A Ranking of the Toughest Places to Live in the U.S.

Few neighborhoods have borne as much scrutiny as Sandtown-Winchester. Made infamous by the 2015 death of Freddie Gray, this Baltimore enclave of roughly 9,000 residents was once the epicenter of Black arts and business.

But decades of redlining, disinvestment, and mass incarceration have left scars. Vacant row houses outnumber occupied ones, and gun violence still mars daily life. The median household income hovers far below the national average.