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What are calls for abolishing the police seeking?

Leaders in different cities have advocated various specific plans, but generally speaking, the calls aim to reimagine public safety tactics in ways that are different from traditional police forces. Activists say their intent is to ensure safety and justice but to wind up with a different system. Years of consent decrees and investigations into human rights violations by police departments have yielded little change, they say, so a more fundamental shift is needed.

What are some of the ideas for rethinking policing?

Some proposals call for ending no-knock warrants and military-style raids. Others seek to restrict the flow of military-style gear to police departments and change police tactics used against protesters. One group described an idea for policing in which attendees look out for one another but emergency workers are standing by in the background, handing out water and ready to step in if needed.

Has this been done anywhere?

Some cities have already made changes to policing. In the city of Austin, Texas, 911 calls are answered by operators who inquire whether the caller needs police, fire or mental health services — part of a major revamping of public safety that took place last year when the city budget added millions of dollars for mental health issues. In Eugene, Ore., a team called CAHOOTS — Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets — deploys a medic and a crisis worker with mental health training to emergency calls. Camden, N.J., revamped its policing in 2017 with officers handing out more warnings than tickets and undergoing training that places emphasis on officers holding their fire.

What is Minneapolis doing?

Nine members of the Minneapolis City Council pledged at a rally to dismantle the Police Department. They promised to create a new system of public safety, saying that the city’s current policing system could not be reformed. Council members say they aren’t certain exactly what policing will look like once they’re finished, and they caution plans will take a long time to execute.