MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th December, 2020) The Minneapolis City Council unanimously decided to cut the police budget on Thursday in response to the mass protests following the killing of George Floyd in police custody, local newspaper Star Tribune reported.
The City Council approved a shift of about $8 million from the police department toward violence prevention programs. Earlier mayor Jacob Frey threatened to veto the entire budget if the council pushed ahead with a plan to reduce police staffing. The adopted budget became a compromise, since the number of officers will not decrease, and the mayor's plan to hire more in future years has been maintained.
"My colleagues were right to leave the targeted staffing level unchanged from 888 and continue moving forward with our shared priorities," Frey said, as cited by the media.
The major US cities, including Los Angeles, New York City and Portland, are shifting funds from police departments to social services programs in an effort to provide new solutions for problems related to police brutality.
George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, was killed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25, 2020, while being arrested for allegedly using a counterfeit bill. During the arrest, Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on Floyd's neck for about nine minutes after he was already handcuffed and lying face down. Floyd's death triggered a wave of violence and mass protests against racism and lack of police accountability.
