“Caller, you say what?”
Years ago, Oprah Winfrey used to take calls from the public on her national show.
Whenever she wanted to get a handle on what the outside audience thought about a topic, she would simply inquire, “Caller, you say what?”
To which a caller would respond with his or her take on the topic at hand.
Well…
The topic today is “police reform.”
In listening to folks talk about police reform, you might have heard about a concept called “defunding” police.
Now comes the confusion.
Defunding the police is NOT about completely taking away police funding, thereby rendering them powerless to help a vulnerable population.
That’s a scary ass thought; hell my brother is in law enforcement and so was my Dad, so I definitely know and appreciate their value.
Anyway…
Actually, “defunding” police is much better than it sounds.
In my opinion, the terminology is a bit of a misnomer.
And so…
In this video, I cull together information that should detail and explain the true meaning of the concept and how defunding can help reduce police workload by reassigning non-police duties and re-allocating commensurate funds to professionals who are much more qualified to handle certain services.
Seriously, have we been asking police officers to do too much?
Take a look and tell me what you think down in comments:
Run time: Less than 5 mins
Sources
MSNBC:
Maya Wiley Explains What It Means To ‘Defund The Police’ | The 11th Hour | MSNBC
Fortune Magazine:
This is what people mean when they say they want to defund the police.
Hi Kimball.
You said, “Progressive politicians should consider increasing the number of police in dangerous neighborhoods.”
Yes you said “poor communities” but you also said “dangerous neighborhoods”
Tack was totally right about that issue.
I don’t know your race and I’m not going to look BUT, it IS these types of “slips” and sleights that help create tension.
.
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Thanks for pointing this out. Unfortunately, poor communities are more dangerous, and poverty and crime are correlated for understandable reasons. We have to respond to this fact with compassion, and we have to act. Tack has it backwards. Police go where they are needed. And they should have the resources they need to make a positive change!
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I’m right there with you on positive change; it’s so needed. I also agree with your point about compassion. But, I agree with Tack and I don’t think he has it backward at all.
I am fortunate to live in a very nice community that is largely upper-class, I guarantee if you were to ask police to patrol heavily in this area looking for crime, they would find any number of folks in possession of weed (still illegal here), cocaine, illegally obtained prescription medications and illegal gun possession…etc. I’m not going to even go there when it comes to so called “white collar” crimes. Statistically, we’d see a definite uptick in crime; but is it an uptick?
Alas, this is not likely to happen because these folks tend to fly under the radar unless they are doing something blatant; they also know their rights and they possess the social and financial capital to effect a favorable outcome. Basically, if you seek, you’ll find.
Frankly, I’m not as confident about correlations anymore because statistics can be manipulated–especially when we count some things and not others; I’m referring to the “uptick” I just mentioned.
Anyway, thanks Kimball for the lively debate. I enjoy agreement and dissent.
Have a great day 🙂
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I read and enjoyed your post but I don’t think this is a good idea. Research suggests that poor communities would pay the price when police leave. Reform the police, sure. But the main problem with policing is that some communities are not protected as well as others. Progressive politicians should consider increasing the number of police in dangerous neighborhoods. Polling suggests that there is broad agreement for this. And Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are on board! Probably because defunding or abolishing the police is going to scare a lot of conservatives to the polls.
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Thank you 🙏🏽 I appreciate your comment. No doubt, “defunding police” scares many people across the political spectrum. Either way, police are being called to handle situations that could be better managed by other trained professionals. I think we’ve been asking them to do too much. Thanks for stopping by.
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Increase police in “dangerous communities” yeah that sounds like a great idea. What is a dangerous community? Is it a community where there is a lot of crime? These areas are already over policed as it is. Ill get to the point. The reason there are so many arrests and crimes in Black, Brown, and poor neighborhoods is because thats where all the police are! If you give me 50 cops and let me place them on patrol in ANY neighborhood, I promise i can find crime. Drugs, warrants, domestic abuse, drunk driving, broken taillights all dat! You are only as safe as you think you are and if you dont know now you know.
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I said “poor communities.” Anyway, I agree with Lady G: we are asking police to do too much. I just think we should give them the resources they need to do the job we are asking them to do. Lady G thinks we should give the resources to others. Either way, we need to do something for people that are not being protected as well as they could.
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Hi Kimball,
Another reader commented that while you did refer to “poor communities.” you also mentioned “dangerous neighborhoods.”
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Whoops. Thanks for letting me know.
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I think it’s an excellent idea – but should be renamed! As we know, there are a ton of stupid people out there, and they think “What?! No police anymore?!?” Right? Maybe, I dunno, change the slogan to: Demilitarizing Police? Humane Police? Public Safety Department? What do you think, G?
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Yes, I agree! Dump that term!
We should say what it does:
Reallocate non-police duties/funds to other appropriate professionals.
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I’m here for it, especially if they feel so stressed that they cannot effectively do their jobs to protect and serve.
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Me too girl!
Help us help you!
I think the most crazy thing I keep hearing is that they are now “afraid.”
Sorry, sir/madam, you knew the risks associated with this type of work when you took the job.
Again, help us help you so we can live.
Thanks for stopping by Doc.
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