dagblog - Comments for "Howard University Engineering Student Killed in Baltimore Last Week"

Police murder Freddie Gray.

rmrd0000 — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 19:06:46 +0000

In reply to Yes.

Police murder Freddie Gray. Police stop bus services, trapping young people. A riot results.

Police murder George Floyd. Riots occur.

Riots occur after a Ferguson officer kills Michael Brown.

Each police department had a reputation for mistreating black and poor citizens.

The true miracle is that uprising were so uncommon.

Police are needed, but they have to accept citizen control.

Looters are arrested immediately

Police are not arrested immediately.

Police are rarely convicted.

Unless laws regarding police abuse are changed, we will be back here again.

But protests erupted just 24 hours after Floyd’s death, with demonstrators calling for structural change, recognizing this as the latest in a long history of black people killed at the hands of the police, chanting, “No justice, no peace” and “I can’t breathe.” Activists criticized the mayor for increasing funds to the Minneapolis Police Department: They demanded cuts to the department’s budget and reinvestment in community infrastructure.

Such protests have become common in a country where more than 1,000 people annually are killed by police, with black people three times as likely as whites to be the victims. Also common is what happened soon after demonstrators gathered to protest Floyd’s death: Police in riot gear shot tear gas canisters into the crowds and fired stun grenades and “nonlethal projectiles” at demonstrators, injuring many. It was stunningly easy to point to the same department’s gentle treatment weeks ago against white anti-lockdown protesters while those protesting against police violence were met with militarized violence.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/05/28/explaining-militarized-police-response-protesters-after-killing-george-floyd/

Step One. Reform the police.

Yes.

artappraiser — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 17:19:15 +0000

In reply to At least most cities have

Yes.

But that also me makes me think about how miraculously much of the country behaved under isolation, an incredible historic and awful experience of shutting down economies for months--people self policed, no big looting problems until now

I.E., Manhattan empty, was not for the most part boarded up though valuables were removed from shop windows--and no looting for months. I don't know about other large cities worldwide, but Italy is one example where everyone laid back. Basically the only rise in crime being domestic abuse (and that was serious and little could be done about it.) And profiteering concerning basic needs, of course-that's always there in the worst times.

This is why people are getting the idea that we don't need police: because we didn't need them much for a couple months. Why does most criminal behavior stop when a society is stressed to the max by certain things?

I have to admit to myself that I think it is because the criminals are afraid just the same as the law abiding citizens. Right after 9/11 it was like that, too because no one was sure what else would come. So they want some of that civilization thing too?

As much as I don't like saying it, maybe one has to give the fear factor this one?

At least most cities have

NCD — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 16:49:15 +0000

In reply to Mayor de Blasio cuts school

At least most cities have figured out to drop the curfews, it just gives cops open season on their favorite targets, harmless citizens.

Maybe choking people will be outlawed, somehere or everywhere.

I noted they are now talking about "drugs in the system" of Floyd. I think when cops kill somebody they should have immediate blood tests to determine the drugs in their system. They are basically never tested after hiring, in most of the 16,000 police departments, in only some are they are tested after use of a gun, or after a traffic accident.

Findlaw, are cops drug tested?:

Although the reasons for drug testing cops are different than those for testing athletes, they are arguably more compelling. King also links the high rate of steroid use among officers and the high rate of domestic violence involving police officers -- the highest among any profession.

Mayor de Blasio cuts school

rmrd0000 — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 14:06:00 +0000

In reply to Coronavirus exposed deficits

Mayor de Blasio cuts school funding but keeps police budget intact

City schools and summer programs are taking a devastating budget hit amid the coronavirus fiscal crisis.

Mayor de Blasio proposed cutting more than $600 million in education spending next fiscal year and axing the city’s free youth summer programming as part of an effort to save more than $6 billion amid the pandemic.

https://www.nydailynews.com/coronavirus/ny-coronavirus-20200416-uwy5hrp5sbfvldej7lqbuzumdu-story.html

Coronavirus exposed deficits

rmrd0000 — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 13:57:34 +0000

In reply to From my experience (my

Coronavirus exposed deficits in the health care. It is heard to believe no changes will occur

“We spend too much on an institution that fails to advance and often undermines safety and security in the community. And we spend too little on structures that actually cultivate community safety and economic success,” says Rao.

Rao co-authored a 2017 CPD report that examined police funding in 12 jurisdictions across the country. Oakland spent 21.1 percent of its total operating budget on police—more than housing, parks, workforce development, and human services combined; Floyd’s adopted hometown of Minneapolis spent more than 11 percent of its budget on policing—1.5 percent went to the Health Department.

http://dagblog.com/comment/reply/31514/282851

Governor Cuomo wants to pass the "Say Their Name "

The 'Say Their Name' Reform agenda includes:

Allow for transparency of prior disciplinary records of law enforcement officers by reforming 50-a of the civil rights law;

Banning chokeholds by law enforcement officers;

Prohibiting false race-based 911 reports and making them a crime; and

Designating the Attorney General as an independent prosecutor for matters relating to the deaths of unarmed civilians caused by law enforcement.

https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-renews-call-passage-say-their-name-agenda-police-have-do-their-jobs-they-dont

From my experience (my

artappraiser — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 08:40:22 +0000

In reply to This tweeter supports

From my experience (my parents/relatives) it's going to be nigh impossible to get blacks who lived through the crack epidemic to even consider de-funding the police, much less abolition. https://t.co/SnFKukeb00
— Donald Moore (@DonEMooreJr) June 7, 2020

Donald Moore is Reporter for Bloomberg News.

This tweeter supports

artappraiser — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 07:42:21 +0000

In reply to "I'm a little irked by the

This tweeter supports abolition -- and notes that a major obstacle to that goal is older black people constantly demanding more police protection pic.twitter.com/qm8tqKGSL1
— Wesley Yang (@wesyang) June 7, 2020

I know exactly what I am

rmrd0000 — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 02:02:03 +0000

In reply to As the "only" solution?

I know exactly what I am arguing

1992 Rodney King

1994 Crime Bill supported by the majority of the Congressional Black Caucus

Including the man running for the seat of the late Elijah Cummings, Kweisi Mfume

We got mass incarceration, not fairer cops

We got militarized police departments

Now we are here with emboldened unions and impossible to remove cops

In the midst of the pandemic and after George Floyd, the mayor of LA says he's cutting $150M from the LAPD.

Edit to add:

The equation is not easy, obviously

As the "only" solution?

PeraclesPlease — Sun, 07 Jun 2020 01:06:43 +0000

In reply to Your post included:

As the "only" solution? Christ, the Clinton program was *after* Rodney King.
You don't even know what you're arguing anymore.
Yes, more cops but fair cops - including in the projects to protect people but *not* terrorize citizens.
The equation's not that tough. As Jesus said, "Don't taze me, Bro"

Your post included:

rmrd0000 — Sat, 06 Jun 2020 22:41:17 +0000

In reply to Your comment has nothing to

Your post included:

And black people will scream just as loud. During the crime wave when Clinton funded more cops most black people were as supportive of increased police presence and stricter penalties as the whites.

You provided the link. Black people did support increased policing. After seeing the results, as noted in the article, they no longer view the police as the only solution. The reluctance is a direct result of the damage done to communities by mass incarceration. Your link. My response on how it relates to the discussion.I merely responded to your post

Also of note, less policing may not result in an increase in crime in certain situations.

While there is no contemporary example of defunding in the US, there are studies suggesting that less policing could mean less crime. In 2014 and 2015, New York officers staged a “slowdown” to protest the mayor, arguing that if they did less police work, the city would be less safe. But the opposite turned out to be true. When the officers took a break from “broken windows policing”, meaning targeting low-level offenses, there was a drop in crime. Researchers posited that aggressive policing on the streets for petty matters can ultimately cause social disruption and lead to more crime. Policing that punishes poverty, such as hefty traffic tickets and debts, can also create conditions where crime is more likely. When New York ended “stop and frisk”, crime did not rise.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/05/defunding-the-police-us-what-does-it-mean