READING LIST – DEFUND THE POLICE
Find below articles and books related to policing, put together by the UB School of Law
A. Some Context
The History Of Police In Creating Social Order In The U.S.
NPR’s Ailsa Chang talks with Chenjerai Kumanyika, an assistant professor at Rutgers University, about the historical role of police in preserving power and social order.
Heard on All Things Considered
George Floyd: Five pieces of context to understand the protests
For more than a week, protests have shaken cities across the US following the death of a black man in police custody.
By Alice Cuddy
Police the Public, or Protect It? For a U.S. in Crisis, Hard Lessons From Other Countries
Those who want to remake a police model that has set off unrest and despair would do well to look at the experiences of Asia, Africa and Europe.
By Amanda Taub
B. Defund… Abolition
INVEST-DIVEST
We want investments in Black communities, determined by Black communities, and divestment from exploitative forces including prisons, fossil fuels, police, surveillance and exploitative corporations.
By Movement 4 Black Lives
#DefundPolice Defend Black Lives
Black People Are Dying of Police Terror and Covid19. It is time to defund the police NOW
How Much Do We Need The Police?
One effect of the widespread protests across U.S. cities this week has been to renew discussions of what role the police should play in society.
By Leah Donnella
The Only Solution Is to Defund the Police
The murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor prove what we already knew—police “reform” has failed.
by Alex Vitale
Police “Reforms” You Should Always Oppose
Ultimately, the only way that we will address oppressive policing is to abolish the police.
By Mariame Kaba
Reformist reforms vs. abolitionist steps in policing
As we struggle to decrease the power of policing there are also positive and pro-active investments we can make in community health and well-being.
From Critical Resistance
We Won’t Stop Until We Dismantle the Whole Racist System
In this moment of truth, we cannot lose focus on what’s important: Black Lives Matter.
By Lane Mullet
Bill de Blasio Has Failed the Test of This Moment
New York’s mayor has floundered in the face of stunning police violence—just like so many other mayors who aren’t prepared to rein in the cops.
By Elie Mystal
What’s Wrong with Police Unions?
Despite broad support for unionization on the political left, police unions have become public enemy number one for academics and activists concerned about race and police violence.
By Benjamin Levin
C. Reformist Plans and Ideas
Draft Democratic proposal seeks big changes to policing
Reps. Bass and Nadler join Sens. Harris and Booker in seeking backers for the most sweeping initiative in decades.
by Josh Bresnahan
Campaign Zero
https://www.joincampaignzero.org/
II. BOOKS/REPORTS:
Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (January 2020)
Angela J. Davis, Bryan Stevenson, et al, Policing the Black Man: Arrest, Prosecution, and Imprisonment (2018)
Andrea Ritchie, Invisible No More: Police Violence against Black Women and Women of Color(2017)
Danielle Sered, Until We Reckon: Violence, Mass Incarceration, and a Road to Repair (2019)
Alex S. Vitale, The End of Policing (2017)
Implementation Guide for President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, at https://noblenational.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/President-Barack-Obama-Task-Force-on-21st-Century-Policing-Implementation-Guide.pdf
