Doctors for Defunding the Police

Doctors for Defunding the Police

Founding members	Naheed Dosani Andrew Boozary Semir Bulle Suzanne Shoush Ritika Goel Michaela Beder Bahar Orang Saadia Sediqzadah Nanky Rai
Website	doctorsfordefundingpolice.com

Doctors for Defunding the Police is a group of Toronto, Canada, doctors that campaign to shift Toronto City Council spending away from police and towards social services.

Organization

Doctors for Defunding the Police is a Toronto-based group of healthcare providers who advocate for shifting Toronto City Council spending away from police services and towards healthcare and education.[1][2] Founders include Suzanne Shoush M.D.[3][4]

In 2020, the group protested with other social justice groups outside the Toronto Police Service headquarters.[3]

Publications

Via a their 2020 publication Policing is a Public Health Crisis, the group has called for greater transparency in the Toronto Police Service budget with a request for specific clarification about why police spending has been prioritized over education, healthcare (including mental health), and housing.[2] The paper calls for changes to police use-of-force, including prohibition of use of harm and other lethal force, and the disarming of police.[2] The group calls to move funding away from the police budget towards new community-led emergency response teams.[2]

See also

• Reach Out Response Network

References

1. Glauser, Wendy (2020-11-30). "Why some doctors want to defund the police". CMAJ. 192 (48): E1644 – E1645. doi:10.1503/cmaj.1095905. ISSN 0820-3946. PMC 7721403. PMID 33257333.
2. Waldron, Ingrid RG. "The wounds that do not heal: Black expendability and the traumatizing aftereffects of anti-Black police violence." Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal (2020).
3. Gillis, Wendy; Moon, Jenna (2020-07-16). "'The system isn't broken. It was built this way': Hundreds rally downtown as police board hears marathon". The Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved 2022-03-27.
4. "Defund the police for public health, say doctors and nurses". Ricochet. Retrieved 2022-03-27.

External links

• "Policing is a Public Health Crisis", article in Toronto Star