WATCH: This officer nailed the “stanky leg” at a community Easter egg hunt in Tennessee and now, the internet community can’t get enough. pic.twitter.com/gZBcheLoDS
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 5, 2018
A Tennessee officer looking to spread some Easter cheer is facing backlash this week after footage of him doing the “stanky leg” at a community Easter egg hunt went viral on social media.
Officer Michael Ampthor of the Chattanooga Police Department busted out his best dance moves at an annual Easter event earlier this month, grooving to the beat of the GS Boyz 2009 smash hit “Stanky Legg.” According to CBS News, one family hosts the event every year to celebrate the memory of a lost loved one. Officers who patrol the area, including Ampthor, are welcomed to attend the festivities.
“That was the song they picked last year and it’s one of those dances I knew how to do and they all seemed to love it. They wouldn’t let me forget it,” Ampthor said. “So when I came back this year, they were very adamant that we had to play that song again.”
Participating in the annual Easter egg hunt is just one way Chattanooga police tries to strengthen its ties to the community, the station said.
Not everyone was feeling the officer’s dance moves, however. Social media critics were quick to blast the feel-good video as a “heartwarming band-aid over police brutality.”
Unarmed citizens continue to die at the hands of those sworn to protect them, but hey at least this officer can keep up w/ the latest dance crazes. 😒 https://t.co/MyqHa30QXb
— Lemonism 🍋 (@LemonClarkMedia) April 6, 2018
Fuck him and his stanky leg.
— T’Challa (@Mr_Wellrounded) April 6, 2018
Well, too bad we care too much about police brutality to be placated by these “look at cops interacting with black folk” stories.
— Four Wheels ♿ (@4WheelWorkOut) April 6, 2018
Why is a dancing cop so great. Stop killing ppl that look like me, that’s when I’ll be impressed.
— Rod Delph (@RodDelph) April 6, 2018
Others criticized the footage as shameless propaganda meant to push the “good cop” narrative and deflect from the fact that Black Americans are still being gunned down by police.
Yeah, my woke wouldn't let me see past the fact that there's a law enforcement presence at a children's event in a public housing project. Yay for the dancing cop and all, but let's talk about how poverty and the criminal justice system perpetuate each other.
— @TheCoreyRichardson on Threads. Follow Me There. (@vexedinthecity) April 6, 2018
ALSO THEY JUST KILLED ANOTHER BLACK LIVES MATTER MEMBER IN MINNESOTA. IN YOUTUBE IS PART OF THE PLOT!
— CONGO 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇲💯👃🏿👀🖤💜🖤 (@youngcongo) April 8, 2018
this video is supposed to change our minds? ONE cop doing the stanky leg.. like he’s in pain!? 😭 where’s the rest of the patrolling officers? definitely seems scripted.
— Rah ✝ (@rowdyxrah) April 7, 2018
WATCH: CBSNews attempt to divert the attention of a shooting by posting a decade old meme way past Easter
Easter’s over, cover the shooting you propagandists
— 🔞 Alice Clearwater (@twiinpiines) April 7, 2018
Despite the backlash, Chattanooga police chief David Roddy described Officer Ampthor as the “epitome” what the department looks for to communicate to local citizens just what the police department stands for.
“Who we are, how we act, how much emphasis we place on relationships and trust and just being ourselves with members of the community,” Roddy told CBS News. ” … That’s just an outstanding video example of what we try to exemplify everyday.”
