A police department has ended its “High Five Fridays” program after complaints from parents that their children were uncomfortable.
Since December, students at elementary schools in Northampton, Mass., were greeted on Fridays with high fives from local police officers. The program was intended to show students that police officers are friendly and approachable.
“We thought it was a great way to start building relationships with young kids,” said Jody Kasper, Northampton’s police chief. “We liked that it was something that was seemingly — seemingly — simple, but has turned out not to be.”