I wrote about the long, symbiotic relationship between law enforcement and racist vigilante organizations. The degree of overlap, which is virtually unbroken from the end of the Civil War to the present, is astonishing. https://prospect.org/justice/police-and-racist-vigilantes-even-worse-than-you-think/

Many know that the Klan in the 1920s were largely integrated into law enforcement. But in the 1930s, over 400 NYPD officers were members of the Coughlinite fascist group the Christian Front.

Cops joined the Christian Front around the country, and where they didn't join, they allowed the fascist group to pass out literature and beat up Jews.

Cops in Oregon and Minneapolis were members of the overtly fascist Silver Legion. In Michigan, cops joined the fascist, anti-labor Black Legion in droves.

Post-WWII, the far right John Birch Society was successful in recruiting cops in Philadelphia and Santa Ana. The problem was so widespread in the NYPD that the commissioner said he'd de-Birch the department if he could, but he claimed to lack the authority.

By the late 1960s, police unions were on the forefront of the racist backlash against civil rights gains. In NYC, the PBA worked with Birchers to prevent civilian oversight, and push a "law and order" message through JBS' "Support Your Local Police" committees

As is obvious, and as several recent studies have shown, the overlap continues to this day. But identifying far right elements of policing is not a schematic towards a non-racist form of policing. It is instead a process of demystifying the role of police.

As a final thought: it's good that liberals are starting to recognize fascistic elements of the Trump administration. But any discussion of fascism in the US must place law enforcement firmly in the center alongside the conservative movement.

Also, shoutout to @HaroldMeyerson for his excellent edits