Concerned Black Men of Richmond Conducted ‘What To Do When Stopped by the Police’ Activity with Youth

March 30, 2020

Greetings,

The Concerned Black Men of Richmond conducted an activity we called “What To Do When Stopped by the Police”.  This event was organized by William Friday, Deputy Chief of Business Services and CBMRVA mentor. It was held at the Richmond Police Academy on March 7^th on the campus of Virginia Union University.

The activity started with a check-in and a brief history of the facility. The group was then shown a wall of portraits of all police officers that were killed in the line of duty.

We then proceeded to a classroom where the officers elaborated on the police’s role in protecting the citizens while enforcing state laws.  Officer El Amin explained how he became a policeman and told of his experiences getting through the academy. He turned on his radio and explained how they handle calls and shared a few anecdotal stories from his past experiences. 

Captain Hall and Officer El Amin shared some interesting statistics regarding police interactions with citizens and how they differ from the public’s perception.

They showed many of the tools that they use in the field and discussed how they deal with various situations that present themselves during daily patrols.

Next, it was time for role play.  Several mentees were presented with a situation where they were pulled over as suspects with a gun in the car. The officers explained how they approach the vehicle and the proper reaction that the passengers should exhibit.

This was a great exercise for the youth to be a part of and they all took some priceless life instruction from it. 

They also got an opportunity to put on a bullet proof vest and try their hand at being a police officer.  The officers loaded the simulator and armed them with pepper spray and a Taser to approach different perpetrators in a couple of scenarios. 

The mentees got an inside look into the work that our policemen do daily to protect our lives, their lives and to preserve order in today’s society.

This activity is exactly the type of information that the Concerned Black Men of RVA is attempting to arm our young men with so they may be better able to navigate the many pitfalls that today’s society will present.

I would like to thank William Friday, Captain John Hall and Officer Farrhard El Amin for putting together such an impactful event!

Thanks to each of you for your support of the Concerned Black Men of RVA!  We are looking forward to continuing our work with the youth as soon as the concern over the pandemic subsides.  It is truly making a difference in their development.

Be safe!

 

Sincerely,
Tim Mallory,
President CBM-RVA

Click Here to learn more about The Concerned Black Men of Richmond, Inc.
Click Here to learn more about becoming a Mentor.
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