The Other Wes Moore

The phone at Mary’s house has been ringing for three minutes nonstop, but she ignores it. She has watched a news item on the TV that has made her freeze with panic. Three days before, four men entered a jewelry store carrying mallets and guns and ordered the people inside to get on the ground. Among the people in the store was Sergeant Bruce Prothero, a police officer and father of five who had a second job working as a security guard at the mall. The men grabbed almost $500,000 worth of jewelry and sprinted out; Sergeant Prothero dashed after them. In the mall parking lot, the men shot him three times from the car. Sergeant Prothero died as the men sped away.

The Baltimore police department conduct a fervent search for the four jewelry store robbers, provoked by the fact that the men killed “one of their own.” They capture the first two suspects within two days of the shooting. Mary watches as the news reporter announces that the final two suspects—Tony and Wes—are still on the run, and that they are being treated as “armed and dangerous.” Days pass, and Mary cannot sleep. She is plagued by guilt and panic. One night at 4 am the police knock loudly on her door; when she opens it, some already have their guns raised. An officer takes Mary outside, even though it is February and she is only wearing a cotton bathrobe. He asks if Mary knows that both her sons are on probation, and if she knows where they are. Mary promises to co-operate; meanwhile, the police aggressively search her house. Although they find nothing, they promise they will be back until Tony and Wes are found. Meanwhile, Wes and Tony’s family are “bombarded” with requests for interviews.

At Aunt Nicey’s daughter’s wedding, the family try to forget the ongoing manhunt and think of more positive things. On the way to the reception, one of the cars of attendees stops at a 7 Eleven for snacks. A group of police that have been trailing them since they left the church orders everyone get out of the car and sit on the snow-covered curb. The police officers remind them that there is a reward for turning in Wes and Tony, as the guests silently shiver in their soaking clothes. When it is clear that none of them have any information, the officers let them go.

In reality, Wes and Tony are in North Philadelphia, staying at an uncle’s house. Walking down the street, Wes notices that the same police car has been following him on more than one occasion and hopes it is just a coincidence. He gets home and starts eating a Philly Cheesesteak. Tony says he is heading out, but Wes doesn’t hear him shut the door; as Wes runs down to shut it himself, he sees his brother on the floor while a police officer puts handcuffs on him. Suddenly, six officers jump on Wes and pin him to the ground, too. There are both Baltimore and Philadelphia officers present as well as ATF and FBI officials. Back in Maryland, the Baltimore PD rejoice at the news that Tony and Wes have been caught, while Mary cries at home.

During questioning, Wes does not feel nervous, as he knows he has lost all control over his fate. He has waited almost a year to be extradited to Maryland from Pennsylvania for his trial. Tony was identified as the shooter and pleaded guilty in order to avoid the death penalty; the two other men involved also pleaded guilty. Only Wes has maintained his innocence, and thus his case goes to trial. Wes’s lawyer argues that Wes simply accompanied Tony to Philadelphia and points out that since being in jail, Wes has converted to Islam and calls his children every day. As Wes waits to hear the jury’s verdict, he is overwhelmed by feelings of isolation and apathy. Ultimately, he is found guilty of first-degree felony murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Sergeant Prothero’s widow sobs, as do Mary, Aunt Nicey, and Alicia. The judge tells Wes that he acted as if he was in the “Wild West” and that he is “dangerous.” Wes reflects on his fate; he has been to prison before, but never expected to spend the rest of his life there. For the first time, he has a clear idea of what his future looks like.

Moore is at the office of Mayor Kurt Schmoke, who teasingly calls Moore “General” despite the fact that he is only a second lieutenant. By this point, Schmoke has been the Mayor of Baltimore for 12 years, and Moore is currently doing his second internship working alongside him. Although the city has seen real progress during Schmoke’s tenure (including the destruction of the Murphy Homes Projects), the murder rate has still not fallen and teenage pregnancy rates are up. Moore argues that “there are two Baltimores,” like all major cities in America; on one side is culture, history, and capital, and on the other, crime, poverty, and violence.

Although Mayor Schmoke could easily be elected for a fourth term, it is clear that he is getting ready to leave politics behind and spend time with his family. He asks Moore if he has enjoyed his internship. Moore responds, “I’ve loved it, sir,” but adds that this is an understatement. While earning his associate’s degree at Valley Forge, Moore’s adviser suggests he apply to Johns Hopkins. At first Moore is resistant; he is aware of Johns Hopkins from having grown up in Baltimore, but doesn’t know anyone who actually attended. He feels that the university is filled with people “who did not look or sound like me.” Moore’s adviser introduces him to the assistant director of admissions, a young black man who convinces Moore that he should apply. Moore likes the idea not only of attending such a prestigious institution, but also going home to Baltimore. His relationship with Joy has improved dramatically since he first enrolled at Valley Forge and he now sees her as not just as his mother, but also his friend.

Moore is now convinced to apply to Johns Hopkins, but still worries about getting in, and his SAT scores are significantly lower than the average Johns Hopkins student. However, not only is he accepted, he also receives a scholarship. Moore thinks about how lucky he is to have had “an advocate on the inside” in the form of the assistant director of admissions. He thinks of the kids he knows back in the Bronx who never felt like they had a chance to be successful, or people in the generation above who believed that they did only to have that chance taken away, like Mary and her Pell Grant. As someone who did manage to get several breaks, Moore feels it is his responsibility to help others who are less fortunate.

Back in the Mayor’s office, Schmoke asks Moore if he has ever heard of the Rhodes Scholarship. Moore knows that President Clinton, Maryland state senator Paul Sarbanes, and Mayor Schmoke himself all received the scholarship. Schmoke tells Moore about other distinguished people in his own Rhodes class and recalls his time at Oxford. After Moore’s internship, he is going to spend a semester studying abroad in South Africa, and Schmoke advises him to learn about who Cecil Rhodes was. Later, Moore learns that Rhodes was a vicious white supremacist colonizer.

Moore is able to travel to South Africa after receiving a grant from the School for International Training to study “culture and reconciliation” in post-apartheid Cape Town. At first, Cape Town looks remarkably similar to American cities. However, as Moore leaves downtown and enters the township in which he will be living, he is confronted with a strikingly different picture. Moore describes the legacy of apartheid as “glaringly obvious,” the effects of racial segregation creating “despair and hopelessness.” Although the situation in South Africa is more extreme, it reminds Moore of Baltimore and the Bronx. Rows of shacks stretch in every direction, and Moore realizes that the poverty he’s witnessed in America is nothing compared to what exists in South Africa.

At the house where Moore is staying, a short woman, Mama, greets him with “Molo!,” the Xhosa word for hello, and her son, Zinzi, calls him “bhuti,” meaning brother. A week after Moore’s arrival, he has a long conversation with Mama, in which they exchange stories about their lives. Mama tells him about the history and culture of South Africa and her husband’s role as a freedom fighter during apartheid. Moore is shocked that Mama is so at peace after so many years of pain. Mama replies that she forgives those who did her harm “because Mr. Mandela asked us to.” Moore reflects that finding a sense of common humanity and peace is of vital importance. When Moore next speaks to Joy on the phone, she tells him about the crazy coincidence that the Baltimore police department is conducting a manhunt for another young man with Wes’s name.

A few weeks before Moore returns to the United States, he is walking through his township with Zinzi and his friend Simo, “feeling at home.” Moore feels preemptively nostalgic about leaving South Africa, but focuses on the future. In a few months, he will be graduating from Johns Hopkins Phi Beta Kappa, and as the first African-American Rhodes Scholar in the school’s history. Zinzi, meanwhile, will shortly undergo the traditional Xhosa initiation into manhood that comes in the form of spending a month in the “bush.” Moore asks him if he is nervous, especially about undergoing circumcision without anesthetic. Zinzi replies that he is not nervous; he views the experience as a transformative process through which he will come to be treated with a newfound respect by his community. Moore reflects that the challenges young people face in South Africa are not dissimilar to those faced by the ones he personally grew up with. However, whereas in South Africa the journey into manhood is celebrated and achieved in junction with the broader community, in America young men are often treated with fear.