In the early hours of Feb. 10, 1971, heavily armed officers moved in on a house occupied by Black Panther activists – marking a policing trajectory toward a more militarized response to Black activism.
Police organizations in the United States have become political players in the election. This is due to politicians’ responses to the Black Lives Matter and anti-police brutality movements.
Kenosha is the latest US city to see federal agents patrolling its protests. History suggests that supplanting the local police with a militarized national force rarely works out well.
In the absence of serious efforts by mental health centres, shelters and youth group homes to prevent people from running away from their facilities in the first place, police involvement is necessary.
Amidst calls to defund the police, political leaders are increasing police budgets, arguing — incorrectly — that increasing police surveillance capacities will help provide accountability.
Around the world, policing — as an institution — is being challenged. But calls to defund the police will fall short if they do not address the history of policing.
There has been some progress on judicial reform in Australia since the protests began, but structural change requires a truth-telling process and a real commitment from government for action.
As a former NZ Police sergeant, I know firsthand how police fatalities shape one’s behaviour. The recent shooting of two officers in Auckland cuts to the heart of NZ’s trust-based policing policies.
Police forces across the country now have access to surveillance technologies that were recently available only to national intelligence services. The digitization of bias and abuse of power followed.