Student Tribune
Bridge Building Between Teens and Cops
"Not every cop is racist. Not every teenager is a criminal. We want to have
face to face interactions so we can build trust and work to make our
communities safer, together." noted Rochester Police Department Officer LaRon
Singletary during the Police Teen Dialogue on Saturday, Nov. 3rd. Five Upward
Bound students, Paul Stack (Upward Bound student adviser), and four RPD
officers met together at the Rochester Public Safety Building to discuss issues
of police brutality, community distrust, and racism in a small group setting.
The goal of the event was to build stronger connections between RPD officers
and teens leading up to the third annual Police Teen Talent Slam, an event
showcasing the talents of teens and cops on the same stage.
After discussing the issues from the perspective of both groups, Officer
LaRon had the group simulate a traffic stop with a real cop car. The students
role played as cops while the cops role played as regular drivers, which helped
students understand and empathize with what cops encounter in their work. "I'm
thinking about being a cop when I get older," shared junior Israel, "and this
day made me want to be a cop more. I liked being a part of making positive
connections in the community, and having a cop show us how to do a traffic stop
was awesome." Like Israel, the rest of the guys enjoyed getting to have
authentic interactions with the police and are looking forward to making the
third Police Teen Talent Slam in April 2019 the best one yet!
Attached Files:
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Stack, Paul
Upward Bound
11/13/2018