Primer: Biden’s Woke War on Police
Background
The White House announced a new executive order on the two-year anniversary of the death of George Floyd aimed at promoting “accountable policing.” The protests and violent riots that erupted across the country following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer led to an estimated $2 billion in property damages and over 30 deaths. These riots were encouraged or excused by prominent progressive politicians, glamorized by left-wing media outlets, and organized by extremist organizations like Black Lives Matter who weaponized the radicalism of Critical Race Theory (CRT) into street-level militancy.
Analysis
The new executive order from President Biden perpetuates woke ideology in policing instead of improving public safety:
- Immediately amplifies CRT propaganda that America has a “legacy of systemic racism in our criminal justice system and in our institutions more broadly.” The implication of this opening is that there is current pervasive and widespread racism in policing, which has no basis in reality and is not supported by empirical data.
- Requires all federal law enforcement agencies (LEAs) to implement annual “anti-bias” training in which radical race essentialism is indoctrinated within the ranks of federal agents. Furthermore, federal LEAs must adopt procedures to deal with complaints by suspects or other officials of alleged “bias” regarding the behavior of federal agents. This prioritizes woke race essentialism–and integrates Marxist-inspired CRT–into federal law enforcement, posing a significant threat to the public safety of American citizens and the integrity of our justice system.
- Instructs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to create a new national database for federal law enforcement misconduct and requires federal LEAs to participate by listing officers who have resigned, retired, or have been placed under investigation for alleged misconduct. While the Department of Justice has existing authority to investigate federal agents for misconduct, the potential for bureaucratic and politically-motivated abuse of this new system, especially in the context of the EO’s broader emphasis on race essentialism, is extremely high and could result in the dismissal of well-qualified and competent law enforcement officials.
- Requires federal LEAs to adopt new hiring, recruitment, and retention policies emphasizing an “inclusive and diverse” workforce and screen for individuals who promote white supremacy. Aside from the intentional exclusion of other radical ideologies, the EO does not define what constitutes “white supremacy” –a term the left uses as a rhetorical bludgeon. Furthermore, implementing hiring practices predicated on an individual’s race or sex is a violation of existing federal civil rights law. Implementation could easily diminish the quality of hires and retention, especially if specific race or identity-based quotas are prioritized ahead of individual qualifications and competence. Additionally, this could potentially prohibit the hiring or retention of officers who believe that the border should be secured or that open borders constitute a national security threat.
- Prohibits the use of chokeholds and carotid restraints unless deadly force has been previously authorized. Law enforcement officers must sometimes make snap life-or-death decisions in dangerous encounters that are frequently fluid. This protocol potentially jeopardizes the lives of law enforcement officers engaged with violent suspects and could potentially result in good officers losing their job for simply defending themselves from a violent criminal or suspect.
- Advances a “strategic plan” to find alternatives to incarceration. This comes at a time when violent crime is rising at historic rates. This effort potentially jeopardizes the safety of communities by prioritizing criminals over the well-being of citizens.
Concluding Assessment
The Biden administration continues to prioritize the ideological proclivities of the far-left over the well-being and safety of the American people. The latest Executive Order on “accountable policing” will further deteriorate the efficacy of law enforcement, leading to increased attrition within various agency ranks and exacerbating the ongoing chaos Americans see playing out in their communities.
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