Ross: Figuring out what defunding the police actually means

I was reading about the debate over what “defund the police” means, in particular the argument that it’s not just a budget cut.

It’s also about abolishing the whole idea of policing and the justice system that goes with it – a justice system spawned by the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery except for people convicted of crimes. So, the states created anti-drug laws, only enforced them against black people, and here we are: Slavery 2.0.

And if that’s how you see the world, then the idea of simply fine-tuning the existing system sounds ridiculous.

Instead of the police, the idea is that communities would police themselves. That may sound ultra-liberal, but there are echoes of the NRA too, which is always reminding us the police never quite gets there in time, and that oftentimes you may have to be your own first responder.

And then to replace the justice system: There would be community justice, or restorative justice, or some other way to quickly reform offenders and return them to society.

But there’s a fundamental law of nature at work here too, which says that whatever you do, no matter how enlightened it is, it has to make the community feel safe from the moment you roll it out.

Even among enlightened people, if they don’t feel safe, those who can afford it will move out. And those who can’t – can’t.

And we’ll be back here before you can say 911.

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