King County Residents Want Reform, Not Defunding Police
October 9, 2020
As this summer’s protests against police brutality continue into the fall months, more information is coming to light about where the public stands on the central issues of the protests.
According to a new Crosscut/ Elway poll, the majority of voters support the broad goals of the protests, but remain against cutting the police by half, as some activists advocate. Just 20% of voters support cutting police funding by 50%, according to the poll. This comes after Seattle City Council voted to significantly cut police funding.
The poll reflects what many in Seattle already understand. People want to fix what is broken with policing, not take radical measures that would make them less safe.
Carmen Best, the former Seattle Chief of Police who resigned after the City Council cut 40% of her salary, expressed the view that many people hold in a recent interview with King 5:
CARMEN BEST: “Of course we don’t want officers to abuse us, to beat us, to treat us wrong, and unfairly and unjustly, nobody wants that. But we do want somebody to respond if we’re victimized and crime is occurring.”
Best’s opinion seems so simple, and it’s one that is shared by the vast majority of citizens in Seattle. Unfortunately, the City Council seems to have other priorities in mind besides the will of the people they represent.