Lawyer educates student activists

During protests about student debt and fossil fuels throughout the semester, senior Kai Pang prepared himself for potential run-ins with law enforcement.

“I don’t think there’s ever a point where I feel 100 percent comfortable [protesting] out in the streets,” Pang said. “There are a lot of misconceptions that people might have about how to handle dealing with law enforcement.”

To combat misinformation, Pang, a board member in Pitt’s chapter of Americans for Informed Democracy, hosted the first “Know Your Rights Training” presentation in room 232 of the Cathedral of Learning. About 30 students attended the training at 9 p.m. on Monday to get information from a local lawyer about protesting safely.

Rachel Rosnick, regional vice president of the National Lawyers Guild — an organization of lawyers working toward enacting social change — spoke to students about their rights as activists.

“By knowing their legal rights, young activists can avoid unknowingly and unintentionally waiving those rights,” Rosnick said before the presentation. The NLG frequently offers other educational events at Pitt, like a Legal Observer training session at Pitt’s law school.

Rosnick split her presentation into three sections: how to interact with Pittsburgh law enforcement, how to get a permit for a protest and what to do upon arrest.

During the hour-long session, Rosnick offered explanations like, “If [police] tell you you are being detained, you have to stay … you don’t have to answer any questions, but you’re not allowed to leave.”

Freshman chemistry major, Joseph Zubrow, said they felt better prepared after the presentation.

“Going forward, I feel confident,” Zubrow said. “It’s nice to sort of have a game plan now.”

Lauren Klingman, AID’s business manager, attends protests often but said she had a vague understanding of her legal obligations when talking with police officers.

“I started protesting before I even knew these rights,” Klingman, a junior social work major, said. “[It] definitely [had] not been explicitly told to me.”

Large-scale protests, like the national Million Student March against student debt in November, led Pitt to join what Pang called a “wave of activism” on campuses across the country from Missouri University to Yale.

Klingman said students have a lot to speak up about, but should know their rights before they take action.

“I’ve always felt pretty safe, but definitely for people of color, I think there’s a higher risk when dealing with authority,” Klingman said.

Rosnick touched on issues from pat-downs to permits, explaining that if police deem any protest a riot, they can revoke the organizers’ permit for the event.

“Just because you have a permit does not mean everyone is totally safe from everything,” Rosnick said.

After the presentation, Troy Salvatore, a senior engineering major, said he got the sense that students should be prepared for anything when they take to the streets.

“Expecting things to not go the way you intended is just a rule of thumb,” Salvatore said. “[There’s] a different social momentum in the past year or so toward millennial activists.”

For Pang, education in legal rights is about more than just Pitt’s community — it’s about activism all over the country.

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article said that Rachel Rosnick was “advising” students about their rights as protestors. Rosnick made it clear at the event that she was only providing information, not giving advice, and the story has been updated to reflect those changes.