Rally Focuses on ‘Right to Know’ in Police Searches

By SEAN EGAN

Hundreds of people, including politicians and other advocacy groups, crowded a Broadway sidewalk outside of City Hall on Thursday afternoon to rally for legislation designed to put curbs on police officers who stop and frisk citizens.

The so-called Right to Know act would require that police officers properly identify themselves when stopping someone to be searched, and that they explain to the person that it is within their rights to deny the search when there is no probable cause. In addition, according to the proposal, officers would also have to get written or recorded proof of consent before searching anyone.

“We’re asking for the right to know who you are and why you’re stopping us,” said City CouncilmanAntonio Reynoso at the rally. “It’s a very basic right that we should all have. That would actually improve the interaction between the police and the people on the streets.”

The demonstrators showed a range of emotion from compassion to rage. There were songs of love, and poetry of peace with chants of anger mixed in. The Right to Know act, according to the organizer, Citizens United for Police Reform, is common sense legislation that enforces a constitutional right of all citizens.

“We need not just to know who you are. We need you not just to inform us of our rights to deny you,” said Kirsten John Foy of the National Action Network, pointing at City Hall. “We need a whole host of reform that will gut that building and start anew with new leadership, new policies, and new officers on the street that respect our lives.”

Constance Malcolm, the mother of Ramarley Graham, who was killed by police in 2012 when they “unlawfully busted into” their home and shot him in front of his mother and grandmother, called out mayor Bill de Blasio by name.

“Mayor Bill de Blasio, I’ve been trying to speak with you for two months,” she said to boos from the crowd. “He’s dodging me right now. I’m here to say today: de Blasio, if you don’t meet with me, my next campaign is to get rid of you.”

The New York Civil Liberties Union also supports the act and representatives attended the rally to push the Council to vote on the measure, which has been delayed since 2014.

“The Right to Know Act is essential to rebuild trust between police and New Yorkers after decades of overly aggressive policing targeting our communities of color,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director of NYCLU. “Tragedies like Eric Garner and Akai Gurley make it painfully clear how police encounters can escalate into tragedy.”

Mayor de Blasio has said he doesn’t support the bill because he has said it would damage police officers’ ability to effectively do their jobs. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton has also spoken out against the proposal.

Councilman Jumaane Williams focused on “distrust” between police and the community.

“It is about building trust so they can do their job and we can trust them when they do it,” he said. “There’s nothing to fear with these two pieces of legislation. There’s only something to fear if we can’t get these two pieces of legislation out.”