On January 7, Memphis Police officers pepper sprayed and brutally beat photographer and avid skateboarder Tyre Nichols. Nichols complained of shortness of breath, and waited 22 minutes before an ambulance arrived to transport him – in critical condition – to a local hospital. He died on January 10.

Memphis police chief Ceralyn Davis called the beating of Nichols a “failure of basic humanity.”  This brutal killing has renewed public discussions of police abolition.

We talk with Professor Christian Davenport, professor of political science at The University of Michigan and author of State Repression and the Promise of Democratic Peace.

On January 7, Memphis Police officers pepper sprayed and brutally beat photographer and avid skateboarder Tyre Nichols. Nichols complained of shortness of breath, and waited 22 minutes before an ambulance arrived to transport him – in critical condition – to a local hospital. He died on January 10.

Memphis police chief Ceralyn Davis called the beating of Nichols a “failure of basic humanity.”  This brutal killing has renewed public discussions of police abolition.

We talk with Professor Christian Davenport, professor of political science at The University of Michigan and author of State Repression and the Promise of Democratic Peace.

To hear our deep dive on police abolition, you can listen here.