A digest of Baltimore news from local sources.
From the Baltimore Sun: Pugh, Dixon Virtually Tied in Baltimore Mayor’s Race, Poll Finds
"State Sen. Catherine E. Pugh and former Mayor Sheila Dixon are locked in a virtual tie in the Democratic race to become Baltimore's next mayor, a new poll for The Baltimore Sun and the University of Baltimore shows.
"Pugh, whose support has surged in recent weeks, is now favored by 26 percent of likely voters in the Democratic primary. That's two points higher than the 24 percent who back Dixon, who has led the field for months. Businessman David L. Warnock, who has spent more than $650,000 on television ads, is in third place with 10 percent.
"City Councilman Nick J. Mosby was in fourth with 6 percent, followed by lawyer Elizabeth Embry with 5 percent and Councilman Carl Stokes with 3 percent. All other candidates in the crowded field of 13 Democrats — including prominent Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson and engineer Calvin Young III — garnered less than 1 percent.
"With seven weeks to go until the April 26 primary, there is time for the race to change. A quarter of Democrats said they are undecided. And even among those who back a candidate, nearly half said they are open to switching to someone else."
From the AFRO American: Md Legislature Seeks Lead Protections for People Like Freddie Gray
"At the time of his death in April 2015, Freddie Gray was living off of a “pennies on the dollar” lump sum lead poisoning payment arranged by Access Funding, a financial company that purchases court-ordered settlements meant to be paid out to victims, often called “lead babies,” over many years. This month, members of the Maryland General Assembly and the Maryland Attorney General are seeking to make it more difficult for vulnerable victims of lead poisoning and other payees to sell their settlements to “predatory companies” according to Attorney General Brian Frosh.
"HB 535/SB 734 sponsored in the House of Delegates by Michael Busch, Speaker of the House and delegate Samuel Rosenberg, representing Baltimore’s 41st district, would require more protections for persons like Gray and his sisters, who also won structured settlements for their lead poisoning cases. The gray family all sold their settlements to a financial company in exchange for a lump sum payment.
"The bill would require that victims who are awarded court-ordered settlements receive independent financial counseling to determine if a lump-sum settlement is in their best interest."
From City Paper: Eddie Conway Discusses Art, Activism, and Community Ahead of Contemporary Talk
"Marshall "Eddie" Conway was released from prison two years ago last Friday, March 4. And he’s been busy. In addition to working for The Real News Network as a producer and journalist, he's focused on work with the Coalition of Friends, a mentoring project in Gilmor Homes. Conway, the former Minister of Defense for the Baltimore chapter of the Black Panther Party, was convicted in 1971 for murdering a police officer but has always maintained his innocence. And after nearly 44 years in prison, Conway was released on parole when the Maryland Court of Appeals decided that he had not been given a fair trial.
"This Thursday, March 10, in The Contemporary's latest installment of their Talking Shop speaker series—which explores the intersections of health, technology, activism, art, and more—Eddie Conway will join performance artist and activist Tania Bruguera in conversation with Contemporary board trustee (and erstwhile City Paper contributor) Lionel Foster. I caught up with Eddie Conway in his glass-walled office (which is decorated with several prints by Emory Douglas) at The Real News Network to talk about artists as activists, changing communities through grassroots efforts, and why he has never stopped organizing. This Q&A has been condensed and edited for clarity.
"CP: And what does that look like to you, an artist-activist? How can artists be activists, what are some things they can do?
"EC: Take this guy right here, let's just focus on Emory Douglas. He not only did the art but he also went out in the street and participated in the rallies, the demonstrations. He went and talked to other artists. He went, say, 45 years later, 50 years later almost, to ConneXions school for [Coalition of Friends] and worked with the art class and painted a mural in there for their library. So he not only did the art [and] engaged in raising awareness among other artists, but he also put art on the wall that speaks to all the people there. And he traveled 6,000 miles to do that on his dime. So it looks like putting your money where your mouth is, I guess."