Freddie Gray

             After reading the article about Freddie Gray’s life and hearing learning about the struggles he went through ever since he was born, I believe that it wasn’t Freddie Gray who let himself down but it was the society and the government that did. Freddie Gray was born in 1989 premature by two months along with his twin sister. His mom later spoke out on how she was a user of heroin since her early 20s and that she might have been using even when she was pregnant with Freddie and his sister. Then to add to that, before Freddie’s second birthday he was tested positive for concentrations of lead in his blood caused by peeling of lead infused paint from the walls and the windowsills. His was so bad his level was more than seven times the level that child health experts now believe can cause severe and permanent brain damage. But being poisoned by lead didn’t just happen to him. In fact lead paint exposure is a widespread national problem, mainly in the communities where people have low income. Lead poisoning was affecting so many people in these communities that the government tried to get local and private buildings fixed up but a budget cut kept them from completing that project.

                As Freddie Gray grew up and went to school he began to struggle with his classes and learning. This was the result of being born premature and being exposed to damaging lead. Freddie and his sister were later diagnosed with attention deficit disorders (ADD) and impulse control problems which made him have to be moved to special education classrooms at school. Unfortunately Freddie never graduated from high school. But where he grew up he was not the only one that didn’t finish high school. A large percentage of kids from that school did not graduate and had problems during school. Freddie did not have a good foundation when it came to education, and education is important for a person’s future.   The teachers missed multiple days for no reason and they were usually unexperienced.

                By the time Freddie was eighteen years old he had already been suspended from school several times and besides that he had some problems with the police. As he got older things kept getting worst. He was caught multiple times by the police; a couple times he managed to get out free from court by being found not guilty.

                Early in Freddie’s life he went through a lot that the government and the committee could have prevented. But as Freddie got older I believe it was then that he gave up on himself. After a rough childhood and growing up in a bad place he didn’t change or leave his problems behind him. Freddie Gray… sorry Society gave up on you.