Resource: E-Learning on Defunding and Abolishing the Police
Created for Canadians
In light of defunding the police becoming a concept that more non-Black people are finally engaging with these days, I decided to create a resource to help shed light on some of the conversations Black communities have been having about this topic for centuries. I’ve gathered a collection of articles and media that I found clear and easy to understand, focused on current content that re-imagines the future, and tried to prioritize the Canadian context.
It’s around 2.5–3 hours of learning material and I would suggest going in the order I’ve laid out below. There is a lot more than this on the internet, but I hope this gives a modern overview of some of the information and conversations that have always been out there — and that the non-Black public seems to be ready to hear.
This resource will be updated as I’m continually learning and #DefundThePolice campaigns pick up support in cities across Canada and the US.
🍁= Canadian Content
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E-LEARNING ON DEFUNDING AND ABOLISHING THE POLICE
1. Introducing Ideas on Alternatives to Policing (5 mins)
*only read up until the end of the section titled “Today”; you will read this again later
2. 🍁Canadian Activists on the Impacts and Future of Policing in the Canadian Context (67 mins)
*multimedia; no reading required
- 🍁Interview: Desmond Cole on CBC (7 mins)
- 🍁Interview: Sandy Hudson on CBC (10 mins)
- 🍁Podcast: Abolish the Police, Sandy Hudson and Nora Loreto (50 mins)
*additional episodes have also been released: web, Spotify
3. Optional: Crime Goes Down when Cops Step Back (10 mins)
- Crime complaints fall in NYC after cops stop “proactive policing” ,
LA Times (10 mins)
4. 🍁How Defunding the Police Could Look in Canada (20 mins)
- Defunding The Police Will Save Black And Indigenous Lives In Canada, Huffington Post (10 mins)
- Canadian Policy Options for Defunding the Police
(10 mins)
5. Imagining a Future Without Police (45 mins)
- Optional: No More Money for the Police, New York Times (difficult to get free access to this, but if you can, go for it!)
- 🍁 Alternatives to Policing (10 mins)
- Interview: Defunding the police could mean replacing officers with social workers, Alex S. Vitale (7 mins)
- 6 Ideas for a Cop Free World, RollingStone (5 mins)
- Visual: Alternatives to Police Poster Series (3 mins)
- Community Demands One-pager, Reclaim the Block (5 mins)
- Ending the War on Black People, Movement 4 Black Lives (5 mins)
- Abolish the Police Digital Toolkit, Reclaim the Block (10 mins)
*Read page 3 & 10–15
6. Optional: Connecting Climate Change and Climate Justice to Police Abolition (12 mins)
- Perspectives from the Sunrise Movement (5 mins)
- There is no Climate Justice Without Defunding the Police (7 mins)
7. Reflecting on Where We Go Next (15 mins)
*read entire article again
8. Defund the Police Movements Gaining Political Support (20 mins)
- Changing Discourse Across the US, the Guardian (6 mins)
- Los Angeles Plans to Defund LAPD by $150 million, the Independent
(7 mins) - Minneapolis Intends to Disband Police Department, the Guardian(7 mins)
Additional Reading:
*New Content: 4-day Crash Course on Abolition, The Sunrise Movement:
smvmt.org/defundpolice
🍁Website: (created by folks at BLM Toronto — explore sub pages for information on the defund movement in Canada)
https://defundthepolice.org/
Online workshop kit and resources:
http://criticalresistance.org/abolish-policing/
Free e-Book: The End of Policing, Alex S. Vitale
https://www.versobooks.com/books/2817-the-end-of-policing
🍁Paper-back Book: Policing Black Lives, Robyn Maynard (paperback available for $25)
https://robynmaynard.com/policing-black-lives/
* New Content: This essay contains excerpts and summaries of some of the concepts from Maynard’s book
https://roarmag.org/essays/the-struggle-against-anti-blackness-in-canada/
More Resources List by MPD150:
https://www.mpd150.com/resources/
More on abolition:
Google doc Resource by Ashanté Reese and SA Smythe
Critical Resistance — Abolitionist Toolkit
Extensive Abolition Resources List
Homework for non-Black folks:
Mandatory: Get together with a group of friends (or by yourself) and brainstorm a list of community organizations you can reach out to in any emergency situation that aren’t the police.
STOP CALLING THE COPS ON BLACK PEOPLE.
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Additional actions for folks living in Canada:
This website has been created to help individuals campaign to defund police departments across all major cities in Canada.
https://www.defund.ca/
Additional action for Toronto (Mississaugas of the Credit, Anishnabeg, Chippewa, Haudenosaunee and Wendat traditional territories)
- Call to Action: Email Campaign Link
Additional action for Vancouver (unceded lands of Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations)
- **Sign up to speak at the July 7th Vancouver City Council meeting on motions B2 and B4 — sign up form, more on Defund the VPD Linktree Resources: https://linktr.ee/defundvpd
- Read this article (note this campaign is outdated)
- Make sure you spend time on this video too
- Call to Action: Email Campaign Link
- Call to Action from BLM Vancouver: Facebook Page Link
- June 8th Update on Defund VPD campaign
Additional action for Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Ottawa, and Montreal (collected by @defundvpd on instagram)
- Call to action: Email Campaign Link
Additional action for Canadian-Americans
- Call to action: M4BL Link
- Call to action: US defund campaigns on instagram
Notes: This resource started as a shareable google doc and will be updated as new defund the police campaigns appear in the media.
