A California police officer played Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space” in an attempt to prevent a Black Lives Matter activist from uploading a video to YouTube — in the belief that the platform’s copyright-detection system would block it.
It didn’t work.
bit.ly/3AplZ9W
In fact, the video in question was not only shared successfully on YouTube, it has gone viral — garnering widespread attention because of the controversy. bit.ly/3AplZ9W
On June 29, BLM protesters gathered at the Alameda County courthouse in Oakland, Calif., before a pretrial hearing for Jason Fletcher, a former police officer charged with voluntary manslaughter for shooting and killing Steven Taylor, a Black man, inside a Walmart store in 2020.
As captured on video, an officer from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office confronted one of the protestors, James Burch, to demand Burch remove his group’s banner. Burch questioned why the banner needed to be moved — before the cop began playing "Blank Space."
Burch asked, “Are we having a dance party now?” The officer eventually admitted, “You can record all you want. I just know it can’t be posted to YouTube.” Later, the officer, identified as Sgt. David Shelby, reiterated, “I’m playing my music so that you can’t post on YouTube.”
The department does not have a policy about “whether you can play Taylor Swift or music in an attempt to censor YouTube content from a public encounter,” spokesman Sgt. Ray Kelly said. However, he said, the sheriff’s office does not “condone” the actions of the deputy.
Get the full story: bit.ly/3AplZ9W
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.