Video of Chicago Police Officers Playing Football with Kids Going Viral

CHICAGO — A video of two Chicago Police officers playing football with children on the street in the North Lawndale neighborhood is going viral, with tens of thousands of views in less than a day.

The Facebook user "Tattoo Tim Freeman" uploaded the video Sunday, saying he witnessed the casual game of catch on Grenshaw Street and Independence Boulevard.

He challenged people to share the video — and so far more than people 2,100 have done it. The video itself has been watched nearly 70,000 times as of Monday afternoon.

In the video, a passerby spots two officers playing football and hanging out with kids on Grenshaw and Independence.  Early in the video, a boy can be heard on the police car megaphone say, "We [are] having fun out here, keep recording us, we [are] having fun, we [are] having fun with the police," the boy says.

"That's good," one man responds off screen.

"Ain't it good to see us having fun with the police right now?" the kid asks.

"That's right, that's why we're out here," the man responds.

In the video, Freeman defends the officers and praises their work in the community.

"Everybody says to me police [men are] bad, but I just drove past... I see kids...having fun and enjoying [themselves] with a police officer," he says in the video. "I see a police throwing a football with the kids... and [they're] enjoying [themselves and having fun...And everyone says the police is bad, I don't think so. I don't believe that," he continues.

"Thank you, I appreciate it," one of the officers in the video says. "It's hard, because you're either out on patrol constantly running on the calls, or now hold the block," the officer says. "We aren't just going to sit in our cars. It's fun to talk to people."

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