New York ACLU Trains Kids on Handling Police Encounters

In the wake of events in Ferguson, MO, a New York high school principal invited the New York Civil Liberties Union in to educate students on how to handle police encounters. While many students seemed glad to receive the information, some law enforcement officials felt like it undermined their authority.

Police Encounters are History in the Making

According to an article in the New York Post, Principal Mark Federman of East Side Community High School invited the NYCLU for two reasons: concern for the youth in his city and relevance to the school’s history curriculum.

“We’re not going to candy-coat things,” Federman said. “We have a problem in our city that’s affecting young men of color and all of our students.”

Some students reported personal police encounters that verified this statement and also the reason for inviting the training. One student said that he was stopped by police and questioned after leaving a party. The police accused the student of lying about what he was doing. “I was panicking,” the student said, “because I knew they could do anything to me and I can’t help myself.”

This is just the type of panic response that could lead to another Ferguson-like incident and was an issue addressed by the NYCLU. Among other issues related to police encounters, they discussed the NYPD stop-and-frisk program and advised students on their Fourth Amendment rights regarding unreasonable search and seizure. Students were told to be polite and keep their hands out of their pockets. While they were also told that they didn’t have to show identification or consent to searches, ultimately they were instructed not to resist and that they had the legal right to file a complaint later.

In regards to Principal Federman’s statement that the training on police encounters also addressed history classes’ curriculum, some law enforcement experts felt like the NYCLU was actually giving out criminal-defense advice. Eugene O’Donnell, a former police officer and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice stated, “It’s unlikely that a high school student would come away with any other conclusion than the police are a fearful group to be avoided at all costs.”

Federman said that wasn’t the intent of the police encounter training. “It’s not about police being bad,” he said. “This isn’t anti-police as much as it’s pro-young people … It’s about what to do when kids are put in a position where they feel powerless and uncomfortable.”