As Minneapolis considers
disbanding its police department entirely, many Americans are wondering what
this means. Many news sources, such as CNN, have been holding up Camden, New
Jersey, as an example of what this could look like. In 2012, they replaced
their old police department, deemed corrupt, with a new one that focused on building
relationships with the community. It is worth noting that this is not the only
potential approach to disbanding the police, so we'll be looking at what Camden
did and what the abolitionist movement has been suggesting.
Camden's Approach
Camden used to be considered
one of the most violent areas of the country, and something needed to change. CNN
reports of investigations that found that the police department was criminally
framing community members, sometimes by planting evidence on innocent people. This
happened so frequently that 88 unjust convictions were overturned. That's when
the city decided that they needed to start from scratch.
After entirely disbanding
their previous police force, CNN notes that Camden moved towards
community-oriented policing, which has reduced violent crime by 42 percent over
seven years. Police forces are more diverse and are trained in de-escalation,
taught to use lethal force only as the last possible option. Police officers
interact with the community in group events that are intended to build
connections between residents and law enforcement officers.
But Camden is by no means
perfect. In 2018, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that policeman Nicholas
Romantino was acquitted after being charged with excessive use of force for
repeatedly punching unarmed community member Edward Minguela. Apparently,
Minguela matched a caller's description of a man with a gun. The Courier
Post added that Minguela said he suffered a broken wrist and a concussion
because of the attack. Further, in his interview with CNN, Justice Minister
Ojii BaBa Madi notes that he hasn't felt an improvement in his personal
relationship with law enforcement, although he does feel like police officers
are more willing to discuss issues with community leaders, and he agrees that
the community feels safer.
Defunding and
Abolitionist Approaches
Camden's approach focuses on
mainly police reform, an idea being discussed across the country, with
initiatives like #8CantWait. However, many voices, such as leadership within
the Black Lives Matter movement, are calling for more radical reform, advocating
for police abolition, transformative justice, and the reallocation of funds.
The first step here would
likely be divesting from police forces, which the Insider reports can
make up half of a city's budget. That money would then be reinvested in the
community, funding things like education or assistance for individuals
experiencing domestic violence. Abolition also asks for a shift in who is responding
to calls for help. For example, if someone is calling in need of mental health
assistance, perhaps a psychiatrist will be dispatched. The movement also
believes that crime results from lack of access to resources, so crime would
decrease if resources increased. The New York Daily News notes that New
York City's combined spending on the Departments of Health, Homeless Services,
Housing Preservation and Development, and Youth and Community Development is
still less than the city budgets for its police. Perhaps reallocating this
money will discourage crime in a way that isn't punitive. Many abolitionists
think that the transition to a world with no police at all will happen
gradually, although the decision made to disband the Minneapolis police
department means that there will be a perfect testing ground for some
abolitionist ideas.
Of course, abolition is also
imperfect, and there are a lot of unknowns: What exactly does a world without
police look like? Within the abolitionist movement, proponents have lots of
different ideas, some more immediately possible than others. Both the progress
made in Camden and the bold ideas of the abolitionist movement are sure to
inform the decisions being made in Minneapolis in the upcoming months. Either
way, America watches with hope.
