Minneapolis City Council Votes to Abolish Police Force

The Minneapolis City Council (MCC) Friday unanimously approved a resolution to replace the Police department with a community-run public security system.

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The resolution states that George Floyd's murder is a "tragedy" that evidenced that the reforms to the Police department are not enough to prevent violence against black people.

“The murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, by Minneapolis police officers is a tragedy that shows that no amount of reforms will prevent lethal violence and abuse by some members of the Police Department against members of our community, especially Black people and people of color,” councilmembers wrote, as reported by La Corte news.

“We better start writing our ten-step plan for how to keep communities safe without police. Because police have failed,” MCC member Jeremiah Ellison said, as reported by 60 Minutes.

This decision comes a week after the MCC president Lisa Bender announced that Police funds would go toward other needs, and the Council would discuss how to replace the current department.

Over the next year, city authorities will establish a new model of public safety with the participation of all members of the community interested in doing so.

“The City Council will engage with every willing community member in Minneapolis, centering the voices of Black people, American Indian people, people of color, immigrants, victims of harm, and other stakeholders who have been historically marginalized or under-served by our present system,” MCC resolution states.

“Together, we will identify what safety looks like for everyone,” it added.