OPINION:
It is sad that we as a nation find ourselves back at this same place again: A person resisting arrest, refusing to cooperate — and being killed during the confrontation (“Police killing of Daunte Wright threatens to spark summer of violence,” Web, April 12). Police careers are destroyed. Why do our youth think it is appropriate to resist police who are performing their duties to investigate and enforce the laws regarding criminal behavior, especially when the outcome can be death?
This article gives us as adults and parents a chance to ask what can we do to help prevent these tragedies. As an African-American youth counselor, I spend a lot of time trying to correct the message I hear from our youth: Do not cooperate with the police, regardless of the situation. This way of thinking is a far cry from the one I was taught growing up.
In my opinion we need more adults trying to educate our children about how and when to cooperate with the police. The local Boy Scout chapter used to have police come and talk to us about this very topic; maybe we need to bring back that type of grassroots effort.
If we are going to pass reforms that call for police training to include de-escalation training, then we also must teach members of the community what they can do regarding de-escalation. This includes teaching our youth to stop resisting when handcuffed, to stop driving off after being stopped, to stop trying run away from a scene to avoid being questioned. These are not uncomfortable topics to have in our homes, and they could prove life savers.
GREG RALEIGH
Washington
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