Lawrence Person's BattleSwarm Blog July 7th, 2021
The hard left-wing, Critical Race Theory-embracing, Social Justice Warrior-staffed “City-Community Reimagining Public Safety (RPS) Task Force” has come up with recommendations for “reimagining” (i.e. defunding and destroying) the Austin Police Department. And most are absolutely bugfuck insane.
All across the country, more mainstream Democrats are waking up to the fact that the “defund the police” messaging crushed them at the polls, hemorrhaging black and Hispanic voters to the GOP in record numbers. But that didn’t deter the task force in the least! They’re going full steam ahead with the same madness that’s resulted in skyrocketing crime rates across the country.
The document is filled top-to-bottom with wokespeak codswallop, but a whole lot of it boils to a single word: GIMME! Over and over again, the RPS task force, staffed from leftwing activists groups, demands that taxpayer money be taken away from the police and funneled directly into their pockets. Let me see if I can translate the choicer bits into comprehensible English:
• “Equity Reinvestment in Community Working Group Goal: Identify and create upstream mechanisms that prevent the need for policing and invest in impacted communities to address long standing inequities.” Translation: Take money away from the police and give it to us so we can spread the graft and fraud far and wide among far-left activists.
• “There is both a need for immediate, direct economic support for Austin residents who have been made the most vulnerable and are facing critical needs as well as long-term and sustain-able investment in community equity.” Translation: Spend more money on welfare so we can get our paws on it and create more voters dependent on the state.
• “The City invest at least $11 million from the current fiscal year budget to be used to address the needs of 10 neighborhoods that have high concentrations of poverty, high unemployment, limited access to health insurance, high concentrations of COVID cases and/or a high level of need for basic-needs assistance based on calls to 2-1-1.” Translation: No, really, we want all the money to flow through us so we can wet our beaks.
• “The City invest $44.8 million annually starting in FY 2021-22 to support long-term and sustainable investment in community equity. a. The City will develop strategically located neighborhood ‘hubs’ managed by local grassroots organizations and administered by the City’s Equity Office in collaboration with Austin Public Health.” Translation: SHUT UP AND GIVE US THE MONEY! WE WANT ALL OF IT! ALL OF IT MUST FLOW THROUGH OUR STICKY FINGERS! COUGH IT UP!
• “Oversee the implementation and distribution of a guaranteed income pilot program for residents in the hubs’ jurisdiction in the form of direct recur-ring cash payments. Total $12 million annually.” Translation: We’re taking money from police and paying people not to work. And you’re paying for it, Austin taxpayers.
• “There are a number of Austin neighborhoods that are suffering simultaneously from over-policing and under-investment.” Translation: Take money from the police and give it to us!
• “The City via the Equity Office will set aside $100,000 each for 10 neighborhood areas that have seen the greatest health and economic impacts from the pandemic. The City, through the Equity Office, must engage community partners (organizations) already engaged with and centering residents, to identify and distribute to residents in need.” Translation: Give us $1 million in slush funds we can use for ‘walking around money’ to buy votes! (I do note that one of the criteria for determining which neighborhoods get designated is “Areas lacking tree canopy coverage.”)
• “Annual Investment of Funds to Support Neighborhood Hubs. Once at least five neighborhood hub sites have been selected, the City Equity Office will designate panels of community members that will select partner organizations to manage and lead the organization of each hub. Screening should be stringent; the panel should demonstrate that selected organizations have an established history of direct community engagement and out-reach with directly impacted communities, especially non-white communities, marginalized and underserved populations, and other survivors of structural violence.” Translation: Create government organizations for money transfer and then put leftwing groups in charge of them!
• “These neighborhood hubs will be created and staffed by the neighborhoods, and local community members will determine and prioritize both the needs in their community that the hubs should address and what resources are needed.” Translation: Give us patronage jobs for leftwing cronies!
• “As an additional step towards this City’s divestment from policing and investment into community wellbeing, stability, growth and safety, this Working Group supports and calls for the implementation of the Community Health Workforce recommendation set forth by the Public Health Reinvestment working group. We believe the development of a community health worker workforce complements our recommendations in advancing our goal of equity reinvestment.” Translation: Fire police officers and hire leftwing social workers instead!
• “Utilize paid commercials, TV, Radio, social media, billboards & busses, bus stops (in mul-tiple languages) to notify the community about City Council conduct prior to, during and post any city council meetings.” Be sure to kickback some money to our friends in the leftwing media via ad dollars.
• “IMMEDIATELY invest $5M for the Communications & Public Information Office (CPIO) budget to cover translation and interpretation services.” Translation: Fund our Ministry of Propaganda!
• “Fund immigrant defense through the public defender’s office.” Translation: Use taxpayer money to hire leftwing lawyers to keep illegal aliens here so they can vote for Democrats when we amnesty them.
• “Include a base budget line item for community engagement, flexible funds to pay partners (community organizations) for the following (including/but not limited to):
• translation/interpretation services
• child care
• venue support
• remote access support
• request community organization(s) to provide facilitation
• community person(s) who can provide above
• stipend for resident(s) with lived experience to support above
More:
https://www.battleswarmblog.com/?p=48187
