The beginning of the end?

The craziness of the last few days in Baltimore, USA, has made me seriously think if the recurring riots are to become larger, more common and more violent.

Firstly, I am not going to claim that riots are a good thing and I am not going to state that they are unjustified. I do not wish to offend anyone who feels passionately about this subject and I am merely expressing an opinion on what is going on.

On Monday 27th of April there was a funeral for Freddie Gray, a 25 year old black man who died in police custody. What has followed from this are protests in Baltimore. These protests then developed into violent riots. These riots are protests against the law enforcement's handling of black Americans and what they believe to be racist acts. Again, I am not completely informed on this matter and only taking my information from news websites.

Now as a British citizens we are only given information from British broadcasters. This means that the information might be filtered or altered in some way. However, as a human it is incredible to watch what is happening over there. The videos of looting, fighting and conflicts between law enforcement and African-Americans are terrifying. When you look at these videos you can't help to compare them to something out of some apocalyptic film not a democratic nation of the west.

Riots are awful regardless of their motive. The destroying and burning of buildings, the looting of shops and beating up of pedestrians is completely wrong. However, what these rioters are doing is getting the publicity they crave.

Peaceful protests are always the correct way to express an opinion. However, do you honestly think the world would be looking upon Baltimore and the corruption that seems to curse America if they simply walked down a street holding a few banners? Are riots a violent and inhumane act or an explosion of frustration at the result of being patient for so long?

There is obviously a huge issue in regards of police treatment of ethnic minorities in America and there are statistics that support this. What concerns me is whether this issue is genuinely being addressed or just forgotten about until another riot happens.

America seems to only pay attention to itself when it starts imploding. We saw it before when Ferguson was declared in a state of emergency. Now it is happening in Baltimore and you can guarantee it will happen again.

What I question is if this will get sorted or just get worse and worse?

Just imagine the riots we see in the news erupting to national level. The worlds biggest superpower will literally fall to pieces. A country that prides itself on equality, democracy and the 'American Dream' will become a land of civil war. I understand this is incredibly far-fetched and a little ridiculous but it does concern me how violent a nation can come after being sparked by one particular death. If there is a building of frustration amongst American ethnic-minorities, when will it eventually surface? There seems to be so much pain in America that is hidden to the rest of the world that it makes you question how free this 'land of the free' is?