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Members of the Minneapolis City Council, including the son of state Attorney General Keith Ellison, are vowing to “dismantle” the Minneapolis Police Department.
Minneapolis City Councilman Jeremiah Ellison, who just days ago publicly declared his support for Antifa, announced on social media that the government would “dramatically rethink” law enforcement in the wake of violent protests over the death of George Floyd.
“We are going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department,” the son of the former Minnesota Congressman now overseeing the Floyd case tweeted Thursday.
“And when we’re done, we’re not simply gonna glue it back together. We are going to dramatically rethink how we approach public safety and emergency response,” he added. “It’s really past due.”
We are going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department.
And when we’re done, we’re not simply gonna glue it back together.
We are going to dramatically rethink how we approach public safety and emergency response.
It’s really past due. https://t.co/7WIxUL6W79
— Jeremiah Ellison (@jeremiah4north) June 4, 2020
Ellison’s remarks were in response to one Twitter user asking if any elected officials were “brave enough to take on the police in their city/state.”
He found support from others in the 13-member Minneapolis City Council, including its president and fellow Democrat Lisa Bender.
“Yes. We are going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a transformative new model of public safety,” she tweeted.
Yes. We are going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a transformative new model of public safety. https://t.co/FCfjoPy64k
— Lisa Bender (@lisabendermpls) June 4, 2020
Ellison, whose mother is Minneapolis Public Schools Board Chair Kim Ellison, is one of 12 city council members who are part of the Democrat-Farmer-Labor Party, which has held the mayor’s seat in the city for 53 of the past 59 years. The city’s Board of Education voted unanimously this week to end its contract with the police department which has provided security in the schools.
In an interview with NPR, Kim Ellison claimed the move was not directly related to Floyd’s death but added that the board “decided to act on their values and decide that the Minneapolis Police Department no longer acts as if they value life as we do.”
Meanwhile, the city council president has spoken out on social media about plans for “continued diversion of funds from law enforcement to other priorities,” and called for a commitment from the city’s white community.
Many questions about what is next for policing in our city. I can say this:
– we need a dramatic shift in public safety w civilian leadership
– I support continued diversion of funds from law enforcement to other priorities
– legal barriers mean city can’t do this alone— Lisa Bender (@lisabendermpls) June 2, 2020
If you are a comfortable white person asking to dismantle the police I invite you to reflect: are you willing to stick with it? Will you be calling in three months to ask about garage break-ins? Are you willing to dismantle white supremacy in all systems, including a new system?
— Lisa Bender (@lisabendermpls) June 3, 2020
Ellison announced his support of radical-left anti-fascists over the weekend, saying in a tweet that: “Unless someone can prove to me ANTIFA is behind the burning of black and immigrant-owned businesses in my ward, I’ll keep focusing on stopping the white power terrorist THE ARE ACTUALLY ATTACKING US!”
His father’s office this week upgraded the charges against former police officer Derek Chauvin, who was seen in a viral video with his knee on Floyd’s neck during an arrest. Floyd died after repeatedly pleading he could not breathe while Chauvin and three other officers ignored him.
All of the officers were fired last week and Chauvin was charged with second-degree murder while the other three officers involved, Thomas Lane, J.A. Kueng and Tou Thao, face two counts of aiding and abetting and second-degree murder.
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
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