Here in Canada and the U.S., certain interest groups have called for the de-funding of the police. In 2020, prompted by several high profile incidents on both sides of the Canadian border, many Canadians took part in protests calling for an end to racial bias and misconduct by police towards Indigenous and racialized people in Canada. Yet, the issues surrounding systemic racism can be found throughout society, requiring a more holistic approach. Furthermore, a 2019 Statistics Canada survey found that just over 4 in 10 (41%) Canadians aged 15 and older in the provinces reported having a great deal of confidence in the police, while nearly half (49%) said they had some confidence. Less than 1 in 10 (9%) Canadians reported having low confidence in police—that is, not very much or no confidence at all.
Understandably, those who reported less or no confidence in the police were among distinct groups that included Indigenous peoples, visible minorities, people with mental or cognitive disabilities and bisexual persons (those who self-identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual or otherwise not heterosexual). Even among these groupings there were differences in the reported level of confidence in the police. While those who reported having had recent negative interactions with police expressed low confidence in them, the correlation between such negative interactions and their obvious discontent, whether legitimate or not, is hardly surprising.
My initial understanding of the de-funding of the police is that fewer police would be needed if more social services were available to handle cases involving these distinct groups. The difficulty with the premise is that we are still a society where the rule of law must prevail. As such, there will always be a need for certain degree of enforcement that will ensure that the majority of citizens feel relatively safe in their communities. Indeed, the vast majority of policing should be about prevention by ensuring that violators of laws are safely apprehended. In support of this societal goal, one only has to think of violent crimes, traffic violations, organized criminals, break-ins, terrorism, etc., etc.
Of course, how enforcement is carried out can always be improved. Many recent community service innovations by police have involved greater liaison with social service agencies, community representatives and health care practitioners. A first important step has always been to better educate enforcement personnel with respect to their interaction with these distinct groups, in particular persons with mental or cognitive disabilities. The police are dealing with daily and difficult symptoms of a society lacking in sufficient resources to tackle poverty, inadequate health care, deficient education resources, mental illnesses, systemic racism, etc., etc. Law enforcement is an inherent and essential part of our society and the majority will clearly oppose the de-funding of the police as promoted by certain distinct groups. Realistically, this controversial concept is a non-starter — period.
FROLITICKS 
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