NEW YORK CITY, August 10—While the ruling class laments the departure of  their darling “top cop” William Bratton, the working class knows better! Under his first watch (1994-1996)  many Black and Latin workers and youth were murdered in cold bood by the NYPD, including  Anthony Baez, Hilton Vega, Anthony Rosario, Nicholas Hayward Jr.—and under his second watch ( 2013-2016) Shantel Davis, Kimani Gray, Ramarley Graham, Akai Gurley, Eric Garner, Kyam Livingston —and countless others. According to a report by Amnesty International, for instance, there was a 34 percent increase in people fatally shot by NYPD in Bratton’s first year as Police Commissioner alone.
Under Bratton’s Watch
Bratton helped to make the NYPD even more of an occupying force with his policies of  “Stop and Frisk,” “Broken Windows,” racist quotas, the “quality of life initiative,” and “zero tolerance.” Under his watch, the NYPD became equipped with more firepower, semi-automatic weapons, drones, a new anti-protest unit and more surveillance units. Bratton’s legacy leaves policies that strip Black and Latin workers of civil rights under the guise of promoting public safety. One of his stated goals was to rid the subway of homeless people. Under the “Broken Windows” policy, racist cops killed Eric Garner for the “crime” of selling loose cigarettes. This modern day lynching was caught on videotape and was met with militant and multi-racial demonstrations all over the country. Bratton ‘s reign in Los Angeles saw the mass displacement of  homeless and the mentally ill. As LAPD Chief (Los Angeles Police Department) numerous trips were organized to Israel to observe and train with their security forces.
Bratton holds up Israel as a model for law enforcement worldwide (Intifada, 5/29/14). He has cultivated close ties to Israel, giving the keynote address at Israel’s National Conference on Personal Security in Jerusalem.. Its no wonder that the violent and brutal repression practiced by Israeli forces has become a staple of U.S. law enforcement. In Bratton’s words, his visits to Israel were “so we can learn from eachother” (Intifada). So, Bratton will continue to have blood on his hands as an international enemy of the working class.
De Blasio and Bratton, Birds of a Feather
“If he is bringing back Bratton, he can’t be any good”. This was the sentiment of parents whose family members were killed by the NYPD in the 1990’s. Iris Baez, mother of Anthony Baez who was killed in a choke-hold in front of his house) explains in the film Every Mothers Son how Bratton targeted her family after her son’s murder to intimidate and stop the growing movement. Despite the liberal talk of Mayor De Blasio in his bid for election, his challenging of “Stop and Frisk” and talk about fighting racism, it became clear that De Blasio had no intention of real change when he appointed Bratton in 2013. After two officers were killed in Brooklyn in December of 2014, De Blasio called for suspending all protests. In defiance, the Progressive Labor Party and other groups called demonstrations and took to the streets.
Crime and Capitalism
While Bratton blames the civil rights movement and the anti-war movement for the rise in crime (Intifada) he also credits himself and former Mayor Guiliani for the decrease in crime in the 1990’s. Christian Parenti, author of Lockdown America, details how the NYPD went after young Black and Latin workers with a vengeance from everything to playing loud music to truancy during those years, incarcerating masses of these youth, while police brutality complaints jumped by 50%. While there is no empirical proof that Broken Windows was responsible for the drop in crime (Intifada)-similar reductions in crime occurred in major U.S. cities at the same time, the drop in crime coincides with the end of the deadly crack epidemic in New York (New York Times, 10/27/97), which left working class communities ravaged with the influx of drugs.
Bratton Goes to the Clintons, Names Replacement
Bratton has accepted a job with Teneo Holdings, a consulting group linked closely to the Clinton political machine, as well as the Israeli bosses. Teneo was founded by Douglas Band, a close advisor to former President Clinton.
Bratton and De Blasio’s hand picked successor, James O’Neill, will continue the policies that the rulers need. A student of Bratton’s Broken Windows philosophy for 30 years, O’Neill has been “instrumental to developing community policing” (NYT 8/3/16). In 2015, Bratton himself said there was no difference between community policing and Broken Windows. The argument that any new form of policing will be any better is itself an illusion. The role of police ever since their origins as a colonial occupation force in Great Britain and fugitive slave patrols in the U.S. is to protect capitalist property, and divide and control the working class through racist terror.
The Fight Back Goes  On!
  Workers and families of those murdered by the cops have stood up against the NYPD with courage since Day 1. Probably most notable is Iris Baez, whose son Anthony was murdered outside her home in the Bronx. Mrs Baez and other parents led huge rallies and marches and became personal targets of Bratton. They united with other families in the Bronx and staged huge events that were multi-racial and militant. City wide protests have erupted in the past few months and involved actions such as closing down bridges, streets and highways. Thousands have protested in the street with groups such as Black Lives Matter and various coalitions. Progressive Labor Party has been involved and where possible, given leadership to this fight in Brooklyn, Staten Island, and Manhattan. As we stand shoulder to shoulder with the families of Shantel Davis, Kimani Gray, Eric Garner, Ramarley Graham, Sean Bell, Akai Gurley and  Kyam Livingston, we have fought hard for our line that only multiracial unity can defeat racist police terror, and only a mass PLP  fighting for communist revolution can end the capitalist system that relies on it.