Critics say the movement to defund the police failed. But Austin and Seattle are seeing progress

The rallying cry from 2020 Black Lives Matter protests pushed some US cities to divert money towards housing and community services

After George Floyd's murder by a Minneapolis police officer in 2020, protesters who swarmed the streets across the US shouted the refrain: Defund the police." An idea that was once viewed as radical - to redirect money from law enforcement to other city departments and social services - became a rallying cry overnight.

As a result of continued pressure, dozens of jurisdictions throughout the nation promised to reduce their police budgets. While most of them backtracked and increased law enforcement funding in the next year or two, several cities changed policies or added new public safety and homeless services departments.