DEFUND THE POLICE
Our country, frozen by COVID-19, erupted this spring and summer in fiery protest.
From Downtown to the Deep East, from Oakland to Minneapolis to Richmond, VA, thousands cry out in unison:
”Defund the Police.”
But what does it mean to Defund the Police?
For some, the phrase conjures up images of a lawless world, consumed by crime, at the whims of the most violent among us. What this vision fails to account for, however, is what structures we intend to build that reduce violence and grow healthy communities instead. Defunding the Police means reducing the resources we spend on policing, and redirecting that money and attention into the very communities that are over-policed.
Asher, Jeff, and Ben Horwitz. “How Do The Police Actually Spend Their Time?” New York Times, 19 June 2020.
Currently, defending the populace from violent crime is only a small percentage of what the police do. In actuality, police spend most of their time responding to non-criminal calls, such as attending to traffic matters—jobs one doesn’t necessarily need a badge, gun, and handcuffs to do. And yet, the current system encourages police to act like “warriors” in even the most innocuous situations, and a large number of arrests, drug searches, and violent altercations arise from these interactions.
We can shift those tasks to other actors whose roles and training are less militant. For example, we can allow city employees to issue parking tickets without also having to carry a gun or search for further contraband, or we can utilize modern camera technology that makes the need to stop and engage traffic violators almost non-existent. Furthermore, by dividing the work that currently belongs to police into more defined roles, we can focus on providing more specialized training, such as de-escalation techniques and crisis counseling, that produce even safer outcomes.
Additionally, as police budgets increase every year, police departments become more and more militarized. Our police departments purchase needless weapons and tactical gear like sound cannons and tear gas, which is banned in war but somehow still acceptable to use on our own citizens. Even the OUSD Police Department, which was disbanded earlier this year, was found to possess a tank. The money that goes into militarizing our police could instead go to funding community programs and schools that are shown to be even more effective than police in stopping crime before it ever starts.
Defunding the police sounds so radical that it’s scary. Culturally, we are used to the idea that, if all else fails, police are there to protect us. Police are a downstream solution to an upstream problem. We can’t arrest our way out of public health problems. Instead of piling more money into weaponry––which has been shown to be ineffective in reducing crime––we should look to the community groups that have been working to reduce violence for years and fund data-driven, non-violent solutions.
These are big, structural changes, and they need to be done equitably. They can’t, and won’t, all happen overnight. But for years, the data has shown the path to a safer paradigm; a paradigm that many wealthy areas of our city and country have already adopted. There’s no reason for us to not begin the process of transitioning our city to a healthier and more responsive system, and start to fund the practices that don’t just “protect,” but actually create, safety.
Using redirected police funds, we can develop three initiatives that research has shown will actually reduce crime and increase public safety:
1. A Black New Deal that includes a city job corps and reparative housing support
2. Empowering educators and schools that act as support and services hubs for the community
3. A “Cultural Corridor” comprehensive arts and culture plan that will increase knowledge of city history and restore local pride.
As an Oaklander and political activist, it is my mission to protect our community by fighting to Defund the Police.
If you want to learn more about the national movement to Defund the Police, groups like The Anti Police-Terror Project (ATPT) have been organizing around shifting our communities to a safer and less violent model for years.