A common defense of the “defund the police” movement circulating among leftists is this: “Defund” doesn’t actually mean “defund.”
Here’s an example:
Defund > Reinvent. We want to radically reduce the size, role, and equipment manifest of police in American communities, and to use that money for better, more humane programs that advance healthy communities and address social ills instead of punishing people reflexively. https://t.co/1JJvPCSdqF
— Justin Hendrix (@justinhendrix) June 9, 2020
Stripping funds from police departments is certainly one aspect of this movement’s agenda, but the more serious argument being made by its advocates allows for the reallocation of those funds to other sectors, such as education and healthcare, that will help communities thrive. Law enforcement would still have a presence, albeit a downscaled one.
Unfortunately, the slogan these activists have adopted leaves no room for any nuance to their proposal. And this could very well be intentional. I’ve already seen several comments from leftist activists who have admitted that they hope “defund the police” will lead to the total abolition of law enforcement. Even the Minneapolis City Council, which intends to defund the city’s police department, claimed that a “police-free future” was a reasonable goal. So make no mistake: There is an extreme end to all of this. Some are just more willing to hide it behind gradual reform and reallocation.
But reform is the better option if activists want to make serious, lasting changes to the system. Few people outside the coastal cities will support the idea of abolishing law enforcement, and that support will continue to drop as you make your way down the socioeconomic ladder.
If activism has taught us anything, it’s this: The bigger the ask, the less support you’ll receive. That makes this frustrating for those of us who do want to see the criminal justice system reformed and law enforcement held accountable. There are reasonable steps we can take to do just that: abolish qualified immunity, bust police unions, increase training with police departments, etc. But these reforms are being overshadowed by the loud clamoring of leftist activists who can’t decide what it is they want.
