I was born and live in the city of Reading, and It definitely can be dangerous around some neighborhoods. Most of the violence is between gangs and individuals they know, usually something personal and drug related, but intimidation by gang members and crimes against random civilians can and do happen in the worst neighborhoods. "South Side". As posters have said, many are not originally from Reading. Lots of gangs from NYC and Philly moving here. Reading is also a sanctuary city, so it logically attracts many illegals to come here for cheaper, more affordable pastures. Many are good people, like the Mexicans across the street from me, and keep to themselves, but some are bad, like the tatted up MS13 thugs and low level drug dealers who prowl the streets and harass women and try to recruit kids to carry out acts of violence for them. Bigger gangs like Latin Kings, who have a dominant presence in the city, don't tolerate that, and that often causes conflict and violence to break out. There are also lots of mentally unstable people walking the streets, people of all colors, causing problems for everyone else. The reality is Reading is a city where you have to be vigilant and lock your doors, more so than most places.