He even goes so far as to carry a tape recorder to prove what he is saying is true. He points to many problems during the reading. Most of them being the violence that goes on in the neighborhood. He also talks about plants burining body parts despite surveys suggesting that it causes cancer in small children. He points to the drug use and prostitution that goes on.
Many children have asthma, it's a regular part of their day.
He even finds out that the children aren't learning as much in school as they should be. Most of the solutions Kozol points out are that cops should keep the park clean. Children are going there with their mothers and playing while they are getting needles. He also says that it's overcrowded, suggesting that the population needs to decrease there. This piece is related to our future because if this is what the society has been like, then how will it be in our future.