Read on Twitter
For me, one of the most convincing arguments for defunding to the police is that the police are actually pretty bad at preventing crime. Nowhere is this more obvious than when it comes to violence against women.
Men who kill women, in particular, often broadcast what they're going to do months, usually years ahead of time. But because misogyny is so normalized in our culture, *especially* by police, warning signs that a man is violent are often ignored.
These thoughts are in response to this story about a Gamergater who killed his ex-girlfriend and then himself. Apparently, no one is surprised because, well, he's a Gamergater who stalked and harassed many people, especially women. https://www.wired.com/story/retro-gaming-violent-tragedy-rudy-ferretti/
Victims of this man tried to get law enforcement to care, to no avail. One wonders if Amy Molter would still be alive today if police had done something about the stalking.
Reading a victim's post on this, what strikes me is how his sense of entitlement was routinely reinforced, often and even especially by people who didn't like him. ("Give him what he wants to get him off our backs was a common problem.) https://retrobitch.wordpress.com/2016/11/30/radical-felines-when-harassment-becomes-a-game/
On that front, I cannot recommend @kate_manne's new book on male entitlement enough. The reason so many men spiral out of control and do violence is every where they turn, they're being told they're entitled to women's deference and service. https://www.salon.com/2020/08/10/entitled-kate-manne-sexism-male-privilege-feminism/
I can't say I know what the solution is. But I do know two things: I want less crime AND I know the police aren't very good at preventing it. Perhaps they should be replaced with a service that is good at preventing crime.
Due to COVID, I haven't talked with many people about defunding the police. But the few I have, I feel like the topic turns pretty quickly from outrage at police brutality to outrage that cops don't do enough to prevent crime. The latter is something that needs more attention.
