does this tiktok trend show we're in a post-acab world?
everybody knows that i'm a good girl officer
In Oxford, Mississippi, there’s a TikTok trend blowing up where young women, mostly college students, are on the hunt for a local police officer named Officer Hudson. They want to feature him in TikToks with Lana Del Rey’s “Everybody Knows That I’m a Good Girl Officer” sound.
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These videos show Officer Hudson standing stoically while the girls pose, dance, or do whatever. He stays profesh, but sometimes he breaks out a little smirk, leaning into the absurdity, likely thinking “what even is my life?”.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a trend like this on TikTok. Women posing next to conventionally attractive cops with deadpan reactions to this Lana sound has been a recurring theme, but this time, it’s turned into a full on, localized quest.
People are actively searching for Officer Hudson, and the comment sections pop off with things like “OMG YOU FOUND HIM!”. There are even some deep cut fan edits. You know you’re internet ASF when you get a fan edit. This 26 year old officer has become a local internet celeb, and women are jealous that they haven’t gotten to post with him yet.
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While on your FYP, it’s easy to like and laugh at it. Especially since we all know the stereotype of cops doing nothing but eating donuts. But before we accuse Officer Hudson of slacking on the job, it’s good to know that Oxford is a quiet college town with a low crime rate. Most 911 calls are alcohol related or property crimes, which checks out for a college town. For now, the Oxford Police Department hasn’t addressed the trend on their social media pages. Instead, they’re standardly community focused, rather than chasing viral fame like other police departments across the country.
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Back to the trend… The use of the Lana Del Rey sound in this format makes sense too. She’s known for romanticizing the gritty, blue collar American life. Whether it’s her iconic post Grammys gun mirror selfie, viral rumors of her dating an alligator tour guide, or her shift at Waffle House. She makes the ordinary life, the mundane, feel cinematic. This trend fits right into that aesthetic. Officer Hudson, standing there while girls go hehehe and pose. It glamorizes a regular moment, but whether intentional or not, it has darker undertones. Let’s dive into them.
When you look closer, you’ll notice most of the participants in this trend are white women, with very few people of color involved. This mirrors who feels safe enough to joke around with police in America, especially in the South, where this is happening. For white women, Officer Hudson is just a cutie in uniform, a harmless pal to make a video with. For Black and brown communities, interactions with police don’t have that same level of comfort.
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When I first saw this trend, it made me question whether we’re living in some kind of post-ACAB state on social media. In 2020, we were angry. We were protesting, posting ACAB content nonstop, witnessing history. Now, we’re onto the next world tragedy, and our feeds reflect that. According to Google Trends, interest in ACAB has dropped since 2020. So, what’s happening? Does the Officer Hudson trend mean we’re over the ACAB movement? Definitely not. But with TikTok’s performative nature, we are seeing a cultural shift. People are using irony and humor to interact with police now. Instead of cops being untouchable authority figures, they’ve become props for virality. Officer Hudson isn’t a badge. He’s someone to find, like a Pokémon Go thing. It’s important to emphasize that just because there are fewer ACAB posts doesn’t mean the issues of police violence and racism have magically poofed.
In a time where people of color still face police brutality, this trend oozes of white privilege. White women can turn an officer into a TikTok prop. They can strip away the fear and danger that police represent for many people of color. They get to make jokes, get the serotonin boost from likes, and move on. But that luxury isn’t something everyone can have. With that said, someone please give me Officer Hudson’s IG so we can send him this and hopefully have him be aware of the undertones that this phenomena has. Thank you and protect your peace. <3 A parting TikTok to contextualize the above.
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