Advocates who have been saying "defund" police are not calling for the abolition of police departments. What it actually means is no longer asking officers to do resolve family and school disputes, move homeless people into shelters and so on.
As a result, city budgets would be restructured to shift more funding to educational, health care, and social services.
Some cities have already made changes. In Austin, Texas, 911 calls are answered by operators who inquire whether the caller needs police, fire or mental health services — part of a major revamping of public safety that took place last year when the city budget added millions of dollars for mental health issues.
In Eugene, Ore., a team called CAHOOTS — Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets — deploys a medic and a crisis worker with mental health training to emergency calls.
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