I may have a website project at work coming up where I might be having to work with a tribal police department of an indigenous tribe to “present themselves in a better way.” My gut reaction is absolutely not, I don’t want to be part of helping an PR initiative of an oppressive institution. But I don’t actually know much about tribal police and how they may differ. US police of course serve the role of capitalist spearhead against those affected by the consequences of capitalism. Do tribal police serve the same role, but just specific to indigenous tribes? My assumption was they’re a settler colonial institution imported to tribal groups as a means of control and conditioning. But is that true? Or are they more integrated into their communities and don’t really serve as a capitalist vanguard because of the unique material conditions etc of indigenous tribes? How should I feel about working with them?
how much can you get away with “present yourselves better by being better”?
putting my reformist hat on i’m thinking about shit like not carrying sidearms, driving people home instead of running DUI traps, submitting themselves to accountability by the tribe’s civilian populace, but what they ought to do besides disband themselves is going to depend heavily on the shit they’ve been doing.
if you can contact a tribe member who is not affiliated with the cops (or even better, is actively anti-cop) and talk to them that’s going to be more relevant and helpful to you than the general terms we can speak in here.