Itās Cops 101.
The principal of East Side Community HS invited the New York Civil Liberties Union to give a two-day training session last week on interacting with police.
The 450 kids were coached on staying calm during NYPD encounters and given a āWhat To Do If Youāre Stopped By The Policeā pamphlet.
NYCLU representatives told kids to be polite and to keep their hands out of their pockets. But they also told students they donāt have to show ID or consent to searches, that itās best to remain silent, and how to file a complaint against an officer.
Principal Mark Federman said he brought in the NYCLU because students told teachers they had bad experiences with being stopped by police. He said the training also was relevant to history classes studying the Ferguson, Mo., shooting.
āWeāre not going to candy-coat things ā we have a problem in our city thatās affecting young men of color and all of our students,ā Federman told The Post.
āItās not about the police being bad,ā he added. āThis isnāt anti-police as much as itās pro-young people .ā.ā. Itās about what to do when kids are put in a position where they feel powerless and uncomfortable.ā
The hourlong workshops ā held in small classroom sessions during advisory periods ā focused on the NYPDās stop-and-frisk program and how to exercise Fourth Amendment rights when being stopped and questioned in a car or at home.
Read more: http://nypost.com/2014/11/23/new-hs-class-teaches-kids-how-to-deal-with-…