A Camden County officer grills hot dogs for one of the department's pop-up neighborhood parties.

As a brand and messaging guy, I'm not sure that using language like "defunding the police" is an effective communications strategy. Especially since Republicans, starting with Richard Nixon, have used fear to justify that we need military-style police to defend us from a certain "dark menace".

Personally, I like the concept of funding a Peace Force. And if we want to learn how to do it, Camden, NJ already has.

"The city dissolved its police department in 2012 and replaced it with an entirely new one after corruption rendered the existing agency unfixable. 

"Before its police reforms, Camden was routinely named one of the most violent cities in the US. 

"Now, seven years after the old department was booted (though around 100 officers were rehired), the city's crime has dropped by close to half. Officers host outdoor parties for residents and knock on doors to introduce themselves. It's a radically different Camden than it was even a decade ago. Here's how they did it."

Article: This City Disbanded its Police Department 7 years ago. Here's What Happened Next