The Massillon Police Department on Tuesday issued a warning to parents about a destructive “challenge,” inspired by the social media app TikTok.
During the “Kool-Aid Man” challenge, the social media users have broken down fences by kicking them down or colliding into them, like the style of the Kool-Aid Man in previous commercials.
The police department, in a post on Facebook, encouraged parents to speak to their children about the consequences of destroying private property.
“Recently teenagers have been participating in the tik tok challenge “fencing”. As you can see they are breaking the fencing by running into them or kicking them down. As thanksgiving break begins, parents please council your children on why fencing is not a trend to hop on. Thank you!” the department wrote on Facebook.
This is not the first time the social media app has caused controversy and inspired destructive tendencies in the app’s users.
Previously, a school district in Tennessee sent a letter to all parents in order to address similar “challenges” on the popular video app.
The apparent “challenges,” which schools officials have spoken out against, have led to theft and damages in schools across the country.
One of the trends for students, entitled, “slap a teacher,” encouraged students to physically assault educators.
“Recently, we have become aware of a potential for this to possibly escalate into assaulting teachers and others to gain social media attention. We hope this never happens, but we want to be very clear that this would not be a laughing matter and that any student who participates in that activity, whether it be assaulting the teacher or conspiring by filming the incident, will face severe disciplinary action,” the school district said statement at the time.
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Cooper Moran is a reporter for The Star News Network. Follow Cooper on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Broken Fence” by Massillon Police Department.
