I. H. 5. Platform amendment proposal: Community control of police
Name of party/caucus/committee and co-chair contact information
Wisconsin Green Party
Co chairs:
Dave Schwab david.c.schwab@gmail.com
Jo’ Nathan Kingfisher zkingfisherbird@gmail.com
Brief explanation of approval process and date of approval
The proposal was submitted to the WIGP Coordinating Council for discussion and voting, and was approved on 9/30/21.
Contact Information for author or designated contact person: name, address, phone, e-mail.
Dave Schwab david.c.schwab@gmail.com
Chapter of the platform and letter of plank being addressed; or, if introducing new material, chapter and section where new plank should appear
II.Social Justice, H. Criminal Justice, 5. Police Accountability, add new plank f
Current language of plank being addressed
None
Proposed revision or amendment of the current language, or proposed new plank
Add:
f. Establish community control of police through elected local police oversight boards with subpoena power to investigate complaints about police behavior and hold offending officers accountable. These boards will be empowered to hire and fire police officers and chiefs.
Additional comments or questions
Community control of police was a key proposal of the 2020 Green Presidential campaign, and was advocated as well by many down-ballot campaigns and state and local parties as a solution to out-of-control police misconduct that has sparked massive protests in recent years. This amendment would make community control of police official Green Party policy.
Community control is a wholly insufficient proposal and ignores the prime function of policing, which is to protect private property. If we are an anti-capitalist party, we cannot advocate for the continued existence of capitalism’s enforcement mechanism.