In wake of nationwide protests against police brutality and calls to defund the police, the New York City Council is pushing to slash $1 billion from the New York Police Department (NYPD).
“We believe that we can and should work to get to $1 billion in cuts to New York City’s police spending in the Fiscal 2021 budget, an unprecedented reduction that would not only limit the scope of the NYPD, but also show our commitment towards moving away from the failed policing policies of the past,” reads the statement.
“There is no doubt that this is an ambitious goal, but it is one that the time we are in calls for–both here in New York City and nationwide.”
According to CBS New York, the Police Benevolent Association criticized the move, saying: “For decades, every time a city agency failed at its task, the city’s answer was to take the job away and give it to the NYPD.
In response, the city councils in Minneapolis and San Francisco are also pushing to slash police budgets.
