What began as a routine band performance of Talkin’ Out the Side of Your Neck by Cameo at an Alabama high school football game ended in a troubling confrontation when a police officer tased the marching band director for refusing to stop the music.

The altercation occurred Thursday around 9 p.m. local time after a game at Jackson-Olin High School in Birmingham, Ala.

Minor High School band director Johnny Mims, 39, and his ensemble of 145 students were about a minute away from being done with their final song when a police officer approached the podium. According to both Mims and the Birmingham Police Department, officers asked Mims to stop the performance so they could clear out the stadium. Mims responded that the song was about to end and the performance was agreed on by both schools.

“Nothing we were doing at the time was being a danger to the community, fans or the school,” Mims told NPR on Monday. “Everyone was enjoying themselves. That’s the part I’m having a hard time grappling with.”

As the students finished their performance, officers attempted to arrest Mims for not complying. Police said the band director “refused” to place his hands behind his back and allegedly pushed an arresting officer.

  • @[email protected]
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    23710 months ago

    This becomes suddenly far more understandable when you open the article and notice the band director isn’t white.

    • timicin
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      6710 months ago

      and it’ll also explain why nothing will come of it too.

    • @Illuminostro
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      6110 months ago

      There’s a word for this situation. I can’t remember it, but it’s reich there, white on the tip of my tongue…

      • ddh
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        7510 months ago

        But he couldn’t be racist, his wife’s best eye is black.

        • Clay_pidgin
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          1410 months ago

          That’s tremendous. If you came up with that, good job.

        • @S_204
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          1210 months ago

          Absolutely beauty of a joke right there. Thank you.

        • @Illuminostro
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          410 months ago

          Lmao, I’m going to use that, you magnificent bastard!

    • @Hazdaz
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      -3510 months ago

      Did you actually watch the video to see that 1/2 the cops and people telling him to stop were also not white, or do you enjoy getting race-baited??

        • JokeDeity
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          510 months ago

          I don’t even think that they’re racist in the same way as white officers, or at least not all of them. I think for a portion it’s like a Stockholm syndrome kind of thing where they finally are working side by side with their oppressors and want to be part of the in club and will do anything to get there.

        • @Hazdaz
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          -510 months ago

          Removed by mod