Exonerated Five member Kevin Richardson launches civil rights workshop for students
NEW YORK — Kevin Richardson, one of the Exonerated Five, stopped by his alma mater in the Bronx on Friday to discuss the importance of knowing your rights when encountering law enforcement.
Back in April of 1989, Richardson was accused of sexually assaulting a woman in Central Park. He was 14 years old at the time of the incident. After the accusations were made, Richardson and four other teens were deemed the Central Park Five. However, over a decade later, DNA evidence proved their innocence, and the group is currently known as the Exonerated Five.
C.P.R. workshop informs teens how to handle police encounters
Knowing what he does now, Richardson launched a workshop called C.P.R. – which stands for Courage, Perseverance, and Resilience – to inform teenagers of how to properly handle encounters with police, if they should ever find themselves in that situation.
"It's very important for people to know how to navigate through that and know your rights, because it is your civil rights," Richardson said.
Richardson received an honorary diploma from Bronx Preparatory Charter School and felt compelled to host his first C.P.R. workshop at the school.
"You have the right to remain silent when you're approached by police officers. You know, we get tricked with it because you might start speaking, but the next thing that's followed after that is anything will be held against you in the court of law. In my case, per se, that's what happened," said Richardson.
Richardson's words of advice stuck with some of the young minds at Bronx Prep.
"What he said today resonated with me. I think that this is something that I, that I won't forget, and I appreciate everything Kevin Richardson has done for us today," said Bronx Prep Senior Jacob Hampden.
"I'm very honored to be here today. And it was an enriching experience. And I also hope that my community was able to learn about their rights and be thankful to Kevin Richardson," said Bronx Prep Senior Jayleen Pina.
Richardson said he hopes to travel and host his C.P.R workshop within several cities across the country.
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