Police violence is a globally spread phenomenon present in most of the developing countries, ranging from Russia to Nigeria. However, the United States appears to be one of the few developed countries which struggle to find a social compromise on this issue considering the repetitive incidents of police racism and violence. The latest resonant case of George Floyd’s murder has brought society to the idea of defunding police as an institution. Some oppose this idea emphasizing the importance of a comprehensive internal reform within the system. While the former proposition has various negative aspects to be considered, the latter appears to be the appropriate reaction to the challenges posed for the United States’ society in 2020.
To begin with, defunding police does not seem to be an adequate response to decrease racism and violence within the structure. First, it directly limits incentives to serve the principles of justice. Low wages push officers to seek extra jobs, not focusing on the main goal of keeping the society safe as police normally deal with high-stress situations which require emotional resources. Second, some of the police tasks demand training, which also needs funding. Without skillful officers, civil society will be behind any kind of violent extremists and possibly unable to respond to them. Third, such a measure can cause new troubles related to the system: in many countries, low salaries among the police lead to corruption. For instance, according to the Transparency International and U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Center report, “in Singapore and Georgia, low salaries and poor working conditions for members of the police force were identified as a cause of corruption among lower-level police” (Lee-Jones 2). Thus, there are several essential considerations against the idea of defunding the police.
Meanwhile, there are strong opposite arguments. One of the critical speculations suggests investing the police funds into social and educational organizations and the units which would contribute to the actual problem solution (2 Views on the Future of American Policing). This approach is an adequate measure to push society forward in fighting crime. However, it is also essential to point out the idea that there are always so-called rotten apples in any community, in particular, individuals who are prone to dangerous and deviant behavior in any circumstances. They tend to form groups such as terrorist organizations which police need to be able to respond to as well. Moreover, the number one reason to defund the police is the fact that the institution was initially created to maintain white supremacy (American Friends Service Committee). The promotion of such a thesis seems destructive, not to mention its irrelevance as an initial role can be changed. Therefore, the arguments for police defunding do not seem convincing.
It is fair to assume that the internal reforms in the policing system are the rational way the United States could go. More precisely, there should be standardized national regulations that would fall within the frames of international human rights laws. Equal Justice Initiative is one of the sources suggesting the options for such reforms. For example, the U.S. could ban lethal force as well as stop the transfer of military equipment to the police (Pilkington 13). Thus, various approaches could be applied to the problem of a reform that yet seems to be the most relevant response to the police issue in the United States.
To conclude, American society, particularly the Black population, is now facing a common, yet hard-to-solve issue of police brutality. There are two major visions of how this problem could be solved: reformation or police defunding. The former appears to be less contradictory and has different ways of implementation, while the latter does not consider other dimensions of national security. Hence, defunding the police is a more radical and obscure policy that could negatively affect the situation in the United States.
Works Cited
American Friends Service Committee. “6 Reasons Why It’s Time to Defund the Police”. Web.
Lee-Jones, Krista. “Best Practices in Addressing Police-Related Corruption”. U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Center. Web.
“2 Views on the Future of American policing”.YouTube, uploaded by PBS News, 2020. Web.
Pilkington, Ed. “‘State-Sanctioned Violence’: US Police Fail to Meet Basic Human Rights Standards”.The Guardian, 2020. Web.