Hamilton police have fun for Star Wars Day — to the chagrin of some online
Three Star Wars-themed videos produced by Hamilton police are drawing mixed reviews from the community.
The videos - which feature Star Wars characters interacting with Hamilton police officers - were posted May 4. The day celebrates all things Star Wars thanks to a play on the franchise's quote May the Force be with you" as May the Fourth be with you."
Indy Bharaj, media relations officer at the Hamilton Police Service, told The Spectator, Making videos was one way to bring a smile on people's faces."
Bharaj said he pitched the idea for videos to the police and 501st Legion Canadian Garrison - an international costuming organization he connected with at a comic convention in March.
Everybody in the videos - including the officers, the film crew and the characters - volunteered their time and talents," Bharaj said, emphasizing no taxpayers' money was used in the production.
Two Toronto companies - AM Films and Zoki Filmz - volunteered production time.
In one clip, a TIE fighter pilot from the first Star Wars film is seen getting into a Hamilton police vehicle and attending a call. In the second video, a biker scout from Return of the Jedi" walks into a garage and mounts a Hamilton police motorcycle.
The third video shows a grand entry of bounty hunter Boba Fett, recently seen on Disney's The Book of Boba Fett." The character is seen getting off a military vehicle and walking to a building.
Bharaj said the videos posted on all their social media sites were meant to be relatable to youth, who are the most-engaged lot on social platforms.
Although meant in good humour, the posts received mixed comments on all platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
While some questioned the police on their use of time for making videos rather than serving the communities, another pointed at the efforts for brand building" instead of community building.
A tweet by an account @Arivangeest questioned the choice of characters: They do know Boba Fett is a bounty hunter and a crime boss, right?"
While a TikToker flat_land_raised commented, This is why it takes 20 minutes for the police to respond to anything. They're filming TikToks"
Some comments on Instagram hailed the police efforts. A comment by sylviarichards.blum2017 read, I love it! It's so important to have a sense of humour."
... This is awesome. I could not believe this was in Hamilton ... yay! Proud of my hometown. We all need a smile," a TikToker, marilynsmith50, commented.
Almost 200 comments poured on TikTok videos, while the posts continued to trend on Twitter and Facebook.
As of 5 p.m., there were over 31,000 views on TikTok, 10,000 on Twitter and 1,000 likes on Instagram.
Marvin Ryder, a professor at the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University, said, This is a great thing they're (police) trying to do," adding that academics encourage these efforts in organizations to show their kinder side."
He added the police have been trying to show a human face," and trying to connect with the community" in other ways.
Can't the police also have a little fun on a day like today?" he said.
Ryder noted, as an academic, this is perfectly acceptable," adding police officers are not robots" doing their jobs.
Social worker Sarah Jama, who co-founded Disability Justice Network of Ontario, however, questioned the access to military equipment for the videos just because they want to have a good time."
They're using armoured military equipment to poke some fun on the internet. It's very childish," she said.
Hamilton police is not the only department with strong social media interactions with public.
Other city departments including Niagara Regional Police and the Toronto police traffic unit have been communicating with citizens via social media, with a heavy presence on platforms like TikTok.
Ritika Dubey is a reporter at The Spectator. rdubey@thespec.com