Defunding the Police

As anyone who has paid the slightest bit of attention to the news can testify, the current revolutionary motion has given rise to the demand, of almost everyone on the ”Left”, to defund the police, and apply the money saved, towards social programs.

To this, the people on the ”Right” have responded that this will result in anarchy. As a great many people are concerned with this, it should be taken seriously. After all, anarchy is understood as a complete break down of law and order.

The fact that so many people are concerned is a natural result of the revolutionary motion, in that countless people, those whom have formerly been apathetic, are now politically active, demanding change, taking part in autonomous zones, demonstrations, marches and especially demanding an end to the killing of Black people. They are just afraid that with the police ”defunded”, criminals with guns will run wild, robbing and killing at will. Their concerns are certainly legitimate.

So for the benefit of the newly awakened working people -welcome, my Brothers and Sisters, my Comrades!- I will start by mentioning that we live in a class society. In North America, there are basically two classes, the working class, technically referred to as the proletariat, and the capitalist class, technically referred to as the bourgeoisie. The capitalists are the people commonly referred to as the ”super rich” or the ”billionaires”, formerly referred to as the ”one percent”. As there are only a few hundred billionaires in the whole country, they are not so much the ”one percent”, which is to say one in a hundred, as one in a million.

True, there still exists the remnants of other classes, such as the occasional small family farmer, referred to as peasants in other parts of the world. It is also true that there is the occasional small business owner to be found, here and there. For the most part, they are ”hanging on by their finger tips”, scraping by as best they can. Their ”days are numbered”, as the monopoly capitalists are applying ever more pressure, squeezing out all family farms and small businesses. Incidentally, all small business owners are referred to as middle class, or petty bourgeois.

The capitalists are of course well aware of the existence of classes, yet choose to deny this. Not too surprising, as it is in their interest to do so. Workers and capitalists are natural enemies, as our interests are diametrically opposed. That which is good for the capitalists, is bad for the workers. They are concerned with their profit, and only their profit, which they obtain from our labour power. The harder they work us, and the less they pay us, the higher their profit. The last thing the capitalists want is to have workers united, aware of ourselves as a class, challenging their authority.

For what it is worth, all other classes are aware of themselves as a class, yet the conditions of life of the working class, do not lead to that awareness. That is just the way it is.

As that is the case, it follows that class awareness must be brought to the working class, and that can be done only by members of the middle class intelligentsia. For those who are prejudiced against the intellectuals, bear in mind that Marx and Lenin were middle class intellectuals.

Now that we have the internet, and most working people have computers, in one form or another, the task of raising the level of awareness of the proletariat, is much easier. We can just send the information electronically. We would be fools not to use the tools on hand.

The current situation should also provide us with a little stimulation, and I am not referring to ”stimmy checks”. I am referring to the ”double whammy”, otherwise known as the twin crises in capitalism, in the form of the ”severe recession”, (the capitalists are not about to admit that it is a depression!), as well as the Virus. This has given rise to massive unemployment. People are not paying their bills, not because they do not want to, but because they cannot! They are no longer being forced to choose between putting food on the table and paying the rent, because they cannot pay either! Working people are going broke, not because they are lazy, but because there are no jobs! They are being forced into bankruptcy, losing their homes, life savings, vehicles and self respect, as they are reduced to relying on food stamps and hand outs. Such a manner of life is degrading. Yet the capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, are becoming ever more wealthy!

It does not take an intellectual giant to figure out that something is dreadfully wrong. A handful of people, those who are extremely rich, the capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, are becoming ever more wealthy, at the expense of the dirt poor, the working class, the proletariat. Further, only the most die hard, optimistic, kind hearted soul, is prepared to believe that such people, the billionaires, are about to respond to sweet reason. The billionaires know that the working class, the vast majority, the proletariat, is suffering. They just do not care.

The fact of the matter is that we live under capitalism, and not just any capitalism, but monopoly capitalism, which is capitalism at its highest, most rotten stage, referred to as imperialism. What we have now is complete reaction, which is to say that there is nothing progressive about the imperialists. They cannot be reformed. They can only be destroyed.

Capitalism must be destroyed and replaced with socialism, and not just any socialism, but scientific socialism. Of course I am referring to the socialism first put forward by Marx and Engels, two social scientists, who lived in an age of pre monopoly capitalism. In later years, as capitalism reached the monopoly stage, it was Lenin who applied it to the age of monopoly capitalism, or imperialism.

All other forms of socialism, referred to as utopian socialism, have been proven to be abject failures.

The revolutionary motion is nothing other than an expression of the class struggle, the working class against the capitalist class, the proletariat against the bourgeoisie. In each country, the revolution takes its own particular shape.

In America, the recent uprising in Seattle, of June, 2020, gave rise to an ”Autonomous Zone”, which lasted three weeks, before it was crushed. But then other Autonomous Zones have sprung up across the country, and we can expect many more to follow. As the Seattle zone lasted the longest, we can examine this particular zone, in order to know what to expect.

The zone resembled a commune in many respects, especially the Paris Commune of 1871. As I have documented this in a previous article, there is no need to repeat it here. For this article, the issue of police presence, or lack thereof, is our focus.

The police detachment within the zone was abandoned, yet this did not lead to anarchy. On the contrary, the zone was almost crime free. The ”protesters”, as the press referred to them, or revolutionaries, as is the more accurate term, those who occupied the zone, made sure of that! Armed guards patrolled the zone, at least along the perimeter, especially at night. These guards were armed with semi automatic rifles, and kept the crime to a minimum. Barriers were placed on the streets to prevent vehicles from running people down. As a result of this, the zone was possibly the safest place in all of Seattle! Yet there were no police!

This gives us an idea of what to expect, as it is a fundamental tenet of Marxism that the police and standing army (the National Guard) are used mainly to keep the working class subjugated. They are key parts of the ”state apparatus”, that which is used by the capitalists, in order to stay in power. In order for the revolution to be successful, this state apparatus must be destroyed. It must be replaced by a different state apparatus, a proletarian state apparatus, in order to crush the ”desperate and determined resistance of the capitalists”, as they try to ”restore their paradise lost”. This working class state apparatus, set up in order to crush the capitalists, is referred to as the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat. It is the worst night mare of all capitalists.

The Seattle Autonomous Zone gives us an idea of the precise form this American Dictatorship Of the Proletariat, will assume. All members of the Zone worked together, came to a consensus, and no doubt, guards were selected by the members. There was no need for an outside police force.

Now we can examine the current situation, under the rule of the capitalists, the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie.

As I write this, the former police officer, Derek Chauvin, has recently been convicted of the murder of George Floyd. Yet the police killing of black people, in particular, continues.

In Minneapolis, Duante Wright, a Black driver, was pulled over for a traffic violation and shot dead. Apparently, the officer, a veteran of twenty six years, confused her hand gun with her taser.

In March of 2020, in Louisville, Kentucky, a 26 year old Black medical worker, Breonna Taylor, was shot dead in her apartment, during a botched raid. Apparently, the police were looking for her boyfriend.

In Columbus, Ohio, sixteen year old Ma’khia Bryant, a Black girl, was shot dead by police.

In Chicago, a thirteen year old Black boy, Adam Toledo, was shot dead by police.

In Virginia, a thirty two year old Black man, Isaiah Brown, was shot by police, while holding a cordless phone, speaking to police dispatch, no less. Apparently, the officer confused the phone with a gun.

Now another Black motorist, Andrew Brown, was shot dead in North Carolina. Apparently ten deputies were involved, in trying to serve an arrest warrant. It is reported that of those deputies, seven have been ”placed on leave”, two have resigned and one has retired. Eye witnesses report that Brown was ”shot in the back”, possibly ”six or eight times”, while trying to drive away. They also report bullet holes in the rear window. Other witnesses report fourteen shell casings were found on the ground. The body cam videos have yet to be released, as the authorities do not want to ”hinder the investigation”. More likely, they are stalling. Possibly ”visions” of correcting those body cams are ”dancing in their heads”.

As a response to the revolutionary movement, and especially to the calls for ”defunding the police”, our democratically elected leaders, those who do such a splendid job of misrepresenting us, are rising to the occasion. In the finest tradition of service to the capitalists, they are making noises to the effect of ”reforming the police”.

This is little more than a fairy tale, as the police are part of the state apparatus, set up by the capitalists, in order to keep their wage slaves, the working class, the proletariat, under control, subjugated. As that is the case, it is not a matter of reforming them, but of destroying them. They must be replaced with another state apparatus, a proletarian state apparatus, as was demonstrated in the Seattle Autonomous Zone.

The one and only way this can happen is through full scale revolution. Working people across the whole country have to come together and oppose the capitalists, on all fronts. Various protest groups and organizations have got to unite. We do not have to love each other, but we have to respect each other. We have a common enemy.

Speaking of respect, I am well aware that there are countless working people, including some of those who took part in the Seattle Autonomous Zone, who think that the system can be changed from within. To those workers, I can only say that I respect your belief! With that in mind, may I suggest that you join the two mainstream political parties, as card carrying members. May I further suggest that you encourage your family and friends to also join both parties. And they can, in turn, encourage their friends to join, and so on and so forth. Before long, you may find that the two parties are filled with working class people, you and all of your friends. Then, as card carrying members, you can decide the candidates to run for any and all political office. Feel free to run as candidates of both parties. Run against yourself, if you like. Now that would be a hoot!

Why, before long, I can just imagine Congress, the House of Representatives, brimming over with working class people, the same people who are now marching and demonstrating, members of various Autonomous Zones. The Squad will no longer be a minority, as hundreds of workers become Members of Congress! AOC and her friends will no longer be quite so lonely! Nancy Pelosi will be thrilled!

No doubt Joe Biden is looking forward to joining the ranks of single term presidents. Perhaps he can assist Jimmy Carter in building houses for the homeless! I just hope that boy knows how to swing a hammer. To think that we may have our very own first lady president! (Not to be confused with the First Lady) A working class girl, no doubt. Or should I say presidentess? These days, it is so important to be politically correct.

As the members of the Senate serve six year terms, it will take a little longer to flood the Senate with working people. Chuck Shumer will just have to be patient!

Lest we forget, there are fifty offices of governor to be filled. Or should I refer to them as governess? As the American ladies are currently leading the revolution, perhaps a slogan can be Fight Like A Girl!

The list is endless, with local mayors and such. Feel free to take your pick, or get together and draw straws. Your choice.

Just remember that the capitalists assure us that this is democracy, and democracy means ”majority rule”. Feel free to take them at their word. Let us put that ”majority rule” to the test!

As for those who think that I am joking, you are mistaken. I mean, it is not like I have a sense of humour or anything. No, nothing like that. It is just that I am convinced that people learn from their own experience. At least, I do. Or I end up wishing I had. Repeating the same stupid mistakes can be most tiresome. It is so much easier to do something right the first time, rather than explain why we did not.

To all my American readers, I can only suggest that you get over your shyness, and join the Democrats and Republicans, as card carrying members. I guarantee you will receive a lesson in democracy, bourgeois democracy, no less. Do not be surprised if you find yourself having fun, at the same time.

For the moment, during marches and demonstrations, let the banners proclaim:

Become Card Carrying Democrats And Republicans