Members of the Minneapolis City Council who voted in June to dismantle the city’s police department seem to be having second thoughts. The New York Times published a report featuring interviews with various members of the council who indicated that their promise to abolish the police might not be kept. 

Councilmember Andrew Johnson, who backed the pledge, told the newspaper that he meant that he supported the sentiment “in spirit,” and not by the letter. Phillippe Cunningham, another member, characterized the language in the vow as “up for interpretation.” Lisa Bender, who also sits on the council, explained that she thinks the pledge “created confusion in the community and in our wards.” 

In addition to those who seem to have changed their minds on the pledge, others never supported it in the first place and did not appear to take it seriously. Linea Palmisano is one of these council members. She told the Times that they have “gotten used to these kinds of progressive purity tests.” In a text message that the Times obtained, Palmisano said, “I’m not taking any pledge, if that means people throw bottles at me then fine.” 

Councilwoman Lisa Goodman, who also refused to vote for the pledge, told Fox News that she has “no regrets” about her decision. 

Of course, the report notes that younger members of the council are still holding on to hope that they can eliminate the police department. Alondra Cano and Jeremiah Ellison promised to “dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department” and “end the policing system.” 

Even Mayor Jacob Frey weighed in on the matter, expressing doubts about whether such a move was the best solution. “I think the initial announcement created a certain level of confusion from residents at a time when the city really needed that stability,” Frey said. “I also think that the declaration itself meant a lot of different things to a lot of different people – and that included a healthy share of activists that were anticipating abolition.”

The Minneapolis City Council made a splash when they announced the pledge to end policing. But given the public outcry, it is no surprise that some are backtracking on their original vow. Black leaders in the city were vocally opposed to the idea that the city should disband its law enforcement agency. In fact, a recent study showed that over 80 percent of black Americans nationwide wish to see the same level of police activity in their communities, or more. 

From all indications, it seems that the push to get rid of the city’s police has failed. But this doesn’t mean that progressives won’t keep trying despite the protestations of the black community. For the far left, the effort to eliminate the police has nothing to do with safeguarding black lives; rather, it is about pushing a white progressive Marxist agenda. Hopefully, the rational citizens in the city will continue to prevail. 

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