People complain, police end ‘High-five Fridays’ at Massachusetts schools.
Good Morning America reported on Tuesday that a program aimed to improve relations between grade school students and the police has been put on hold. ‘High-five Fridays’ was intended as a trust building exercise. Once a month, police officers would greet students and welcome them to school. However, complaints arose that it may cause a small group of students to be uncomfortable.
The Northampton Police Department said it decided to scrap its High Five Friday program, which kicked off in December, after residents said that some children — particularly minorities and undocumented immigrants — may be uncomfortable with uniformed police officers greeting them at school in the morning.
Unfortunately, a few upset people ended an otherwise great program. The Northhampton Police Department Facebook page verified the concerns.
While we received a lot of support on social media, we also heard a few concerns about the program.
Concerns were shared that some kids might respond negatively to a group of uniformed officers at their school. People were specifically concerned about kids of color, undocumented children, or any children who may have had negative experiences with the police.
Today was High-5 Friday at Bridge St School! Thanks to everyone who participated! The kids and officers all had fun! #highfive pic.twitter.com/Trz0yoW3Qh
— Northampton Police (@NorthamptonPD) December 9, 2016
Today was High-Five Friday! Thanks to Jackson St School for hosting! We hope that everyone had a great time! Happy Friday!! #highfive pic.twitter.com/MWY6JBlHlK
— Northampton Police (@NorthamptonPD) January 6, 2017
