PR FAIL: St Louis Police Try to Boost Community Relations by Fingerprinting Ferguson Children

In an effort to improve public relations in Ferguson, the St Louis Police Department set up finger printing stations in the area and offered to fingerprint children. The police announced that they would be doing this as a service to the community, in order to help parents keep better track of their kids. The police say that the children will be placed into a database that will make them easier to track down if they ever happen to get lost one day, but many people are seeing this as another example of a growing police state. However, with the recent controversy surrounding the militarization of police, lining children up on the roadside for fingerprinting was probably a poor public relations strategy. The promotion was largely ignored by Ferguson residents, and many of those who noticed were offended by the tactless gesture.

St. Louis PD Fingerpringting Ferguson Kids

Pics from the PD Twitter #1
Pics from the PD Twitter #2

I went down there a week the 1stt week the NGs got down there. It was akin to sneaking into Canada to escape slavery, and then having to sneak out. I have said repeatedly this is a social experiment on the highest levels and fingerprinting kids is taking it there...getting them in the system EARLY and redefining profiling.

This is like Nazi Germany and Fascist Italia got together and had a baby called Totalitarian America.

While they were attempting to fingerprint children on the side of the road, the police department made another post on their Twitter account saying that they were, “Having fun with the Ferguson community today w/ our law enforcement partners. Building relationships in our region!”

Since when is fingerprinting fun? Sounds like conditioning at its best to me. Thoughts?

Why would a parent willingly put their child's information in the system?

It doesn't even look like they offered free food! This party was probably all relatives of the people stuck there. Without food or drink or music.

a reply to: ArchPlayer

FacePalm!!!!!

So when is the DNA swabbing and the micro chipping booths....

Hey Ferguson if your children stray as they sometimes do we will be able to track them like your pets.... DNA is of course your child is taken as in a custody dispute - you can prove its yours!!!!

So many free advantages.... get em all whilst the price is free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

/sarcasm

Just say no!!!!

How much crazier can the government get? Seriously? The next step is a chip.

Will this be done in rich neighborhoods? Will senators kids be subject to this too? Or is it just for "regular sheep"?

a reply to: ArchPlayer

Maybe next they could do mugshots with fun borders! Not exactly well thought-out PR.

And now that the "Ferguson" thing is over, no ONE but us concerned ATSers are paying attention to it. This thread should have a thousand replies, just off the Fingerprinting alone.

Alas, nothing to see here, waiting for the next fear false flag, move on down the row slave #sarcasm

Do they want people to hate them? Are they trying to provoke a civil war? Seriously. Worst idea ever.

originally posted by: Fylgje
How much crazier can the government get? Seriously? The next step is a chip.

Will this be done in rich neighborhoods? Will senators kids be subject to this too? Or is it just for "regular sheep"?

Why are people acting like this is just happening now?

I remember the police coming to our school in the 80's fingerprinting us.

originally posted by: thesaneone

originally posted by: Fylgje
How much crazier can the government get? Seriously? The next step is a chip.

Will this be done in rich neighborhoods? Will senators kids be subject to this too? Or is it just for "regular sheep"?

Why are people acting like this is just happening now?

I remember the police coming to our school in the 80's fingerprinting us.

Yes, but was it right after a questionable shooting with subsequent riots and the National Guard seizing your town?

originally posted by: ArchPlayer

originally posted by: thesaneone

originally posted by: Fylgje
How much crazier can the government get? Seriously? The next step is a chip.

Will this be done in rich neighborhoods? Will senators kids be subject to this too? Or is it just for "regular sheep"?

Why are people acting like this is just happening now?

I remember the police coming to our school in the 80's fingerprinting us.

Yes, but was it right after a questionable shooting with subsequent riots and the National Guard seizing your town?

Are they forcing these people to get fingerprinted or is it volunteers?

originally posted by: thesaneone

originally posted by: ArchPlayer

originally posted by: thesaneone

originally posted by: Fylgje
How much crazier can the government get? Seriously? The next step is a chip.

Will this be done in rich neighborhoods? Will senators kids be subject to this too? Or is it just for "regular sheep"?

Why are people acting like this is just happening now?

I remember the police coming to our school in the 80's fingerprinting us.

Yes, but was it right after a questionable shooting with subsequent riots and the National Guard seizing your town?

Are they forcing these people to get fingerprinted or is it volunteers?

A little of both from what various sources are reporting.

I'm a Brit so I don't have a clue what the American way of life or how it's changed. But as posted above why would a parent let this happen. How are finger prints going to protect them anyway seems a bit silly. I got a good way to protect children .. Be .. A .. Responsible .. Parent it's quite simple

And I'm suuuure that the information won't be shared and deleted once the child turns 18, right?

I remember police doing fingerprinting when I was in elementary back in the late 80s. They would require parents to sign a consent form, then they would take a picture of us, and fingerprint each finger. From there, the fingerprints were put in a database, and my parents would get a nice, neat print out of all prints and pictures they took of me.

It was all under the guise of "if your child gets lost or is kidnapped, you'll (and they'll) have the latest picture and prints of me," you know... just in case.

I have no idea if they were to delete the info upon my 18th birthday. Seems like they wouldn't.

Thanks mom.

If it's not what it seems, and to talk about bad timing, it's going to only be portrayed as ill intent. Sounds like they gotta prepare them for the School-to-Prison Pipeline.

originally posted by: getophyed
I remember police doing fingerprinting when I was in elementary back in the late 80s. They would require parents to sign a consent form, then they would take a picture of us, and fingerprint each finger. From there, the fingerprints were put in a database, and my parents would get a nice, neat print out of all prints and pictures they took of me.

It was all under the guise of "if your child gets lost or is kidnapped, you'll (and they'll) have the latest picture and prints of me," you know... just in case.

I have no idea if they were to delete the info upon my 18th birthday. Seems like they wouldn't.

Thanks mom.

Yeah, same here, speaking of the 80s, location So. Florida:. Even a few or more years after John Walsh's(American's Most Wanted host) son was kidnapped, it was still the going thing to do to ensure safety of children. These days seems like it's not safety, but a way to keep better watch.

a reply to: ArchPlayer

Lol.. this is how cop's think. They think it will be fun to gather all the kids up and finger print them.

I mean I guess if you print them and give them the cards or something and give free pizza and drinks, but they never do these things right.

They did this to a class I was in in elementary school.

a reply to: GogoVicMorrow

They did this to a class I was in in elementary school.

Also when we are born they print us for our B.C.

You know what's funny, when I lived in So. California, they had a little cop meet and greet in our community, the police handed out stickers and pencils and you could see how fingerprinting is done . . .

Guess I've been in the system since I was 6 . . . thanks mom . . .

a reply to: ArchPlayer

Where I live, a few years ago the police decided it would be fun to sit down the road from schools and pull over parents dropping their kids off for a free DNA swab of the mouth for the kids. They tried to pass it off as a bird flu/swine flu/ant flu or whatever was the end of the world at the time.
It went down like a ton of bricks with the public. Still I saw people complying.