NSW Police officers have outdone themselves with an incredibly distasteful TikTok that is essentially a POV of being stomped on by them. Yes, seriously. The lack of self-awareness never ceases to amaze.
By now, you may have heard of NSW Police’s infamous TikTok account. From pretty much the moment it was born, TikTokers began stitching and dueting the account’s videos with screenshots of news articles about police misconduct.
The articles and government media releases included but weren’t limited to coverage of police strip-searching children, NSW police officers keeping their jobs after being convicted of domestic violence and First Nations deaths in custody.
These TikTokers were promptly blocked and stitches were turned off, because cops escaping accountability extends all the way to TikTok, apparently.
Well, it looks like NSW Police learnt absolutely fuck-all from the widespread criticism of its TikTok content because it’s still posting problematic content with impunity. This time, whoever runs the account decided it was a good idea to post a POV of NSW Police stomping on the camera. I wish I was joking.
https://www.tiktok.com/@nswpolice/video/7105306168506993921?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
The TikTok in question is of police at Vivid, with the caption: “Night shifts hit different when @vividsydney is on”. Police drop the camera to the ground, appear to stomp on it, and then the video transitions to them out at night. And just before the stomp, the woman police officer can be seen clutching her gun.
Who. The. Fuck. Approved. This.
In case it isn’t obvious why this is wildly inappropriate, in 2020 NSW Police was investigated after an officer was filmed kicking and pinning down an Indigenous teenager during an arrest. The state’s top cop Mick Fuller dismissed the assault as a police officer just “having a bad day”.
POV you’re an indigenous teen in the proximity of a NSW police officer who is having “a bad day”
— levi 🌶 (@levitorres_) June 5, 2022
That same year, Victoria Police was investigated after also stomping on the head of a man during an arrest. In a seperate incident in 2021, VicPol was the subject of community outrage yet again after stomping on a different man’s head. He was mentally ill and having a bipolar episode.
But sure, let’s use stomping as a TikTok transition! It’s just a funny joke!
https://twitter.com/_ClaireConnelly/status/1533287731933376512?s=20&t=37bjLSAkO-QOelW7nBpApQ
The fact that no one in NSW Police’s marketing/social media team flagged that a white cop stomping on a camera as a TikTok transition is kinda fucked up and insensitive is truly a testament to the broader police culture in this country. It’s actually concerning and a glaring example of police having no fucking cultural competence at all.
NSW Police ended up commenting a statement on the video: “We’d like to acknowledge concerns raised by members of the community and apologise who may have been offended by the transition we used”.
Despite that, the TikTok remains live, essentially making this is a non-apology. It’s giving “I’m sorry YOU felt that way.”
Wouldn’t be NSW Police if the response was empathetic though, would it?
