The Culture Of Street Life By Wes Moore

Wes Moore describes the culture of street life as realistic as possible, at least when in Baltimore. He explains all the realities of the city such as the violence, drug dealing and lack of interest for education. This happened due to a combination of different sources like poverty, and parents are not being able to spend enough time with their kids because of work. Which leads to many kids performing horrible in school, and to young men finding selling drugs the fastest and easiest money they might ever make. Sadly it was a dangerous combination for everyone involved. “Tony got shot in the chest during a botched drug deal. It was the first of three times that he would feel the searing heat of a bullet enter his body.” (57) Since the book tells

In the streets of Baltimore violence was the only way young men knew of to gain respect or gain turf. Since a lot the shootouts involved siblings like with Wes and Tony, the young kids quickly started to follow in their older brother’s example. Like when Wes was going to use a knife to solve a petty football game dispute. Wes had been taught that becoming that violent for something so insignificant was acceptable. “Their mom was usually out of the house by 8:30 and didn’t come back until well into the evening.” Wes’s mother has no time to raise children since she is constantly at work. She can’t check up on him to make sure he isn’t getting in trouble. This gives Wes the freedom to do whatever he wants the entire day, not a good idea at least when in Baltimore. Wes Moore depiction of Baltimore is a depressing reality for everyone involved from overworked parents to young men becoming felons by the time their 18. That have also not even finished high school but instead focused on becoming big time drug dealers. A path usually faced with life sentences or sometimes even

Like the author Wes and the other Wes, they both did not have good role models, barely knew their fathers. Neither of them had a safe neighborhood where they could focus on school and not be distracted by drugs or violence. Both of them had obstacles that they needed to get through but were also given opportunities to get on the right path. Wes did the other Wes did not take it. For example, both of them had experience being arrested and put in a police car that was their obstacle. The author Wes was terrified, “...but I was also sincerely fearful about what was going to happen next.” (83). He knew he screwed up and wasn’t sure if he was going to end up a cell and or have to face his mother about. The Other Wes was not afraid of the police or even afraid of his consequences. When he got arrested he kept denying it like it would somehow change what had already happened. Even the first time he was arrested for shooting someone he immediately started selling drugs as soon as he got out. Both of them lived in the same city and they barely had a relationship with their father’s. The lack of a role model for each of them had a huge impact on their lives. The other Wes Moore had Tony to look up to, but he was just one drug deal short of ending up dead or in a cell.(57) The author Wes had to rely on himself because his only role model were his friends. They both had a mother, but