LAPD officer and “competitive shooter” Toni McBride already had a large following on Instagram. But it went over the edge when she killed a man last summer. She deactivated her account, but only a month later started posting gun videos and bikini pics again. Then she started selling merchandise!
McBride broke LAPD policy by selling $25 “challenge coins.” Coins are typically used by military personnel to call for solidarity. So, what is McBride calling for solidarity for? Continuing to shoot and kill people who clearly don’t pose a threat?
LAPD recently sent McBride a cease and desist letter, but it doesn’t seem like she’ll give up her “influencer” status anytime soon. “I’ve never seen a police officer enjoying shooting to that degree and joking about it,” said attorney Narine Mkrtchyan.
Important: she’s not just a “bad apple.” From the “blue wall of silence” to racist Facebook groups, this kind of behavior is an indication of the larger system. Police are waving around guns in our neighborhoods, featuring in our movies, and now selling merchandise on our Instagram feeds.
Sure, police are people, too, but their power is extraordinary. Should we forget the people they’ve killed? It should not be normalized for cops to walk the red carpet one day and kill people the next. This system isn’t for us – we need something else.