What happens when the police lose all legitimacy

When the criminal justice system has earned the contempt of the citizenry, disorder follows

Riot police.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images, iStock)

Minneapolis has witnessed serious unrest over the past few days, sparked by the police killing of a black man named George Floyd, who was accused of using a counterfeit 20 dollar bill. The official report of his death mysteriously omitted the fact that a white officer, Derek Chauvin, had kneeled on his neck for nine minutes while Floyd complained that he couldn't breathe and begged to be let up — which became clear in a video that later emerged. Three other officers stood by and did nothing while Floyd gradually strangled. (Floyd had no pulse when he was put in an ambulance and was pronounced dead at a local hospital; all four of the officers have been fired, and it was announced Friday that Chauvin had finally been arrested.)

The community exploded in rage. Several large protests took place around the city, demanding prosecution of Chauvin and police reform, some of which turned destructive. Several buildings, including the Minneapolis police's 3rd Precinct headquarters, were burned to the ground. (One should note that so far this has been small potatoes by historical riot standards.) Many conservatives, naturally, denounced the riots. On Twitter, President Trump demanded that looters be summarily executed. Democrats too were disturbed by the violence.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Ryan Cooper

Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.