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Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

#TBT #1360 Redefine, Unburden and #DefundThePolice: With Copy City renewing debate over policing, we look back at the counterargument (Throwback)

Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

Jay Tomlinson

Politics, News Commentary, News

4.53.4K Ratings

🗓️ 22 September 2023

⏱️ 59 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Original Air Date: 8/8/2020

Today we take a look at the concept of defunding the police; what it means, what it doesn't and what the goals of the movement are.

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Race, Police, & The Pandemic - FRONTLINE - Air Date 6-2-20

Jelani Cobb describes how the relationship between black Americans and the police has become a “barometer” for race relations in the country and that explosive tensions are “overwhelmingly” in response to an issue of police use of force.

Ch. 2: Panel Discussion on Radical Police Reform - The Daily Show - Air Date 6-10-20

Trevor hosts a panel on movements to radically reimagine policing in the U.S. with Patrisse Cullors, Josie Duffy Rice, Sam Sinyangwe, Mychal Denzel Smith and Alex S. Vitale.

Ch. 3: The Racial Justice Uprising in the U.S. is Taking Hold Overseas - The Takeaway - Air Date 6-8-20

Explaining that an overburdened police system that takes on way too much, including much that is outside the realm of their training, is something that no one should want.

Ch. 4: The End of Policing with Alex Vitale - The Bastani Factor, Novara Media - Air Date 6-3-20

Aaron Bastani interviews author of ‘The End of Policing’, Alex Vitale, to ask just how bad law enforcement is in the United States, and what can be done about it.

Ch. 5: Defunding the Police Is Only the Beginning - The Mother Jones Podcast - Air Date 6-17-20

Josie Duffy Rice joins Jamilah King for a discussion about the recent police killing of Rayshard Brookes in Atlanta, the deep racist and classist structural issues with policing in America, and why defunding the police is only step one.

Ch. 6: Defund Police What It Means & How It Would Really Work - News Beat - Air Date 6-16-20

In the wake of the police slaying of George Floyd in Minneapolis, protesters have not only flooded the streets, but they're actively pushing reforms that go well beyond traditional solutions.

Ch. 7: How to Defund the Police - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 6-11-20

Racism is baked into the U.S. model of policing. More and more people are starting to believe that no amount of "reform" will help; a full tear-down is required. But what does "defunding the police" actually mean?

Ch. 8: Is It Time To Defund the Police? - Deconstructed with Mehdi Hasan - Air Date 6-11-20

Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors joins Mehdi Hasan to discuss the future of policing and community-oriented systems of public safety in the United States.

Ch. 9: The Politics of "Defund the Police" - Politics with Amy Walter, The Takeaway - Air Date 6-12-20

Congress is reckoning with how to respond to the protests and calls for police accountability. Two national reporters join to discuss the Justice in Policing Act of 2020.

Ch. 10: We Can't Let The Uprising Get Co-opted - The Michael Brooks Show - Air Date 6-10-20

Notes on the uprising and how we move forward without allowing the forces of neoliberalism to co-opt the movement.

Ch. 11: Angela Davis: Abolishing police is not just about dismantling. It’s also about building up. - Democracy Now - Air Date 6-12-2020

Amid a worldwide uprising against police brutality and racism, we discuss the historic moment with legendary scholar and activist Angela Davis.


EDUCATE YOURSELF & SHARE

The Movement for Black Lives Introduces the BREATHE Act (Colorlines)

What Exactly Does It Mean to Defund the Police? (The Cut, NY Mag,)

What Does It Mean to Invest in Black Communities? (The Nation)

How to Defund the Police (The New Yorker)

How to Make Defunding the Police a Reality (The Nation)

Defunding the Police Will Actually Make Us Safer (ACLU)

Researched & Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman


MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions)


Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Welcome to this Thurback edition of the Ward Winnie Best of the Left podcast, where

0:07.7

remember the past and choose to repeat it.

0:10.4

I'm one of the producers, Aaron, and you can usually hear more from me on our bonus shows

0:14.5

for members.

0:15.5

But today I'm here because I chose this week's Thurback episode as a preface for an

0:19.6

episode that will come out next week.

0:21.8

It's on a specific topic surrounding police funding.

0:25.0

This Thurback episode reiterates the importance for continuing to push back against our militarized

0:29.5

police state and asking our government on all levels to reallocate funding to systems

0:34.3

that actually keep us safe while we reimagine what our public safety could look like.

0:39.6

Today's episode was originally published on August 8, 2020.

0:43.6

Sources include Frontline, The Daily Show, The Takeaway, Novara Media, The Mother Jones

0:51.0

Podcast, Newsbeat, Boom Loyard, Deconstructed, The Michael Brooks Show, and Democracy Now.

0:59.8

Enjoy!

1:06.2

When you were reporting our film out of Newark, I remember that you said something that

1:12.1

always stuck with me, which was that you see relations between the police and African-American

1:17.2

community as a gauge of race relations in general.

1:21.2

So I mean, you're seeing this through the prison of the larger story of race in America.

1:26.6

And I'm just wondering if you could comment right now as you're seeing this unfold in Minneapolis.

1:32.0

What is this telling you today?

1:34.2

Yeah, it's telling us that we are, it's like the kind of culmination of the things that

1:39.4

we've seen in the past few years and the past decades.

...

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