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Hello, do you follow me and have had a visceral reaction to defund or abolish the police? I have a quick request for you. Just a short thread.
A lot of you are veterans recalling the elimination or weakening of local security forces in prior deployments. Ok. Yes. Those were hugely impactful on your life and local communities. Try to be careful in using it as THE analogy for the movements in the US today.
Next, particularly if you are in in the military community, think about the number of things your military peers are asked to do that have little relation to national defense—because there’s no one else. Now consider the US police. If you want an analogy, quadruple that.
On my block in DC, police do catch bad guys (really bad guys). But they are also the responder to nonviolent domestic disputes, mental health crises, homelessness, alcohol and drug addiction, parking issues, missing dogs, kids who stay out late, fireworks, a cat in a tree, etc.
I’d really like it if most of those functions didn’t require the folks I charge of state violence because the situations aren’t dangerous. I’d like it if other agencies had more resources and power. I’d like it if my car insurance company didn’t require me taking to a cop.
Because they generally aren’t as good at the other functions and they frequently are terrible. So terrible that several strong and experienced movements in the US are saying they should be defunded and their resources moved to wiser and more experienced experts.
So I’m in no way speaking for BLM and mostly want to listen more to them and the people to write and agree with things like this. I don’t agree with everything they say. But I’m trying to move past the instinctive reaction I see many of you having. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/12/opinion/sunday/floyd-abolish-defund-police.html
I follow and admire @SkinnerPm because he is the epitome of a human I want to exist in this world. He is an amazing member of his community and representative of his profession. I also wish that he had community agency partners with the reach, respect, and resources he did.
Final point: there’s a lot going on in protests and several prominent movements raising their voices across the country. A respectful and democratic action you can take today is understanding their views—and not confusing their distinctive positions.
Final final point I am so annoyed by the typos here. Ugh!
