Colin Kaepernick’s Message to Chicago Youth: ‘Know Your Rights’
Dave Zirin writes for The Nation about a local NFL star and his Know Your Rights camp coming to Chicago. Colin Kaepernick came this month to host one of his well-known Know Your Rights camps here on Chicago’s Southside. Some of the goals of the camps include, “speak[ing] directly to black, brown, and economically disadvantaged youth, invited through local community organizations, about history, nutrition, legal rights, and financial literacy.” The event, covered by The Nation, describes the success of the event, highlighting two of First Defense Legal Aid’s very own educators and advocates, Guillermo Gutierrez and Charles Jones:
"Out came Guillermo Gutierrez and Charles Jones from First Defense Legal Aid, with the message that ‘Chicago is the false-confession capital of world.’ To drive the point home, these “street attorneys” educated the students about Jon Burge, the South Side police officer and now convicted felon who tortured confessions out of more than 200 suspects between 1972 and 1991.”
Gutierrez and Jones go on to explain what to do when you’ve been stopped by the Chicago police:
“They said that the future of some people in the room could depend on knowing their rights when approached by law enforcement, and hammered home what to say if stopped by police. “First and foremost, you always have the right to ask, ‘Am I free to go?’ That is your constitutional right. If they say ‘no,’ you have the right to say, ‘I do not consent to be searched.’ If you don’t say those words, they can and will search you.’
Then they stressed, ‘Always remain silent. Call us. Have an attorney present. That is your right.’”