What Does #DefundThePolice Mean?
The defund the police movement does not suggest that the government fire every police officer and close every prison immediately. Rather, it quite rightly argues that our current method of manging social issues via policing are a waste of tax-payer’s money.
#DefundThePolice recently gained more traction when Kill The Bill protests spanned the country, opposing new legislation by Priti Patel which expands police powers. As the argument to defund the police re-enters the news cycle, coming into conversations about the right to protest and womxn’s safety, it’s vital to remember that defunding the police is fundamentally a black movement, which exists to fight against police violence in the black community.
Arguments to remove inherently racist institutions like white police forces and the prison system were made as early as 1935: Sociologist and civil rights activist DR. W. E. B. Du Bois, argued for ‘abolition democracy’ in “Black Reconstruction in America.” DR. Angela Davis, American political activist and professor, also advocated for defunding and even abolishing the police in the 60’s and 70’s, along with The Black Panther Party, who argued that white policing in black communities should be replaced by community based enforcement.
The #defundthepolice slogan specifically became popularised in May 2020, after George Floyd was murdered by Police officers in America. This blatant act of racism sparked global protests calling out the lethally disproportionate use of police force against black people. The message is clear, law enforcement has and continues to be a racist institution, the consequence of which is disproportionate ‘stop and search,’ arrests, sentencing, use of force and lethal force for black and brown people.
Due to the well-known history of racism within America and its increased instances of lethal police brutality, some argue that the #defundthepolice movement in the UK simply misappropriates a US problem for our own. But, this could not be further from the truth. Although American based Black Vision Collective and Reclaim The Block have been at the forefront of the movement for several years, police brutality against black people is a global issue.
Recent studies show that the Met Police are four times more likely to use force on black people, than white people and the rest of POC community. Black people are also significantly more likely to be subjected to ‘random’ stop and search, with brown people being less likely than Black people but still disproportionately impacted by police harassment in the UK. English Police Officers may not walk around with AR-15’s, but they have repeatedly used force to end black people’s lives.
Say Their Names.
England has the 2nd largest police budget in Europe, a whopping 28.8 billion which is more than we spend on primary education, social care, social housing and the environment. England also has the largest prison population in western Europe. Of that prison population, 12% are black which means proportionality England incarcerate more black people than America. And the argument that #defundthepolice only applies in the US fails.
Discrimination against black people in the UK starts a young age. The data for school exclusions in 2018 showed that “Mixed White and Black Caribbean, and Black Caribbean pupils were both nearly 3 times as likely to be permanently excluded as White British pupils.” When this is accounted for alongside other social factors, like increased chances of living below the poverty line and experiencing mental health problems. It is unsurprising, but unacceptable nonetheless, that black Britons make up approximately 28% of people in youth custody. A figure which has more than doubled in the past 12 years (Gov.UK)
Those who argue for defunding the police explain that issues like homelessness, social issues and people in mental health crisis - issues which are currently handled by the police - are more effectively addressed by social services, youth services, healthcare (including mental healthcare) housing and education. Hence, the police should be defunded and funds reallocated back into local communities.
Depending on your position, demands to defund the police range from reallocating funding away from policing, to dismantling the police (and prison) system in its entirety. To some, the racist roots which founded the police and prison systems will always be a source of corruption and so the system needs to be torn down, then rebuilt from scratch. More moderate views suggest the system can be fixed through training and restructuring as well as reallocating funds to community support.
Under austerity and the weight of pandemic, the previously mentioned social problems have only got worse. According to Unite, since 2012 more than 750 youth centres have closed across England and Wales. Homelessness has been on the rise. Knife crime is on the rise and our government persist in denying institutionalised racism whilst continuing to fund a 'failing' police force.
Kier Starmer’s comment on BBC Breakfast, claiming that efforts to defund the police are “nonsense”, fails to recognise the seriousness of the situation. To continue to invest in a corrupt police force is to further invest in a racist institution which perpetrates violence against black British people. Defunding the police and putting funds back into communities is one of many necessary steps towards equality. Most importantly for black people, but also for all those who have suffered as a result of nationwide cuts and inflated policing.
The current defund the police movement does not suggest that the government fire every officer and close every prison immediately. Rather, it quite rightly argues that our present method of manging social issues via policing are a waste of tax-payer’s money. Defunding the police would look like increasingly replacing police officers with community workers who are better trained to manage social issues, like mental health crisis. Furthermore, training remaining enforcement officers thoroughly in de-escalation and community relations. Most importantly, law enforcement would be working with communities for the benefit of those communities, not to aggressively enforce the law regardless of its social impact.
There has already been responses to #defundthepolice demands in the US. Minneapolis and Baltimore have been prompted to undertake defunding initiatives and Seattle is looking to defund their police by half. Yet in January, the UK police force was given their biggest funding boost in a decade, with a chilling 22,000 additional officers set to walk the street in the first wave of new recruits. Just last month, the UK government positioned 683 police officers in schools across England and Wales. They chose to specifically target poorer areas which also have higher populations of black and brown families.
As we emerge from a series of yearlong lockdowns and protests, unemployment is high, poverty rates have increased and so have racial tensions. What kinds of people will be the first to sign up and enforce the Home Secretary’s new policy? A regime that prioritises police manning school gates over investing in youth clubs, and a tough on crime approach over black lives.
#defundthepolice #BLM #saytheirname
Written by Jasmine Khan
Jasmine Khan is a journalist, public speaker and mental health advocate. Having achieved a Masters in Global Ethics and Justice, she now hopes to use this knowledge to promote practical changes for social justice across the UK and beyond. Jasmine also runs bespoke mental health masterclasses, for inquiries please see @jazwritesjazspeaks
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