ACLU Offers Help for Students and Teachers

Parents of middle school and high school students should be aware of the resources offered by the ACLU-Washington to help protect youth.

They have a great downloadable guide, "Student Rights and Responsibilities in the Digital Age; A Guide for Public School Students in Washington State"  with info on:

• technology and free speech including using the internet at school and off-campus
• recording people at school including other people's privacy and school surveillance cameras
• searches at school
• what to do if you believe your school has violated your rights

They are also having their annual Student Conference on Civil Liberties on April 14th from 9 am to 

1:00 pm at The Vera Project at Seattle Center.  

They also have resources for teachers including classroom speakers, free publications and a printable PDF of the Bill of Rights.  

They have an online order form for free publications including "bust cards"- wallet-sized "what to do if you are stopped by police" cards.   

I urge parents to either sit down with your student and explain what to do if stopped by a police officer and/or get one of these cards for him/her.  

I know what you're thinking; not my kid.  I will tell you what I told my own children; things happen.  

You can be out with your friends and doing nothing wrong but somehow you and your friends manage to be in the same place where a crime occurred and the police want to talk with your group.  

Or your child can have one dopey friend who DOES do something wrong and the police want to talk with the whole group.  

Things happen and police officers can be intimating and scary.  Better your child knows his or her rights and what to do than for you to get a phone call and your child says, "I didn't know what to do."