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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!

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Stack, Paul
Upward Bound
11/13/2018