SATURDAY, MAY 28, 2016

In this undated frame from video provided by the Los Angeles Police Department, LAPD offi- LAPD officers dance on the field at Dodger Stadium. cers and others dance beneath the iconic Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles. —AP photos Online dance craze sweeps police departments across US n an online sensation, police officers across the US are dancing an Angeles, indicating their videos aren’t good enough. Police updated version of the running man to a catchy 1990s hip hop departments are smart to take on the challenge, said Robert Isong in videos that have included professional sports mascots, Thompson, a Syracuse University professor and a leading authority cheerleading squads and at least one explosion. on American pop culture. The videos, set to “My Boo” by Ghost Town DJ’s, began in early “This is a rhetorical act of public relations. No question about it,” May after police in New Zealand issued the Running Man Challenge he said. “Having the police force, uniformed police especially, smiling to the Police Department. The meme started with two and dancing with people within the context of these communities, is teenagers in New Jersey and became viral after college basketball certainly a positive message. “It’s what a Coca Cola ad does, what a teams picked it up. The police videos posted on the Internet have propaganda film does, what a public relations campaign does - try to been steadily getting more elaborate and more popular, with even make us think differently about something,” he said. some police chiefs joining in. Los Angeles officers filmed themselves The videos have drawn criticism from some who question the use dancing inside the Dodgers baseball stadium and at a popular hiking of police resources. Mostly, the response has been positive. “Just spot in the shadow of the Hollywood sign. Detroit officers did their when I thought my faith in the police was over,” Los Angeles resident dance after spilling out of a heavy-duty SWAT truck in front of a Trayvon Walker commented on the LAPD’s video. “They do a video General Motors building, and Miami’s men and women in blue threw In this undated frame from video provided by the Miami Police like this that puts a smile on my face and makes me look at them and in some salsa moves to Gloria Estefan’s “Conga.” Department, officers, including a member of the Bomb Squad in say, ‘They’re not so bad of people after all.’” The videos are about more than officers cutting loose. They come protective gear, and staff dance at Miami police headquarters. As a young, black man, Walker said he has experienced police dis- as police departments across the US are facing increased scrutiny and crimination and his view of officers has eroded in recent years. But he public criticism in the wake of a series of officer-involved deaths of this might have a profound impact on reducing that? I mean, you talk said the video reminded him that there are plenty of good cops. “It young, unarmed black people. Many departments have been work- about how many shares so far? People like it, they appreciate it, and doesn’t change my perception of the police, but I do think more of ing to become more community-friendly and improve their image. this is a move in the right direction.” them in the community doing positive things will lead to more posi- That includes turning to the power of social media. In his department’s video, one of the most popular with seven tive outcomes,” the 29-year-old court clerk said in a phone interview. million views since Tuesday, Craig busted moves underneath the “To be able to see LAPD, or just police in general, doing something The right direction city’s iconic Joe Louis fist. In a move parodying a mic drop, Craig that is good for our community - it’s pleasant to see.” — AP “Across this nation, there’s a lot of anti-police rhetoric,” Detroit then dropped a police belt and challenged Chicago, Philadelphia police Chief James Craig told reporters this week. “Do you believe and Cincinnati, Ohio. He has also challenged New York and Los Rapper facing charges in T.I. concert shooting ists were flying and then bullets inside a crowded New York bystander, Maggie Heckstall, 26, was shot in the leg, authorities City concert venue where four people were shot, one fatally, said. The exact circumstances of what prompted the fight were Fand now a rapper who police say was seen on surveillance still under investigation. footage firing a gun is facing attempted murder and weapons In an interview with WCBS radio, Police Commissioner William charges. Bratton blamed the shootings on “the crazy world of the so-called Roland Collins, who goes by the Troy Ave, was rap artists who are basically thugs that basically celebrate the vio- arrested Thursday, a day after the deadly shooting at , lence that they live all their lives.” That prompted an angry where hip-hop artist T.I. was set to perform. Police said a fistfight response from McPhatter’s relatives and a city lawmaker, who had broken out in a performers’ lounge at the venue. derided the comments as insensitive and divisive. The man who died, 33-year-old Ronald McPhatter, was a mem- “When white people are doing this violence, I don’t hear the ber of Collins’ entourage and had been there to provide security, same language being used,” said City Councilman Jumaane according to his family. Collins, 30, suffered a gunshot wound to Williams, a Democrat who said he had worked on anti- the leg, police said. An 8-second video clip released by police violence initiatives with McPhatter and his older brother, shows the gunman bursting through the door of a VIP room in Shanduke McPhatter, a former gang member. Mayor Bill de Blasio apparent pursuit of another man, who flees off-screen. said afterward he believed Bratton was “talking out of frustra- As concertgoers huddle under a counter and clutch each oth- tion.” er, the gunman, who appears to be limping, stops and scans the Collins was in custody and couldn’t be reached for comment room for a moment with his eyes. Then, he spots something, rais- Thursday. It was unclear if he had an attorney. A message left at a es his gun and fires. Witnesses described a chaotic scene. phone number listed for him wasn’t immediately returned. “Everyone was hysterical, I was having a panic attack during the Shanduke McPhatter said his brother “got too much into” the shooting, and the woman next to me was covering my mouth glamour of the hip-hop scene, and it landed him Wednesday with her hand to try to get me to stop screaming,” said Liv night in an environment where alcohol flowed freely and trouble Hoffman, 19. broke out. — AP There were nearly 1,000 people in the venue when the shoot- ing began. One of the victims, Christopher Vinson, 34, was shot in the chest on the venue’s ground level after a bullet traveled Rapper T.I. performs at HOT 97’s “The Tip Off” at Madison through the floor, Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce said. Another Square Garden in New York. — AP