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City councils

Cities Across the US Explore Fundamental Changes to Policing Amid National Protests

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

As tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets across the country to protest police violence and brutality, elected officials are starting to explore significant overhauls to the way policing is done in their cities. The catalyst for these changes is the Memorial service for George Floyd, a black man who died after a white police officer pressed his knee into his neck for nearly nine minutes in Minneapolis last month. Amid widespread criticism and calls for reform, city officials are considering defunding police departments, redirecting funds to social services, or abolishing police forces entirely.

Key Takeaways:

  • The mayor of New York City has vowed to cut an unspecified amount from the NYPD's $6 billion budget and redirect it toward youth and social programs.
  • In Los Angeles, Mayor Eric Garcetti agreed to redirect $150 million from the Police Department's nearly $2 billion budget to health and education programs.
  • The Minneapolis City Council has pledged to dismantle the police force and reinvent public safety, with specifics uncertain but community input expected.
  • Some lawmakers and leaders warn of potential unintended consequences, including increased crime and safety concerns, particularly in summer months when crime rates tend to spike.
  • The proposed legislation aiming to curb excessive police force and misconduct includes measures to restrict police use of deadly force, make disciplinary records public, and bar officers from using chokeholds.
  • The calls for change have taken many forms, with some advocating for defunding police departments, others seeking to abolish them, and still others pushing for reforms such as stricter discipline and community-led safety initiatives.
  • The debate surrounding police reform is complex, with valid concerns on both sides, including the need for public safety and the potential risks of defunding or abolishing police departments.
  • The outcome of the proposed legislation and the outcomes of the overhauls in the various cities will depend on Congress and local governments, but the pressure from the recent protests has led a change in the approach to police reform.

Statistics:

  • 10 nights of mass protests in New York City
  • Police used force against black people at a rate at least 7 times as often as they have against white people in Minneapolis over the past 5 years.
  • The proposed legislation aims to curb excessive use of force by police and make it easier to identify, track, and prosecute police misconduct.
  • Democrats in Congress have unveiled legislation to end the restrictions that shield police officers accused of misconduct, from being prosecuted and set restrictions to bar officers from using deadly force except as a last resort.

Sources:

  • [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/03/us/politics/george-floyd-protests.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/03/us/politics/george-floyd-protests.html)
  • [https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ny-mayor-vows-cut-police-budget-after-george-floyd-protests-n1254808](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ny-mayor-vows-cut-police-budget-after-george-floyd-protests-n1254808)
  • [https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/2020/06/01/ ](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/2020/06/01/)

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