Ten year old Jamichael Taylor just wanted a normal birthday party. Jamichael's mother, Christina, said, "We're all just having a good time when this cop walks through the backyard while we're taking pictures." The officer did nothing other than step into the background, making himself a part of several family photos, and though he remains unidentified the incident is becoming common throughout Chicago.
Cops in Chicago don't have the best reputation these days. The murder of Laquan McDonald and the Homan Square scandal seemingly proved allegations of racism. However, cops are hoping a new tactic will change public perception. It's called photobombing.
Teenagers noticed the trend on social media. Photo posts on sites like Facebook started featuring an increasing number of police officers.
"Yeah, we took a selfie, me and my friends, but we didn't mean to take it with this cop," Makayla Rogers said.
She's one of hundreds of African Americans routinely finding police officers in their photos. Cops standing in the background, or at the edge of a group photo, officers appear to be slipping themselves into African American photos. None knew why until the emergence of an Instagram account run by the Chicago Police Department.
The account features several cop-bombed images, harvested from social media, and slapped with the hashtag #SEEWEGETALONG. When asked to comment police officials said nothing. However, a source stated, "This is the best they could come up with. It shows police with black people, and nobody is getting shot or arrested or nothing." Apparently, the new strategy to improve the image of the CPD involves creating scenes which appear to show Chicago police and African Americans getting along because they're in photos together.
Staged images are nothing new. Neither is photobombing. However, some officers are taking it to extremes. Several locals, who wished to remain anonymous, reported being harassed by police who insisted on taking photos with them. One said, "I'm answering a text, and this cop car pulls up. Cop asked if I'm taking a selfie. I say no. She says to me, 'Why not? Take a picture with me.' I didn't feel like I had a choice, so I did."
What started as annoying is escalating into a bizarre new form of harassment. Police are performing Terry Stops, briefly detaining African Americans long enough to take seemingly positive photos with them. Sometimes they even make vines which also come across somewhat racist: uninvited cops jumping in on double dutch jump roping sessions, or asking teens who aren't dancing to break dance with them. Fortunately, these events don't appear to be the norm for now. Still, cities throughout the U.S. are reporting a growing number of incidents involving photobombs by cops.
Yet, the outlook isn't all bad. Jamichael Taylor isn't letting it get him down.
He said, "I'm getting really good on the computer -- erasing cops from pics."
Local business owner Linda Turner said, "Now, if we need police, we start taking pictures, and bam! There's a cop."
Cops in Chicago don't have the best reputation these days. The murder of Laquan McDonald and the Homan Square scandal seemingly proved allegations of racism. However, cops are hoping a new tactic will change public perception. It's called photobombing.
Teenagers noticed the trend on social media. Photo posts on sites like Facebook started featuring an increasing number of police officers.
"Yeah, we took a selfie, me and my friends, but we didn't mean to take it with this cop," Makayla Rogers said.
She's one of hundreds of African Americans routinely finding police officers in their photos. Cops standing in the background, or at the edge of a group photo, officers appear to be slipping themselves into African American photos. None knew why until the emergence of an Instagram account run by the Chicago Police Department.
The account features several cop-bombed images, harvested from social media, and slapped with the hashtag #SEEWEGETALONG. When asked to comment police officials said nothing. However, a source stated, "This is the best they could come up with. It shows police with black people, and nobody is getting shot or arrested or nothing." Apparently, the new strategy to improve the image of the CPD involves creating scenes which appear to show Chicago police and African Americans getting along because they're in photos together.
Staged images are nothing new. Neither is photobombing. However, some officers are taking it to extremes. Several locals, who wished to remain anonymous, reported being harassed by police who insisted on taking photos with them. One said, "I'm answering a text, and this cop car pulls up. Cop asked if I'm taking a selfie. I say no. She says to me, 'Why not? Take a picture with me.' I didn't feel like I had a choice, so I did."
What started as annoying is escalating into a bizarre new form of harassment. Police are performing Terry Stops, briefly detaining African Americans long enough to take seemingly positive photos with them. Sometimes they even make vines which also come across somewhat racist: uninvited cops jumping in on double dutch jump roping sessions, or asking teens who aren't dancing to break dance with them. Fortunately, these events don't appear to be the norm for now. Still, cities throughout the U.S. are reporting a growing number of incidents involving photobombs by cops.
Yet, the outlook isn't all bad. Jamichael Taylor isn't letting it get him down.
He said, "I'm getting really good on the computer -- erasing cops from pics."
Local business owner Linda Turner said, "Now, if we need police, we start taking pictures, and bam! There's a cop."
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