Fine. Is Forbes magazine far enough to the right for you?
KEY FACTS
In its most general definition, “defund the police” means to redirect some funds for police departments to other areas such as education and healthcare while its most radical interpretation calls for completely dismantling police departments and replacing it with a social services-based approach, which Minneapolis may be on track to doing after the City Council voted to disband the city police department.
At first glance, it appears to be a reaction to police brutality, but its origin runs deeper: left-leaning activists and academics have argued for decades that the U.S. spends far too much on security and not enough on social welfare.
At all levels of government, the U.S. spends roughly double on police, prisons, and courts what it spends on food stamps, welfare, and income supplements, The Atlantic reports.
Some “defund the police” proponents argue the U.S. relies on police to do too much; they envision mental health workers and nurses responding to drug overdoses, instead of police officers.
Cities such as Eugene, Oregon, Austin, Texas, and Camden, New Jersey have tried versions of this approach, and Minneapolis could be next: the Minneapolis City Council on Sunday pledged to disband its police department and invest in community-based public safety programs, though it’s not clear what the next steps will be.
For now, though, “defunding the police” appears most likely to succeed as reducing — not defunding, which implies zeroing out — police budgets. On Wednesday, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti announced he is throwing out plans for a massive police budget hike and redirecting funds to address problems in the black community.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackbre...-really-means/