A YEAR LATER: WHAT HAS CHANGED?
By Lisa Desjardins, @LisaDNews
Correspondent

George Floyd was killed one year ago today. 

Since then, the former Minneapolis police officer who held his knee on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, cutting off his air supply, has been convicted of second degree murder and three other officers have been charged for their involvement in Floyd’s death.

Across the country, cries for police reform and racial justice have echoed in protests and rallies, and in community conversations. But what action have states and Congress taken?   

Most of the activity has come from individual towns and cities, or  state capitals, including Maryland, which acted in April on a number of reforms, including overhauling the police disciplinary process, and Washington State, which enacted new policing laws last week. In Congress, Democrats and Republicans are trying to forge a compromise at the Capitol. But they are not there yet.

We thought we would isolate three key issues where activists are seeking reform to look at what has made it into law, and where debates over change remain. 

How officers use force

Some 17 states have moved to limit or end chokeholds by police, the kind of tactic involved in George Floyd’s death, according to an Associated Press analysis of data from the National Conference of State Legislatures.

A slew of states have also changed police training on use of force, with a few shifting approaches and laws regarding use of force. Some examples:

Arkansas now requires that police undergo training each year on how to intervene if they witness another officer using excessive force. Similarly, Indiana passed a law in the spring mandating de-escalation training, along with a ban on the use of chokeholds. Last year, Connecticut limited the justifications for the use of deadly force by police. The implementation of that law was delayed, however, following protests and concerns about inadequate training and confusion by police agencies. 

Qualified immunity

The concept of qualified immunity is at the heart of the police reform debate, and is one that has most entangled bipartisan efforts in Congress. This legal principle protects individual police officers from lawsuits resulting from their actions on the job. Activists pressing for change argue that this immunity allows police to use force with little fear of consequence. Those opposing a change say that without such protection, few people would want to become officers in the first place.

States have gone both ways on this principle, two eliminating the protection and one enshrining it into law since Floyd’s death. Arkansas codified that police are immune from personal liability earlier this year. New Mexico and Colorado ended qualified immunity for police under state law.

The New Mexico Civil Rights Act became law in early April. Colorado acted nearly a year earlier, in June 2020. That gave rise to some limited data about the effects of the policy change. Despite concern that police departments would see a mass exodus, the Denver Post reported that Colorado actually saw fewer officers leave the job in 2020 than in 2019 or 2018. 

Data

There is no comprehensive national database tracking officer-involved shootings or use of excessive force. There are neither complete statistics nor a way for many police departments to assess if job applicants have a history of aggressive or harmful use of force.

The FBI launched a voluntary data collection effort in 2019, but in many states there has been little or no organized effort to understand the details of how police officers are using force. According to reporting from a project led by the Associated Press, Southern Illinois University and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, 20 states still block the release of data about officer misconduct.

At the same time, 24 states have been debating whether to make it easier to learn about past examples of officer misconduct. Last week, Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee signed a law mandating that police agencies report misconduct to a state registry. Other states are focusing on officer-involved shootings. Utah enacted a law in March requiring the state highway patrol to buy equipment that will allow it to track every time an officer uses a firearm on the job. The Beehive State will also now require that use-of-force incidents be reported to state and national databases.

For more information: the Pulitzer Center project lists the types of data available, or blocked, in each state.


RACIAL BIAS TRAININGS SURGED AFTER FLOYD'S DEATH.
A YEAR LATER, EXPERTS STILL WAITING FOR 'BOLD' CHANGE.
By Candice Norwood, @cjnorwoodwrites
Politics reporter

One year ago today, the nationwide protests ignited by the murder of George Floyd by a police officer not only fueled demands for systemic police reforms, but also forced companies and government agencies across the country to reexamine the inequities within their organizations.

Hiring for experts who specialize in addressing racism, implicit bias, and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) has increased significantly in recent years, a trend that has accelerated in the year following Floyd’s killing.

“Immediately after [George Floyd’s death], I was getting three to five calls per day. … It was incredible,” said Benjamin Reese, a clinical psychologist who runs his own diversity and inclusion consulting firm.

DEI and bias trainers and educators said they have noticed a shift that has forced decision makers to discuss systemic problems. But in interviews with the PBS NewsHour, several professionals expressed skepticism that such efforts will lead to long-lasting change as clients resist committing to the long-term and often uncomfortable work that they say change requires.

The above is excerpted from a story published on our website. Read the full story here. 

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RACE MATTERS: AMERICA AFTER GEORGE FLOYD

Tonight, PBS NewsHour anchor and managing editor Judy Woodruff is hosting a special looking at how the country is grappling with racial inequities and calls for police reform through the lens of three cities. With them and a series of experts, we’ll discuss what has changed over the last year and what still needs to be done to create a more equitable future.

The special premieres Tuesday, May 25 at 10 p.m. ET.
Watch online or on your local PBS station.
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FIVE OVERLOOKED POLITICAL STORIES FROM THE PAST WEEK
By Ian Couzens, @iancouzenz
Politics production assistant

US Child Tax Credit: Why it could become permanent. May 19. The child tax credits in the COVID-19 aid bill were presented as a means to help families recover from the pandemic and are only set to last a year, but the program’s proponents have been open about their desire to make the no-strings cash payments permanent. Why it matters: The pandemic has created the opportunity to rethink America’s social safety net and the current system that funnels government assistance into food, housing, or child care. -- The Christian Science Monitor 

Survivors Of 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Share Eyewitness Accounts .May 19. Last week, Viola Fletcher and two other survivors of the 1921 massacre testified on Capitol Hill, nearly 100 years after the violence that left hundreds of Black people dead and displaced thousands. Why it matters: The fact of the testimony being sought signals congressional interest in examining and addressing systemic racism — the same committee that heard from the survivors is also studying reparations for the descendants of enslaved people. -- NPR 

An ‘Army of 16-Year-Olds’ Takes On the Democrats. May 19. Young progressive activists, some not even old enough to vote but inspired by the presidential campaigns of Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, are making waves as digital organizers credited with helping Sen. Ed Markey defeat a challenge from the heavily favored Rep. Joe Kennedy last year. Why it matters: These young grassroots activists are proving their clout but their recent scolding of Markey's stance on the fighting in Israel suggests that these young politicos care more about the issues than alliances and will hold lawmakers to account. -- The New York Times

Walsh allies hope uproar over Boston top cop appointment will quickly fade. May 21. Biden’s new labor secretary is accused of ignoring domestic abuse allegations against Dennis White, the man he appointed as police commissioner in one of his final moves as mayor of Boston before he headed to Washington. Why it matters: It’s one of the administration’s first scandals and not only has the potential to distract from the White House’s massive infrastructure package that Walsh is tasked with promoting, but could damage Walsh’s standing in the administration. -- Politico  

GOP Governors' Cutoff of COVID Benefits Hits Hard in Rural America. May 24. Republican governors in at least 22 states plan to pull almost $11 billion in federal unemployment aid, affecting nearly 2 million workers. Why it matters: While the governors argue that the additional benefits are discouraging people from finding employment and are thus suppressing the economic recovery, economists say cutting off the aid will disproportionately affect people of color and people living in rural communities  with slow job growth and fewer opportunities. -- Stateline


#POLITICSTRIVIA
By Tess Conciatori, @tkconch 
Politics associate producer

A programming note: Associate Producer Tess Conciatori is our new trivia master. Here’s her first question for you!

On this day in 1960, Senator Amy Klobuchar was born. Happy Birthday, senator! The Minnesota Democrat was the first woman elected to the Senate from the north star state, but her political career began years before when she campaigned for a prominent Democrat who later became a friend. That friend even gave a toast at Klobuchar’s wedding in 1993.

Our question: On whose campaign did Klobuchar first cut her teeth? 

Send your answers to [email protected] or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.

Last week, we asked: Which future first lady drove an electric vehicle in Washington, D.C., more than 100 years ago?

The answer: Edith Bolling Galt Wilson

Wilson was the second wife of Woodrow Wilson. When she got her driver’s license in 1904, it was against gender norms for a woman to drive. In some ways, this foreshadowed her future role as first lady. In 1919, Wilson’s husband had a stroke and the first lady ended up performing some of his routine tasks. Legend has it that she was the “first woman to run the government,” but by her own account, she called the arrangement a “stewardship” and did not make any major decisions.

Congratulations to our winners: Dennis Sheehan and Margaret O’Shea!

Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.