Reforming, Defunding, Abolishing: What are the proposals for overhauling police departments?

In the wake of George Floyd’s death in police custody, activists and some politicians have been calling for police departments to be reformed, defunded or even abolished. Yahoo News explains what some of these proposals mean.

Video transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

CHRISTOPHER WILSON: After the death of George Floyd in police custody, activists and protesters have pushed for change to the US law enforcement system. Some are proposing reform. Some are proposing defunding. And some are proposing the complete abolition of the police force.

This is what some of those options will look like. Congressional Democrats have proposed the Justice in Policing Act, which includes a number of elements, including the banning of chokeholds nationwide and a reversal in sending military equipment to local departments.

NANCY PELOSI: We cannot settle for anything less than transformative, structural change.

CHRISTOPHER WILSON: It faces stiff resistance from Republican-controlled Senate and the White House, where President Trump has painted himself as a law-and-order president.

DONALD TRUMP: I will fight to protect you. I am your president of law and order.

CHRISTOPHER WILSON: Police budgets often dwarf other expenditures at the local level, which has led some activists to call for defunding, sometimes a complete defunding or abolition or sometimes a partial defunding, reappropriating some of the money that would go to police, instead spending that on housing, education, and other safety net programs. The belief is that police shouldn't have to solve every problem. So instead of an officer, you might have a social worker or drug counselor stepping in before a problem escalates.

Some are calling for the total abolition of police departments, pointing to its roots in slave patrols and current targeting of communities of color. After years of complaints about the force, members of the Minneapolis City Council have pledged to disband it, including Council president Lisa Bender.

LISA BENDER: Our commitment is to end our city's toxic relationship with the Minneapolis Police Department to end its policing as we know it and to recreate systems of public safety that actually keep us safe.

CHRISTOPHER WILSON: Despite the enthusiasm for [? this spin ?] following public pressure after George Floyd's death, officials in Minneapolis are unsure what the replacement will look like.

ALL: We are united!

CHRISTOPHER WILSON: This goes beyond Minneapolis. The push for change is coming nationwide. And it's still unclear how drastic those changes will be.