More than a year after George Floyd’s death sparked a failed push to abolish the Minneapolis Police Department, activists and several City Council members are trying again
, with a well-funded initiative that would ask voters in November whether the department – disparaged by critics for what they say is an enduring culture of brutality – should be dismantled.
“What we knew as public safety – which is only the police right now, the only option that we have – was unacceptable,” said Brian Fullman, lead organizer with one of the groups, Barbershop and Black Congregation Cooperative. “The murder of George Floyd ignited a lot of historical pain and disrespect that we have been going through, and we made the decision that we no longer wanted to have what we have now as the only option for public safety.
Minneapolis, like most other major U.S. cities, has been on edge due to rising violence and property crime in almost every neighbourhood in the past year. And the police department is more than 200 officers, or about 25%, below its authorized strength due mostly to a wave of retirements and disability leaves following Floyd’s death.Both factors have energized opponents of the initiative.
It’s among several aspects of the ballot question that city officials plan to highlight with an explanatory note in November. Activists are trying to block such a note, arguing that the city is improperly trying to influence voters.Regardless of how the ballot question fares, the city remains under pressure to make changes. The police department is the target of federal and state investigations into policing practices, and both investigations could force widespread change.
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