Wash U Wants to Pay Tattletales to Film Alongside Campus Police

Are you an employee of Washington University looking for a paid gig after-hours that would allow you to rub elbows with the school’s boys in blue while also tattling on protestors? Well, the university has the perfect opportunity for you.

In an email allegedly sent to a group of university employees and subsequently leaked to the RFT, Wash U’s marketing & communications department says it has “a pretty urgent need” for one to two people who would be willing to “embed” with the Washington University Police Department to take video of tonight’s protest, which is planned for the edge of campus.

The email implies that one does not have to be an employee, or even affiliated with the university, to take advantage of the gig — the sender says they’re “mentioning it in case you know someone.”

“It does not have to be a professional photographer, just someone who’s comfortable in that environment and can capture video on an iPhone,” the email says.

Last Saturday, 100 protestors — 23 of them students and four faculty members — were arrested on campus, some of the video shot at the scene was embarrassing for the university.

The email says that the administration has reason to believe there will be a large protest coming to campus from Forest Park tonight. Several organizations have stated that they will be protesting at the corner of Lindell and Skinker at Forest Park beginning at 5 p.m. today.

Ahead of the protest, Ward 14 Alderman Rasheen Aldridge posted to X:

“The actions taken by @WUSTL towards its students and staff are unwarranted and extreme excessive aggression. Forcing students out onto the streets overnight is disgusting. Now, you will have to face us once tonight.”

Mayor Tishaura Jones also issued a statement ahead of the demonstration saying that the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department will be present as long as the protest remains within city limits.

“We are hopeful that both the protesters and university administration can emulate the precedent set by Wednesday night’s protest,” Jones says in the statement. “It is our belief that there were two essential factors that helped to ensure the safety of all in the community: 1. The community centered the rejection of violence in their demonstration. 2. St. Louis University’s administration provided clarity to members of the SLU community regarding their expectations for the protest well before the scheduled start time.”

In its email seeking video help, which was apparently sent to at least one university department, Wash U says they need someone by 4 p.m. for a gig that could go as late as midnight, “or could be not at all if things go better than we’re preparing for.” The email also notes, “This is a paid gig (for a university employee we can work out a cash bonus, comp day, whatever).”

The email does not specify why they need someone to record the protest. It does however, say that WUPD is worn out (likely from sprinting after, and tackling, protestors). “We’re all hands-on-deck across the board,” it concludes.