America should reform its police forces, not defund them
Cops need to be trusted if they are to curb a surge of killings
What a difference a couple of years makes. In spring 2020 the murder of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, by a police officer in Minneapolis brought millions of people out of covid-19 lockdowns all over the world and onto the streets. After a wave of furious protests, and riots, some politicians on the American left adopted the protesters’ slogan: that the way to ensure that black lives mattered was to “defund the police”. The Democratic mayors of New York and San Francisco, among others, promised to cut police budgets.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “Getting away with murder”
Leaders September 17th 2022
From the September 17th 2022 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Leaders
How to improve clinical trials
Involving more participants can lead to new medical insights
Houthi Inc: the pirates who weaponised globalisation
Their Red Sea protection racket is a disturbing glimpse into an anarchic world
Donald Trump will upend 80 years of American foreign policy
A superpower’s approach to the world is about to be turned on its head
Rising bond yields should spur governments to go for growth
The bond sell-off may partly reflect America’s productivity boom
Much of the damage from the LA fires could have been averted
The lesson of the tragedy is that better incentives will keep people safe
Health warnings about alcohol give only half the story
Enjoyment matters as well as risk