‘Space to Destroy’: The Short History of a Dangerous Botched Quote

On Saturday, after a peaceful protest in response to the killing of 25-year-old black Baltimore man Freddie Gray, a violent element barreled into the crowds outside of a baseball game. As smartphones recorded and tweeted, protesters hurled trash cans, broke windows, and started brawls. Late in the evening, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake gathered reporters to explain how a public tribute turned into a small war zone.

"I made it very clear that I work with the police and instructed them to do everything that they could to make sure that the protesters were able to exercise their right to free speech," she said. "It’s a very delicate balancing act. Because while we tried to make sure that they were protected from the cars and other things that were going on, we also gave those who wished to destroy space to do that as well. And we worked very hard to keep that balance and to put ourselves in the best position to de-escalate."