The New York City Police Department is facing criticism after its dance crew performed on a local TV station, with critics concerned that officers are more focused on their dance moves than combatting crime.
Critics took to X, formerly Twitter, to comment on the dance team’s performance.
“Mayor Eric Adams cut an additional $100 million from education this year, but he somehow found money for the NYPD to promote themselves with a dance team,” one critic wrote.
“Fire the NYPD dance team and hire more cops,” another user wrote.
“The NYPD dance team? Please tell me this is a joke,” another user commented.
Nicole Parker, a former FBI agent and Fox News Contributor, told Fox News Digital that not only is this disturbing, but highly concerning.
Parker added that being in law enforcement is a highly stressful job and having some fun and relieving stress is OK, but on your own time and not on taxpayers’ dollars.
“If that’s what you need to do, do that on your own time. At a time when violent crime is off the roof in New York City, this is not appropriate. This is not keeping the community safe and is very concerning,” Parker said.
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Founded in 2022, the dance team was intended to serve as a place for officers to unwind after their shifts. The dancers practice two to three times a week, performing at city schools, galas and other events, according to Fox 5 New York.
The dance team is one of almost 50 that fall under the NYPD sports unit, which includes boxing, paintball, hockey, rugby and baseball.
However, this latest performance has many critics concerned about safety as crime continues to spread at an all-time high across the city.
“I back the blue, but I can’t support this. I guarantee criminals are laughing. Do you think criminals are going to have any respect for you? How do you expect to gain the respect of your colleagues and your community when you’re doing this?” Parker said.
The NYPD released the citywide January crime statistics showing that robbery increased by nearly 6% as well as a small increase in grand larceny. Authorities added that crimes in the subway and transit systems, which accounts for just 2% of all major crime committed in New York City, saw an increase of 70 index crimes (222 vs. 152) in January.
Authorities claim that there are continued declines across most major crime categories, compared to the first month of last year, which included substantial drops in murder, rape, burglary, and felony assault – despite the most recent rise in violent crimes over the last month.
On Jan. 27, two migrants allegedly attacked two NYPD officers in Times Square. A week and a half later, on Thursday, Feb. 8, a teenage migrant allegedly shot a woman at a Times Square clothing store before opening fire on NYPD officers.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., said that the recent migrant-involved crimes are Democratic leadership “coming to a head.”
“Over the past two weeks in New York City, we’ve seen groups of migrants assaulting NYPD officers, shooting at police officers and snatching phones to commit identity theft and financial fraud. This is on top of 1,200 arrests of migrants for crimes including robberies, stabbings, assaults and even murder,” Rep. Malliotakis said.
Parker said that this latest stunt is a far cry from where the NYPD used to be.
“I look at this NYPD dance, and it’s hard to believe that it’s the same police department whose 23 officers heroically died in the line of duty and others who led myself and thousands of New Yorkers who were working at or nearby the World Trade Center to safety the morning of 9/11/01,” Parker concluded.
The NYPD and Adams’ office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital.
Fox News Digital Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this story.
