Workshops seek to educate the public on dealing with police

It could start as a routine encounter: A white officer stops a black teenager. But how the encounter ends can hinge dramatically on split-second decisions by either.

Across the region, community leaders, lawyers, and ministers are holding workshops and forums to educate the public, especially young black males, on how to interact with law enforcement.

They will teach them what to do - how to act and what to say - if stopped or questioned. They will also teach them their rights.

The events, organizers say, are in response to the death last summer of Michael Brown, an unarmed teenager shot during a confrontation with a white police officer in Ferguson, Mo.

The shooting touched off protests around the country and became a defining moment for civil rights and race relations. The anger was stoked by a grand jury's decision not to charge the officer who killed Brown.

"After you do the protests, you have to say, 'What are we going to do for our community?' " said Sharon Suber, president of the Gloucester County chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority. "We need to do more than riot in the streets."

The sorority, as part of its national "Get Engaged" campaign, will hold workshops Saturday in Williamstown and Feb. 28 in Woodbury with the NAACP and local law enforcement officials.

"We're going to be in the forefront of educating our children so that this doesn't happen again," Suber said. "Nobody wants to have their child dead for no reason."

Other workshops are planned in Camden and Willingboro. In Pennsylvania, Lower Merion Township has scheduled a community meeting for Sunday, described as "an open conversation about race and policing" after police were criticized for questioning black men who were shoveling snow.

Similar workshops, typically sponsored by civil rights groups and the American Civil Liberties Union, have sprung up around the country, in cities and suburbs. Organizers hope to educate the public and improve relationships with police.

In New York City, East Side Community High School recently offered an hour-long course on the city's controversial stop-and-frisk program. School officials said students reported bad experiences in stops by police.

In another high-profile case that sparked protests a few weeks after the decision in the Brown case, a grand jury in New York declined to indict a white police officer in the death of Eric Garner. During an arrest for allegedly selling illegal cigarettes, Garner, 43, died last summer after the officer placed him in a choke hold.

During training at East Side by the ACLU, more than 450 students were told to remain calm, be polite, and keep their hands out of their pockets. They were also told that they have a right to remain silent, and received instructional pamphlets titled "What to Do If You're Stopped by Police."

But some say such workshops could do more harm than good and could aggravate the distrust of police by many in the African American community.

"I hope it is a more uplifting message than 'stay out of jail' and 'police are the enemy,' " said Eugene O'Donnell, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "It has to be done with context and balance."

Suber said the workshops are designed to break down barriers. "It's not them against us. Everyone is not a bad guy, on either side."

South Jersey lawyer Lloyd Freeman said the workshops should not be viewed as a "gripe session," but as a chance to educate the public and officers about the law.

Freeman, of the Archer & Greiner firm in Haddonfield, will moderate a discussion Wednesday at Rutgers-Camden School of Law, sponsored by the Garden State Bar Association, a coalition of black lawyers.

"We felt it was incumbent upon us to educate our community about their rights, given all the turmoil," Freeman said. "It seems like every six months, there is a news story about someone having a run-in with the police. This is something that everyone should know in case you are in this situation."

In addition to advice from a panel that includes a criminal defense lawyer and a former prosecutor, attendees will be taught appropriate behavior during an encounter with police, Freeman said. They will also receive a NAACP pamphlet called "Know Your Rights."

Merchantville lawyer Timothy Quinlan, who has represented police officers in criminal and internal disciplinary cases, says the workshops are a good idea that could "prevent a tragedy."

"I would hope that the workshops would bridge the gap rather than stoke the fires," Quinlan said.

LaToya Coley, a counselor for Mastery Charter Schools in South Philadelphia, plans to bring about 14 students from the school's "Men of Distinction" mentoring program to the Camden workshop. Students recently marched to City Hall to protest the Ferguson case.

"I'm glad that they are able to get this focus and important information," Coley said. "It's disappointing that we have to have these kinds of workshops."

Willingboro High School students have been invited to a workshop March 7 by the National Pan-Hellenic Council of Burlington County, comprised of black fraternal groups, said Michael Hannon, who is organizing the "All Lives Matter" event.

A prayer gathering the same day at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Burlington City will take a different approach, said the Rev. Kimani H. Davis. It is open to men of all races and boys ages 10 to 18, he said.

Tracy Martin, father of Trayvon Martin, a teenager killed in 2012 by a Florida neighborhood watch volunteer, is among the scheduled speakers.

"We're going to pray with him," said Davis, an associate pastor at the Baptist Worship Center in Philadelphia. "It's a hard pill to swallow when you're talking about your son being killed."

Saturday

What: Guidelines for successfully interacting with law enforcement officials; workshop sponsored by Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Gloucester County chapter

When: 2 to 5 p.m.

Where: Pfeiffer Community Center, 301 Blue Bell Rd. Williamstown

More information: 856-963-4105

Sunday

What: Community forum on race and policing

When: 3 to 5 p.m.

Where: P.A.L.M. Center, 117 Ardmore Ave., Ardmore

Wednesday

What: "Know Your Rights" panel discussion sponsored by the Garden State Bar Association

When: 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Where: Rutgers-Camden School of Law, 217 N. Fifth St.

To RSVP or for more information: rsvp@archerlaw.com

Feb. 28

What: Guidelines for successfully interacting with law enforcement officials; workshop sponsored by Zeta Phi Beta Sorority

When: 1 to 3 p.m.

Where: Family Success Center, 21 Delaware Ave., Woodbury

More information: 856-963-4105

March 7

What: Men's prayer gathering; Tracy Martin, father of Trayvon Martin, is scheduled to speak

When: 10 a.m.

Where: Tabernacle Baptist Church, 150 E. Second St., Burlington

More information: 609-284-2946 or transformagency@aol.com

March 7

What: "All Lives Matter" community forum and resource fair

When: 2 to 6 p.m.

Where: Willingboro High School, 20 John F. Kennedy Way

For information: 609.694.8799 or mhannon1975@gmail.com

All events are free and open to the public.EndText