>>> JOINING US NOW, ACTIVISTS,
ORGANIZER AND EDUCATOR.
AN ACTIVIST WRITER AND MSNBC
CONTRIBUTOR.
THEY ARE COHOSTS OF THE PODCAST
POD SAVE THE PEOPLE AND
CO-FOUNDERS OF CAMPAIGN ZERO, A
NON-PROFIT TO END POLICE
VIOLENCE.
I’LL START WITH YOU BUT I’D LOVE
TO HEAR FROM BOTH OF YOU ON THIS
FROM YOUR EXPERIENCE IN PAST
PROTESTS AND DEALING WITH THIS
SPECIFIC ISSUE, WHAT HAS WORKED,
WHAT HAS NOT WORKED.
>> LET ME ZOOM OUT AND SET THE
CONTEXT.
IN MARCHAND APRIL OF 2020 THE
POLICE KILLED THE SAME NUMBER OF
PEOPLE AT THE SAME RATE AS THEY
DID IN MARCH OPPENHEIMF 2019.
SO LOCK DOWN AND COVID DIDN’T
CHANGE ANYTHING AND 2019 WAS THE
FIRST YEAR WHERE BLACK PEOPLE
WERE MORE AFRAID OF BEING KILLED
BY A POLICE OFFICER THAN BEING
KILLED BY COMMUNITY VIOLENCE.
WE THINK ABOUT THIS ISSUE AS
CONSISTENT TEAR IN COMMUNITIES.
WHEN I THINK ABOUT WHAT WORKS.
BRITNEY AND I HAVE BEEN PARTNERS
IN THIS FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS
IS THAT WE KNOW THAT FOCUSSING
ON POLICIES, PRACTICES AND
SOLUTIONS REALLY DO CHANGE THE
OUTCOMES.
SO WE JUST LAUNCHED SOMETHING
ABOUT THE 8 POLICIES THAT WHEN
THEY’RE IN PLAY, WHEN A POLICE
DEPARTMENT GOES THROUGH ZERO TO
EIGHT OF THEM THERE’S A 70%
REDUCTION IN POLICE VIOLENCE.
BANNING CHOKE HOLDS AND STRANGLE
HOLDS.
ONLY 28 OF THE POLICE
DEPARTMENTS BAN THEM TODAY.
RESTRICTING AND BANNING SHOOTING
CAN ALLEVIATE GOALS REQUIRING
THE EXKASCALATION.
THEY DO MATTER A LOT.
>> BRITNEY.
>> I MEAN, HIS POINT IS SO WELL
MADE AND I’M REALLY, REALLY GLAD
THAT FOLKS ARE ABLE TO SEE THAT
WORK AND KNOW THAT THESE ARE
COMMON SENSE SOLUTIONS.
WE CAN TALK ABOUT WHAT WORKS IN
PROTESTS BUT THE TRUTH OF THE
MATTER IS PROTESTS COMES AT THE
END OF THE CONTINUM.
THERE’S SOMETHING THAT SPURRED
THEM TO HAPPEN.
I IT WASN’T WHAT WE’RE SEEING ON
THE STREET, IT WAS VIOLENCE FROM
POLICE.
IT WAS THE KILLINGS OF GEORGE
FLOYD AND BRIANNA TAYLOR AND A
LIST TOO LONG TO NAME ON THIS
BROADCAST.
SO WHEN WE RECOGNIZE THAT
PROTESTS COME AT THE END OF THE
CONTINUUM WE’RE FOCUSED TO SEE
THAT SYSTEMIC, BOLD POLICY
CHANGE IS WHAT IS GOING TO STOP
IT AND NOT BRING US BACK TO THIS
POINT IN ANOTHER FEW YEARSMENT
THE KINDS OF POLICIES HE WALKED
THROUGH DON’T COST MUCH MONEY
AND REQUIRE AN ACT OF CONGRESS
OR THE STATE LEGISLATURE.
THEY JUST REQUIRE THAT POLICE
CHIEFS ACTUALLY HAVE THE COURAGE
OF CONVICTION TO DO WHAT WE KNOW
WORKS AND WHAT KEEPS EVERYBODY
SAFE.
>> CLAIRE, JUMP IN.
>> BRITNEY, IT’S CLAIRE.
GOOD MORNING, THANK YOU FOR ALL
THAT YOU HAVE DONE FOR MANY
YEARS IN THIS SPACE.
YOU JUST MENTIONED POLICE CHIEFS
AND THEY’RE HIRED BY MAYORS OR
CITY COUNCIL AND WE GET
DISTRACTEDDISTRACT
DISTRACTED SOMETIMES BY LOOKING
AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL AND AS YOU
KNOW AS WELL AS ANYBODY IN THIS
COUNTRY, THESE ARE LOCAL POLICE
DEPARTMENTS.
THESE ARE NOT FEDERAL AGENTS THAT ARE CAUSING THIS PROBLEM.
THAT ARE CAUSING THIS PROBLEM.
LAST NIGHT WE HAD AN ELECTION IN
FERGSON
FERGUSON.
PEOPLE DON’T THINK IT’S SEXY TO
TRY TO CHANGE THE CITY COUNCIL
OR THE MAYOR BUT EVERYBODY NEEDS
TO REALIZE WHAT YOU REALIZE IS
THAT’S HOW YOU REALLY GET CHANGE
IN THIS SPACE.
>> SO I’M GOING TO PUSH A LITTLE
BIT AND SAY THAT TWO THINGS ARE
ACTUALLY TRUE.
THAT WE KNOW THAT LOCAL POLICE
OFFICERS, POLICE DEPARTMENTS AND
POLICE UNIONS TAKE THEIR
DIRECTION AND GET SIGNALS FROM
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
WHEN YOU HAVE A PRESIDENT THAT
HAS BEEN INVOKING VIOLENCE AND
FEAR AND NOT JUST IN THE GENERAL
PUBLIC BUT THROUGH POLICE
DEPARTMENTS AND HAS ENCOURAGED
POLICE DEPARTMENTS TO ACT IN THE
WAYS THAT THEY ARE, THAT THAT
CONTRIBUTES TO THE ACTIONS THAT
WE SEE AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.
SO THERE IS BLAME HERE TO GO
AROUND AND WE SHOULD BE VERY
CLEAR TRUMP DESERVES A WHOLE
MOUNTAIN OF IT BUT YOU ARE ALSO
RIGHT, THE SECOND THING THAT IS
TRUE IS THAT THERE ARE 18,000
POLICE DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THIS
COUNTRY AND MUCH OF THAT POLICY
IS BEING SET LOCALLY.
THAT’S WHY IT CAN’T WAIT MATTERS
SO MUCH.
THOSE ARE CHANGES THAT ARE
HAPPEN RIGHT ON THE GROUND.
EARLIER JONATHAN SAID THE LAST
ROUND OF PROTESTS LASTED NINE
DAYS IN FERGUSON WE WERE ON THE
GROUND FOR OVER 400 DAYS.
IT WAS ONE OF THE LONGEST DIRECT
SOCIAL ACTION CAMPAIGNS IN THIS
COUNTRY’S HISTORY AND NOW
FERGUSON HAS ITS FIRST BLACK
MAYOR.
WE’RE JUST NOW GETTING TO THE
POINT WHERE WE CAN HAVE THESE
CONVERSATIONS AND STILL WHEN WE
LOOK AT THE CASE OF JASON IN ST.
LOUIS AND SO MANY OTHER CASES IN
MY HOMETOWN AND IN MY HOME STATE
WE RECOGNIZE THAT THE KIND OF
POLICY SOLUTIONS WE NEEDED IN
MISSOURI AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY
STILL HAVE NOT COME TO BEAR.
SO THOSE EIGHT CAN’T WAIT AT THE
LOCAL LEVEL AND WE’RE HOLDING
THIS PERSON IN THE WHITE HOUSE
ACCOUNTABLE.
>> IT’S WILLIE GEIST.
GOOD TO HAVE YOU BOTH ON THIS
MORNING.
BRITNEY STARTED TO ANTICIPATE MY
QUESTION.
I WANT TO KNOW FROM BOTH OF YOU
WHO ARE ON THE GROUND WHOSE
LIVES WERE REDIRECTED FROM
EDUCATION TO WORKING ON THE
GROUND THERE ON POLICE VIOLENCE
IN FERGUSON AND ALL OF THOSE
YEARS SINCE IN AUGUST OF 2014,
WHAT HAS CHANGED SINCE FERGUSON?
SINCE THE POINT OF ALL OF THIS
IS TO MAKE THINGS BETTER AND TO
GET THE POLICY CHANGES?
SO AS YOU LOOK AT THE NEARLY SIX
YEARS SINCE FERGUSON, HAVE
THINGS GOTTEN BETTER? HAVE THINGS CHANGED ON THE BACKS
HAVE THINGS CHANGED ON THE BACKS
OF ALL OF THIS ACTIVISM?
THE POLICE HAVE NOT KILLED ANY
LESS THAN THE 2014 NUMBER.
WE DO SEE A STATISTICALLY
SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE
LARGEST CITIES.
IN THE TOP 100 CITIES WE SEE A
DECREASE OFFSET IN INCREASES IN
SUBURBAN AND RURAL COMMUNITIES
IN A WAY THAT ERASES THE GOOD
WORK WE’RE SEEING IN CITIES BUT
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT SOLUTIONS IS
TWO REAL BUCKETS.
THE FIRST IS HOW DO WE REDUCE
THE POWER OF THE POLICE?
SO WHEN WE LOOK AT USE OF FORCE
POLICIES, THAT’S ABOUT SAYING WE
WANT TO REDUCE THE POWER THAT WE
HAVE TO INFLICT HARM IN
COMMUNITY AND THE SECOND IS HOW
DO WE SHRINK THE ROLE OF THE
POLICE.
ONLY 5% OF THE ARRESTS THAT
HAPPEN IN THE COUNTRY ACTUALLY
HAPPEN FOR VIOLENT CRIME. SO WE STAFF POLICE DEPARTMENTS
SO WE STAFF POLICE DEPARTMENTS
AT 50% OR 60% AND WE DON’T NEED
SOMEBODY WITH A GUN TO GO IN
CASES WHERE THERE’S A MENTAL
HEALTH CRISIS.
WE DON’T NEED SOMEBODY WITH A
GUN AT CAR ACCIDENTS OR TO FIND
MISSING KIDS.
WE NEED TO TAKE ALL OF THOSE
RESPONSIBILITIES AND SHIFT THEM
TO EXPERTS AND MAKE SURE THAT
THE RESOURCES SHIFT TO THOSE
EXPERTS.
WE HAVE TO SHRINK THE ROLE OF
THE POLICING APPARATUS WHOLLY.
>> THANK YOU WE APPRECIATE IT.
COMING UP, HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY