The Lower Ring plays home to the poor classes of Ba Sing Se's society and the majority of its population. These consist of newcomers to the city, including its multitude of refugees, and 'people who work with their hands' such as artisans, laborers, and craftsman. Due to the impoverished state of the citizens of the Lower Ring, as well as the influx of poor refugees, it is implied in "City of Walls and Secrets" that the crime rate is significantly high. The Lower Ring is also the most densly populated area of Ba Sing Se. Buildings in the Lower Ring are generally small, because the Lower Ring has the most populace and as many people need to be crammed into here as possible. Also, the roofs of the buildings here are brown tiled, indicating the poor status of the owners. Citizens are free to go into the Agrarian Zone, the Lower Ring, naturally, and the Middle Ring, but not the Upper Ring without the personal invitation of a citizen of the Upper Ring, the Earth King or the government.
Today, the Lower Ring is not very different than before, with cramped streets and many lower class people, but the police force has improved, thus crime rate is down
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