Sen. Tim Scott grew up poor and black, and says he understands that the rioters in Baltimore this week feel helpless.
"I won’t say I can understand [the looters] specifically. But generically, I certainly understand what a hapless, hopeless person does,"
Scott told The Daily Beast.
"You create chaos because you’re living in chaos … if you’re hopeless, you do things that seem absolutely inconsistent with logic. You destroy your own communities."
Scott, a South Carolina Republican, grew up in North Charleston, South Carolina, where he flunked out of school in ninth grade. Two of his friends died in their 20s and another spent time in prison for selling drugs, the Beast reported.
"It appears that my personal experience, fortunately and unfortunately, matches the devastations that we’re seeing around the country right now, and that’s a unique experience here on Capitol Hill," Scott said.
Scott has used his position in the Senate to take what he terms a "root-up approach" that pushes school choice, workforce readiness, and apprentice programs.
"I have stayed on the opportunity agenda," he said, but added that he "can’t get anyone to pay attention to it, except when the crisis occurs." He also has requested a hearing on providing federal grants for police body cameras, though he does not support a federal mandate on their use.
The Baltimore protests and riots are a result of the death of Freddie Gray, 25, in police custody on April 12. His spinal cord was almost severed.
Scott said that President Barack Obama isn't to blame for the problems faced in poor black communities, but that it is a failure of leadership nationally that crosses party lines.
"These young kids today face the most exciting future … I don’t think they know it exists," he told the Beast. "Too many of them at 20 have thrown away hope.
"Having been one of the kids that I’m talking about, and having lived in some challenging situations and circumstances … I think I get it," he said.
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