Social media comes with some unwritten rules, not the least of which is to watch what you post. It’s no secret that what you post, especially offensive and hateful content, stays with you forever.
The Waco Police Department has decided to throw this rule to the wayside. Two recent posts from the Waco Police Department Facebook account, one on Monday and another on Tuesday, have offensively stereotyped Baylor students.
On Monday, the Waco Police Department posted some “special words” for Baylor students who“plan on providing alcohol to minors, getting drunk and creating disturbances, becoming a danger to yourself or others or otherwise break the law,” on Diadeloso. The tips that were enumerated included:
4. It matters not to us who you Daddy is
5. NO!!! REALLY!!!..we DON’T CARE WHO HE IS!!!!
6. Its really gonna suck to have to call Mom and Dad to get your “ADULT” butt out of jail
The following day, the Waco Police Department posted a video of the infamous “fire dunk” that appeared on Tosh.0 in July of 2011 where a Baylor student tried to jump out of a trash can that was lit on fire and dunk a basketball. The post that accompanied the link explains that acts such as the fire dunk are not how Baylor students should celebrate Diadeloso.
From these comments, it’s safe to assume the Waco Police Department thinks Baylor students are a bunch of lawless, spoiled brats who don’t care about their own safety or the safety of others.
It seems as though the Waco Police Department has placed a greater emphasis on Facebook “likes” and comments than it has on public safety.
The Waco Police Department should be concerned with safety, and it probably is, but its posts didn’t draw any attention to the importance of safety as they should have done.
The comments on the post are a combination of angry Baylor students and local Wacoans applauding the police department for highlighting Baylor stereotypes. This causes a rift between the Waco community and Baylor, a rift that Baylor has worked for decades to mend.
Perhaps the Waco Police Department should be reminded that Steppin’ Out is this Saturday, and those same Baylor students who will have to “call mom and dad to get [their] ‘adult’ butt out of jail” will be working for hours to help improve the lives of Wacoans in need.
We are adults, and we don’t need an overzealous police department using the actions of one person to illustrate that trying to dunk a basketball out of a flaming trash can is a bad idea.
The Waco Police Department did hedge its comments, however. On Monday, the department’s post also included, “we know that the majority of Baylor students are classy, responsible, and will represent the high standards that Baylor students have come to exude.”
In a reply to a comment on its Tuesday post, the department wrote, “Most of our young Baylor students are exceptional young men and women. There are a few that reflect poorly due to some poor decisions.”
While we appreciate the recognition that it is only the lunatic fringe that has crafted Diadeloso’s law-breaking stereotype, these do nothing to repair the damage done from these two posts.
Next time, the Waco Police Department should try getting its point across without insulting the people it is supposed to protect and serve.
