Minneapolis Mayor Frey on police department: ‘We need to entirely reshape the system’

Rebecca Omastiak

[anvplayer video=”4919037″ station=”998122″]

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey reiterated his thoughts on policing during an interview Monday morning.

In an interview during "Good Morning America," with ABC News, Frey addressed the Minneapolis City Council’s intent to move toward dismantling the city’s police department.

"Let me be clear, I am for massive, structural and transformational reform to an entire system that has not for generations worked for black and brown people; we have failed them, and we need to entirely reshape the system, we need a full-on cultural shift in how our Minneapolis Police Department and departments throughout the country function," Frey said during the interview. "Am I for entirely abolishing the police department? No, I’m not. So, over the coming days and weeks, I’m looking forward to working with council, talking with them about deciphering what particularly they mean when they say ending and abolishing and I’ll be talking with them directly."

View the interview via the video player above.

Frey’s comments come as a majority of the Minneapolis City Council supports the move to dismantle the city’s police department.

Majority of Minneapolis City Council announces support for dismantling police department

[ABC News]

Meanwhile, the nationwide push for dismantling police departments is gaining traction in the wake of the death of George Floyd, who died while former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes while Floyd lay handcuffed on the pavement.

Chauvin was fired from the police department on May 26 and was charged with second-degree and third-degree murder, as well as second-degree manslaughter, in connection with Floyd’s death.

Chauvin’s first court appearance is Monday afternoon.

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