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Pomona High School students discuss interactions with police
By Monica Rodriguez, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Posted: 09/02/14, 10:03 PM PDT | Updated: 1 min ago
Pomona High School students listen to the discussion involved with “Rights and Responsibilities with Law Enforcement,” which explains teenagers’ rights and responsibilities when dealing with members of law enforcement, at Pomona High School’s Devil’s Ring Theater on Tuesday. Photo by James Carbone POMONA >> Before Pomona High educators ever uttered a word with their students about young people’s rights when they are stopped by law enforcement, they had a discussion of their own.
The teachers, administrators and others wondered if a conversation about how young people should interact with police officers was better left to students’ families or to their churches, Pomona High Assistant Principal Muhammad Abdul-Qawi said Tuesday.
The idea for the discussion was sparked by events in Ferguson, Mo., where a local police officer fatally shot Michael Brown, a young African-American man.
And the Pomona educators reached a conclusion.
“This is information that students should have,” Abdul-Qawi said.
After the session with more than 100 students Tuesday in the high school’s theater, Abdul-Qawi explained that the discussion topic is timely.
“What we don’t want to do is be isolated and be reactive,” the assistant principal said.
Having such a discussion is important because “the more rights you have, the more responsibilities you have,” he added.
Pomona High senior Manuel Colbert said the information is valuable, “because not everyone knows what to do” if they encounter a member of law enforcement.
Colbert, who described the discussion as positive, sees the information as something that could help him if he is ever stopped.
“If I do, I have something to back myself up with,” he said.
Pomona economics teacher Ali Hangan told the students that law enforcement members have the job of policing the community where they work, and then she asked a question.
“What are responsible ways to deal with law enforcement?” Hangan asked.
Together Hangan, Abdul-Qawi and Jaime Aguilar, a Los Angeles County probation officer, reviewed a list of points, compiled by the American Civil Liberties Union, to keep in mind when coming in contact with police.
One of the ACLU’s recommendations: Do not get into an argument with police.
Hangan asked a student why someone shouldn’t argue with a member of law enforcement.
“They might see it as violence or aggressiveness,” one student said, adding that if a member of law enforcement sees that type of behavior “they might use their (night) sticks.”
Another student said members of law enforcement should always be able to see a person’s hands so they don’t mistakenly think the person will attempt to attack them.
Hangan told the students, “How you treat an officer is going to reflect on how they treat you.”
“You want to make sure you are responsible and not inciting something,” she said.
When a faculty member suggested that students keep one of the ACLU handouts in their backpacks, Colbert suggested keeping it in a better place - their school binders.
Aguilar said when young people want something from a parent or one of their teachers they come up with a plan, and dealing with law enforcement is no different.
“In this case, what you want is for this person to literally go away and let you be on your way,” Aguilar said.
Abdul-Qawi said young people must have a strategy to engage with law enforcement to ensure a situation doesn’t escalate.
Principal Roger Fasting said Tuesday’s discussion was the start of a larger discussion that will take place at every grade level at Pomona High and is part of a school-wide effort to have students become more civically engaged.
Students have already taken up a discussion based on another district’s program involving their students’ social media activity and the district’s intervention in some instances.
Students have engaged in discussions that revolved around the question of whether it’s the school’s role to monitor social media, and if it is, when and why, Fasting said.
Such discussions lead to deeper conversation about civic responsibility and “doing your part in making your community better, your school better, your class better,” Fasting said.
Students were encouraged to talk about their discussion with classmates, with members of their family and members of their churches.
But engaging in such conversation can be difficult, Colbert said.
As young people “you want to talk about joyous things,” he said and taking part in such a discussion means something unpleasant occurred.
Yet, “we should be talking about it,” Colbert said, adding such a conversation is easier to begin with the help of a teacher.
About the Author Monica covers the city of Pomona. Reach the author at [email protected] or follow Monica on Twitter: @PomonaNow.