House defeats measure to demilitarize the police
The Biden administration should now act to stem the flow of military-grade equipment to local law enforcement.
The Biden administration should now act to stem the flow of military-grade equipment to local law enforcement.
Despite Biden’s promises, $34 million worth of equipment has been transferred from the DoD to local law enforcement this year.
Members of Congress have jumped to action in the wake of the mass protests against police brutality but most often it’s the local police forces that have been militarizing themselves.
The massive resources allocated to both local police and the U.S. military create supply side pressures to find, if not create, enemies.
The proposals for change offered by the president, and from both Republicans and Democrats in Congress, will not be enough.
Perhaps the most damaging effect of police militarization is that it pushes police officers engaging with the public to behave as they look, to act like soldiers dealing with enemy combatants.