Defund the police


"Defund the police" is a slogan that supports divesting funds from police departments and reallocating them to non-policing forms of public safety and community support, such as social services, youth services, housing, education, healthcare and other community resources. Activists who use the phrase may do so with varying intentions; some seek modest reductions, while others argue for full defunding as a step toward the abolition of contemporary police services. Activists that support the defunding of police departments often argue that investing in community programs could provide a better crime deterrent for communities; funds will go directly toward addressing social issues, like poverty, homelessness, and mental disorders. Police abolitionists call for replacing existing police forces with other systems of public safety, like housing, employment, community health, education, and other programs.
In June 2020, the "defund the police" slogan gained widespread popularity during the George Floyd protests. Black Lives Matter, Movement for Black Lives, and other activists have used the phrase to call for police budget reductions and to delegate certain police responsibilities to other organizations. In Black Reconstruction, first published in 1935, W. E. B. Du Bois wrote about "abolition-democracy", which advocated for the removal of institutions that were rooted in racist and repressive practices, including prisons, convict leasing, and white police forces. In the 1960s, activists such as Angela Davis advocated for the defunding or abolition of police departments. The End of Policing, written by Alex S. Vitale, was published in 2017, and it has been called "... a manual of sorts for the defund movement."
Some sociologists, criminologists, and journalists have criticized aspects of the police defunding movement.

Background

Since the 1960s, municipal governments have increasingly spent larger portions of their budgets on law enforcement. This is partially rooted in the "war on crime," launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson, which prioritized crime control via law enforcement and prisons. Meanwhile, police unions have wielded significant power in local politics, due to direct endorsements of political candidates and funding of campaigns. Police department budgets have been considered "untouchable" for decades.
By 2020, U.S. cities collectively spent approximately $115 billion per year on policing. For many cities, policing is their largest or near-largest expenditure. For example, in Los Angeles in 2020, the LAPD budget constituted 17.6% of the city's budget and 53.8% of the city's general funds. In Chicago in 2020, the CPD constituted about 18% of the city's budget and 40% of the city's general funds. In New York City in 2020, the NYPD budget constituted 5.7% of the city's budget, and it commanded the third largest budget, after the Department of Education and Social Services. In Oakland in 2018, 41.2% of general funds went to the Oakland Police Department. In Minneapolis, the budget for the police and corrections departments grew 41% between 2009 and 2019.
Police department funds are primarily used for salaries, pensions, wages, and overtime of police officers. For example, in New York City, 88% of the police department budget goes to salaries, wages, and overtime. Other costs include contract costs, equipment operation expenses, and vehicle maintenance. While the officers per capita in major cities have not significantly changed, they have been equipped with more technology, gear, and training in the last few decades. On average, large cities spend about 7.8% of their general expenditures on policing. Meanwhile, they spend about 5% of general expenditures on housing and 3% of general expenditures on parks. Most cities' police budgets have dwarfed other public safety budgets, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has seen other budgets slashed but left policing budgets largely untouched.

Rationale

Effectiveness

One argument for defunding police is the question of police effectiveness and utility. Approximately 10.5 million arrests are made by the police every year, but fewer than 5% are for violent crimes. The majority of all arrests are for nonviolent offenses, such as drug offenses. Furthermore, over 80% of all arrests are for low-level offenses, such as "disorderly conduct," "drug abuse violations," traffic violations, local ordinance violations, and failure to pay fines. The majority of "drug abuse violation" charges are for drug possession, most often of marijuana. Between 1980 and 2016, the number of drug offense arrests has risen by 170%. Furthermore, the majority of arrests are dismissed, although the exact number is hard to find, due to lack of integration between court data and police data.
When police are tasked with managing violent crimes, such as solving murders, some argue that they are often unsuccessful. For example, according to a 2015 report, approximately one in three murders are never solved. This contrasts with fifty years previously, when it was reportedly more than 90% of murders. Since the 1980s, the clearance rate for murders committed with firearms has dropped 20 points, going from 64% to 46%. The clearance rate for gun assaults has also dropped 20 points, going from 52% to 30%. The police have partially blamed this decline on a "no snitch" culture and claim that murders have become more difficult to solve. The police also have a low track record of resolving cases related to rape and domestic abuse, including failure to properly prosecute and arrest police officers who are committing abuse.

Racism

Critics argue that the history of policing is rooted in racist practices, including slave patrols, enforcement of Jim Crow laws, repression of the Civil Rights movement, and violent campaign against Black Panthers leaders, such as Fred Hampton. This can also be found in the statistical make-up of those who are arrested and stopped by the police. In 2015, a study found that African-Americans are 2.7 times more likely to be arrested for drug violations than white people, even though both African-Americans and whites have similar rates of drug use and possession. In Los Angeles, black drivers are nearly five times as likely to be searched at traffic stops as white drivers, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis. Furthermore, 40% of the U.S. prison population is black, despite being only 11% of the population.

Classism

Critics argue that the police protect the interests of the ruling class, while dividing the working class and criminalizing poverty. Police have taken part in strikebreaking and repressing the labor movement of the United States. They also participate in the criminalization of homelessness, including harassment and arrests, aggressively removing homeless individuals from certain areas, and the enforcement of anti-homelessness legislation.
Furthermore, police departments enable a system under which the working poor are vulnerable to heavy fines, incarceration, and debt. This is, in part, due to the quota system. In many cities, police departments unofficially require that officers deliver a certain number of tickets or arrests per month. As NYPD Officer Adhyl Polanco explained in a 2015 NPR report, "The culture is, you're not working unless you are writing summonses or arresting people." People may be arrested or a receive tickets for a low-level violations, such as a traffic ticket or a misdemeanor offense. They will then need to pay exorbitant fees and fines related to their arrest and judicial proceedings This leaves some people in debtors' prison, where they are imprisoned due to their inability to pay debts. Some people are unable to pay their bail payment, so they must wait in jail until trial. Furthermore, while incarcerated, some people accrue additional fees and fines that are related to their incarceration. Consequently, when they are released, they may still have unresolved debts. This contrasts with white-collar crime, under which many individuals receive a "slap on the wrist" and can avoid jail time. In 2019, a report found that prosecutions of white-collar crime had reached a 33-year low.

Unbundling of services

Critics argue that police officers and police departments provide too many services. According to this argument, the United States has an over-reliance on law enforcement, which is expected to handle an unrealistically wide range of social issues, such as homelessness, mental health, and substance abuse. This model may be asking too much of police departments; some police officers have publicly expressed that they feel tasked to "do everything for everybody." Meanwhile, police officers are trained to adopt a "warrior" mentality, which focuses on officer safety over community outreach. For these reasons, some activists have called for an unbundling of services. Under this model, many services that were previously provided by law enforcement would be provided by specialized response teams. These teams could include social workers, emergency medical technicians, conflict resolution specialists, restorative justice teams, and other community-based professionals.
Police officers may be particularly badly suited for some community issues, such as mental health crises. For example, one study found that about 21% of police officer time is spent responding to or transporting people with mental illness. However, 1 in 4 people who are killed by the police have severe mental illness. Some activists argue that, if someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, and if there is no emergent threat to themselves or other people, mental health professionals may be more adept and capable responders. Furthermore, if more funds were diverted to help treat and support those with mental health issues, there could be better outcomes.
While the movement is rooted primarily in the work of left-wing scholar activists in the 1970s, it has support on the right from many libertarians, though they rarely use the slogan "Defund the police." Libertarians support the movement out of a concern for constitutional rights and a stance against what they consider far-reaching and ever-expanding powers given to state actors.

Responses

Social scientists

According to Princeton sociologist Patrick Sharkey, the best scientific evidence available shows that police are effective in reducing violence:
Criminologists Justin Nix and Scott Wolfe state in the Washington Post, "We have enough research evidence to be concerned about the immediate impact of drastic budget cuts or wholesale disbanding of police agencies: Crime and victimization will increase." They state that more people will arm themselves as a result, that the increased crime will disproportionately harm minority communities, and that "Cities that have more police officers per capita tend to have lower crime rates." They argue for community-oriented policing which has been shown to reduce crime and improve community satisfaction. They further argue that police departments need to be held more accountable for their use of funds, suggesting more emphasis on evidence-based practices, and say that making the police responsible for so many social ills should be reconsidered, although stating the infrastructure to handle those should be in place before reallocating funds.
Criminologist Kevin Robinson suggests that the slogan "defund the police" is misguided, and that a more appropriate term would be ""re-allocation" of portions/segments of police department budgets". He states that most such budgets are tight, but says that a thorough review of spending is always warranted, and that program effectiveness should determine whether or not a program is continued. He says that criminals usually weigh the possibility of getting caught when committing a crime, and that "if there is a low likelihood of apprehension there will be more crimes committed — more people victimized." He further states that "Studies have shown...that effective social programs can reduce criminality in adults and juveniles", and encourages police departments to incorporate social programs with police work.
Sociologist Rashawn Ray, writing for the Brookings Institution, states that much of what police do is misaligned with their skillset and training, and suggests that a reduction in their workload would increase their ability to solve violent crimes. He further states:
One consistent finding in the social science literature is that if we really want to reduce crime, education equity and the establishment of a work infrastructure is the best approach. A study using 60 years of data found that an increase in funding for police did not significantly relate to a decrease in crime. Throwing more police on the street to solve a structural problem is one of the reasons why people are protesting in the streets. Defunding police—reallocating funding away from police departments to other sectors of government—may be more beneficial for reducing crime and police violence.

Media

, writing in Vox, criticized police defunding and abolition activists for lacking a plan for how to deal with violent crime, and for ignoring the substantial literature finding that having more police leads to less violent crime. He stated that their dismissal of police reform ignores that even modest reforms have been shown to reduce police misconduct. He writes that across government as a whole, only a very small portion of spending goes to the police, and that while more social spending would probably reduce crime, that does not need to come out of police budgets, noting that the United States actually has 35% fewer police officers per capita than the rest of the world. He also states that abolishing public police services would lead to a surge in the use of private security services by those who can afford them, and that such services would lack accountability.
The slogan's relation to the Police abolition movement has been described as a motte-and-bailey fallacy by John Murawski at RealClearInvestigations. According to him, when "Defund the police" is criticized as tantamount to police abolition by opponents, proponents provide a moderate interpretation in terms of police demilitarization until the criticisms are addressed, only to return to more radical interpretations later.

Public opinion

A YouGov opinion poll with fieldwork on May 29–30, 2020 found that fewer than 20% of American adults supported funding cuts for policing, with little difference between supporters of the Republicans and Democrats.
In a poll conducted by ABC News/Ipsos of 686 participants on June 10–11, 34% of US adults supported "the movement to 'defund the police'" and 64% opposed it. Support was higher among black Americans than among whites and Hispanics.

Politicians

Presidential candidate Joe Biden opposed defunding police forces, arguing instead that policing needed substantial reform. U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders opposed defunding, arguing for more accountability for police, along with better education and training, and making their job better defined. U.S. Senator Cory Booker said he understood the sentiment behind the slogan but would not use it. U.S. Representative and Congressional Black Caucus chair Karen Bass said, "I do think that, in cities, in states, we need to look at how we are spending the resources and invest more in our communities. Maybe this is an opportunity to re-envision public safety."
U.S. President Donald Trump on June 4, 2020, tweeted "The Radical Left Democrats new theme is "Defund the Police". Remember that when you don't want Crime, especially against you and your family. This is where Sleepy Joe is being dragged by the socialists. I am the complete opposite, more money for Law Enforcement! #LAWANDORDER".

Cities

In 2020, local policymakers in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., San Francisco and other US cities have supported some form of defunding or opposing budget increases. In New York City, a city council member called for a $1 billion divestment from the New York City Police Department. Activists and lawmakers asked Mayor Bill de Blasio in April 2020 to use cuts to the police budget to make up for shortfalls caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In June, during the Floyd protests, a group of 48 candidates for city office asked the city council to reduce the NYPD budget by $1 billion over four years. Brooklyn College's Policing and Social Justice Project called for the same reduction. City comptroller Scott Stringer said the city could save $1.1 billion over four years by cutting the numbers of police and reducing overtime and could divert the funds to "social workers, counselors, community-based violence interrupters, and other trained professionals." On June 15, 2020, Police Commissioner Dermot Shea announced that the NYPD would eliminate its plainclothes police units in the precinct-level and Housing Bureau anti-crime teams, and the officers would be reassigned to community policing and detective work.
In Los Angeles, Mayor Eric Garcetti has said he would cut as much as $150 million from the Los Angeles Police Department's budget, a reversal of his planned increase of $120 million. Garcetti announced the funds would be redirected to community initiatives. In San Francisco, Mayor London Breed announced a plan to redirect some police funds to the city's African-American community, and she announced that police will no longer respond to non-criminal calls. In Milwaukee, an activist group called African-American Roundtable, formed by 65 organizations, asked the city to divert $75 million from the police budget to public health and housing.
In Minneapolis, activist groups Reclaim the Block and Black Visions Collective requested for the police budget to be cut by $45 million. Members of the Minneapolis City Council signed a pledge to dismantle the police and create new public safety systems. City council member Lisa Bender explained, "Our commitment is to end policing as we know it and to recreate systems of public safety that actually keep us safe." While Mayor Jacob Frey has not stated a commitment to defund the police, the city council has veto power over the mayor. No specific laws or plans have been offered by the city council yet, as of June 2020, but advocacy groups have presented recommendations.
In Nashville on June 2, 2020, a city budget hearing lasted over ten hours to accommodate the large numbers of residents waiting to take their turn to ask the city to defund the police.

Police unions

US police unions have historically resisted even minor reforms and accountability measures including resisting repeal of qualified immunity.
The Los Angeles Police Protective League said defunding the police would be the "quickest way to make our neighbourhoods more dangerous." and 'defunding' the LAPD is the most irresponsible thing anyone can propose."

Outside the United States

The movement has spread to other countries. In Canada, politicians in major cities have expressed interest in diverting some police funds. In Toronto, city councilors Josh Matlow and Kristyn Wong-Tam have planned to propose a 10% cut to the police budget. In Montreal, Mayor Valérie Plante has said she is in talks about the police budget.
In Sweden, a mental health ambulance has been used for mental health emergencies since 2015. The ambulances include two mental health nurses and one paramedic. In Scotland, a violence reduction unit was set up in 2005, which aims to prevent violence with educational and outreach programs. In Finland, homeless individuals are offered social services and permanent, stable housing.