The Lessons U Share
John Leacher, Chief of Public Safety and Emergency Management at Washtenaw Community College, spoke to MHS eighth graders in conjunction with their reading of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. Photo credit: Maggie Feldkamp.
submitted by Julie Brilliant, Manchester Jr./Sr. High School English Teacher
by Maggie Feldkamp, Manchester Jr./Sr. High School Student
On March 12 the Manchester Jr./Sr. High School eighth graders gathered in the media center to listen to guest speaker John Leacher. Leacher, the Chief of Public Safety and Emergency Management at Washtenaw Community College, has 27 years of policing experience under his belt, including community policing, crime prevention, and emergency management. The eighth-grade students are currently reading The Hate U Give, a novel by Angie Thomas, which deals with themes of police brutality, racism, and justice.
Having Leacher as a guest speaker was an amazing opportunity for the students to engage with someone who has experienced some of the situations that took place in the novel. When asked about the experience, eighth grader Rylee Feaurbacker said she learned that officers “don’t use their weapons unless it is needed, and it’s the last resort. It’s very different in the book; they use it even if it is not needed.”
Thomas’ novel, which Leacher said touches on the wrongdoing of officers, taught Leacher “how to do better while serving as an officer.” Leacher added that “it’s how you [as an officer] talk to people, treat people, and react to people, not if it compromises officers’ safety.” In the story, a teenager is killed when an officer mistakenly thinks he is a threat. Leacher discussed this scene with the eighth graders, who learned how a routine traffic stop is surprisingly the most dangerous situation an officer can be put in. This is good information for students who will be drivers themselves in a few years.
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