with the appointment of a new superintendent, we believe this is a turning point — an opportunity to transform into a world class education system. We, the Prince George’s County Educators’ Association (PGCEA), the Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel (ASASP), the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 2250 (ACE-AFSCME Local 2250), and the Service Employees International Union 400 (SEIU 400), stand together with a focus on positive change and solutions.