New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has aggressively defended the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk practices, despite considerable public backlash and even a court ruling which found the policy racially biased.
The NYC Republican has even gone so far as to say the minorities are stopped “too little,” and whites “too much.”
In a recent interview with The New Yorker, Bloomberg appeared to at least empathize with his opponents when he said, ““If I had a son who was stopped, I might feel differently about it.”
This seemingly off-the-cuff remarks has also drawn its fair share of criticism and its inspired a parody of Bloomberg, a fake Twitter account held by his “son,” an Afro-sporting lookalike named “Leroy.”
Whoever has been running the account has unleashed several snarky posts pointing out what they consider the absurdity and hypocrisy of the mayor’s stance, such as:
I got stopped by a cop once. It was the scariest 40 secs of my life until the cop realized my dad was @MikeBloomberg. Then I got ice cream.
— Leroy Bloomberg (@bloombergs_son) August 19, 2013
I think I figured out how to get my Dad @MikeBloomberg to understand why #StopAndFrisk is bad… POWERPOINT. Human rights? Meh. Charts? YES.
— Leroy Bloomberg (@bloombergs_son) August 20, 2013
The great prophet Wesley Snipes once said: "…ALWAYS BET ON BLACK." Long as you're not betting on Black vs. the NYPD that should be fine.
— Leroy Bloomberg (@bloombergs_son) August 19, 2013
If I got #StopAndFrisk'ed My dad @MikeBloomberg would be mad. Just like a lot of NYers when he re-wrote the rules & gave himself a 3rd term.
— Leroy Bloomberg (@bloombergs_son) August 19, 2013
As Bloomberg and NYPD commissioner Ray Kelly continue to face pushback about their position, Democratic candidate for mayor Bill de Blasio has surged in the polls, largely due to his outspoken opposition to stop-and-frisk.
Do you think this parody makes a good point? Let us know in the comments below.