Policy & Perspective Changes Following The Civil Unrest From George Floyd's Murder
Photo by: Nick Guzzo (SharedViews Media)
It’s hard to believe that it’s only been two weeks since the murder of, George Floyd, and the rise of protests in cities all across the country. The last fourteen days have been exhausting, heartrending, and eye-opening for many to the aggressive and abusive militarism of many United States’ police officers. The “bad apples” are on display across all social platforms, responding to protests of excessive force with even more excessive force. This isn’t even surprising anymore, nor is the fact these are often peaceful and compliant citizens being assaulted, or worse. The urgency of the moment is only affirmed by the brutality that people have endured in the recent protests. It is merely a glimpse of the horrors inflicted on black people and people of color in this country for centuries! The question for the moment: will these protests and other actions of the current Black Lives Matter movement bring about real change? There are signs of such progress but we must remember that incremental improvements or the implementation of new guidelines do not necessarily equate to the elimination of police brutality or signal that the problem is finally solved.
So what, you might ask, has come from these historic demonstrations, protests, and riots? Here’s a short list of some early progress.
Charges upgraded, Officers arrested:
Derek Chauvin was initially charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter on May 29th, four days after George Floyd’s death in his custody. This is, apparently, the fastest that charges have ever been brought against an officer. The three officers fired along with Chauvin were charged with aiding and abetting five days later, on June 3rd, and Chauvin’s murder charge was upgraded to second-degree murder. With bail set at $1 million for each officer, and mugshots of each man posted worldwide, it was a necessary and significant step toward justice.
Photo by: Nick Guzzo
Defund and Dismantle:
The Minneapolis’ city council announced on Sunday that they hold a supermajority support in favor of defunding the Minneapolis Police Department, effectively eliminating it to be replaced with “a new transformative model for cultivating safety in our city. ”Many activism platforms including Black Lives Matter and Reclaim The Block have called for such divestment and purported conceptual replacements for a militarized police department, such as BLANK! BLANK! BLANK! The Mayor of Minneapolis, Jacob Frey, stands opposed to the motion, calling it “an impulsive reaction to what’s going on.”
Colorado Lawmakers Introduce Accountability:
Wednesday, June 3rd, Senate Bill 217 or the Police Integrity Transparency and Accountability Act was introduced to the Colorado Senate is introduced. The legislation calls for a slew of changes to statewide police conduct, such as mandatory body cameras for all officers, a ban on the use of choke-holds, a repeal of the “fleeing felon” statute which allows officers to fire upon suspected felons who run, along with more stringent investigations of deaths in police custody. The Colorado Sun reported that, if passed, the bill will also “prevent problematic officers from moving to different police departments and sheriff’s offices”, a known issue in the state. Despite unanimous Democratic support within the Colorado Senate, multiple members of Colorado’s District Attorney’s Council have expressed their concerns, especially for the speed with which the bill is being pushed through without much time left in the session for deliberation and amendments.
https://www.denverpost.com/2015/07/11/colorado-laws-allow-rogue-officers-to-stay-in-law-enforcement/
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As of June 7th, 2020, DPD announced changes to its use-of-force policy. In a statement, DPD said “a report will be created to improve data collection and evaluation of these incidents” referring to incidents like those when officers feel compelled to point their weapon at a fellow citizen, or dawn their knee upon a suspects neck for nearly 9 minutes.
Confederate Statues Removed:
Monuments to the Confederacy have been the grounds for ideological battles in recent years and their impending removal has been met with backlash. Most famously in Charlottesville, Virginia, where counter-protester Heather Heyer was maliciously run over in August 2017. Virginia Governor, Ralph Northam, announced last Wednesday the removal of a six-story tall statue of Robert E Lee in Richmond, along with several smaller monuments in the surrounding area. The mayor of Birmingham, AL., Randall Woodfin, opted to remove a statue of Confederate soldiers, accepting the state lawsuit and civil fine that accompanied the decision. More statues have been removed in a handful of other states. While this does very little for the current situation, it is in many cases a long overdue promise and historically a sign of change.
Photo by: Nick Guzzo (SharedViews Media)
Congress introduces Justice in Policing act of 2020:
The New York Times claims this piece of legislation “would be the most aggressive intervention into policing by Congress in recent memory,” and includes measures that are in direct response to George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s deaths as well as decades-old items that have been advocated for by civil rights leaders. One point of the bill includes the creation of a “national registry to track police misconduct,” which could be pivotal in keeping the “bad apples” from getting a badge in another state. Cory Booker and Kamala Harris, both of whom ran for the Democratic nomination for president in the last year, are sponsors of the bill.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/06/us/politics/democrats-police-misconduct-racial-bias.html
Abusive, Negligent, and Chief Officers Released:
In Denver, Tommy McClay was fired from the Denver Police Department after posting a photo of himself and two other officers in full riot gear on Instagram with the caption, “Let’s start a riot”.
Two Atlanta police officers were fired after breaking a car window and tasing a college couple during protests. The assault was broadcast live on CBS 46 in Atlanta. Neither of the officers’ names has been released.
Photo by: Nick Guzzo (SharedViews Media)
The police chief of Louisville, Kentucky was fired after two officers along with two national guardsmen had their body-cams shut off while they gunned down David McAtee, a local BBQ restaurant owner.
These are only a fraction of the examples of police brutality endured during these nationwide protests; dozens and dozens more are circulating every social platform and to a lesser extent, mainstream news outlets. Countless other incidents have been captured on video and spread amongst the people. Police departments and local governments are acting swiftly to remove any officer caught in a controversial situation while one thing is clear: there are aggressive, ruthless, and poorly trained officers all over this nation and more needs to be done to remove them before they can continue to brutalize the citizens they’re supposed to protect.
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