Ep 2. Arrested Development

In the second episode of season two of Brick City, titled "Arrested Development," the focus shifts to the youth of Newark, New Jersey. The episode opens with a group of teenage boys gathered in a park discussing their dreams and aspirations. It quickly becomes clear that many of them lack the resources and support they need to achieve their goals.

We then meet Ras Baraka, a community activist and high school principal who is working to give kids in Newark a better future. He is seen mentoring young men at his school, encouraging them to stay in school and out of trouble. He also visits a juvenile detention center to talk to young inmates about their experiences and offer them hope for the future.

Meanwhile, the police department is also focusing on the youth of the city, but in a very different way. We follow the story of a young man named Michael, who is arrested for gun possession and charged with a variety of other crimes. The police claim that he is a member of a gang, but his family insists that he is innocent and that the police are targeting him unfairly.

As Michael's case makes its way through the legal system, we see how the justice system is often stacked against young black men in low-income neighborhoods like Newark. The episode raises powerful questions about the impact of poverty, racism, and failed policies on the lives of the city's youth.

As the episode comes to a close, we are left with a sense of both hope and despair. There are clearly people in Newark who are working tirelessly to make the city a better place for its young people, but there are also deep-seated problems that are not easily solved. Brick City continues to be a powerful and thought-provoking look at one of America's most complex and troubled cities.