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"Hipster Cop" Talks Fashion With GQ, Trashes Occupy Wall Street Protesters' Style
By
John Del Signore
Published Oct 21, 2011
Modified Jun 15, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Oct 21, 2011
Modified Jun 15, 2012
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Oh it's ON! Detective Rick Lee, a.k.a. "Hipster Cop," says the Occupy Wall Street protesters wouldn't know style if it sashayed up and pepper-sprayed them in the face. In a wide-ranging Q&A with GQ, Lee dishes on his taste in fashion, his sudden fame, the look he rocks on weekends, and the weak sartorial choices of the demonstrators he's assigned to deal with. Asked if he's "seen interesting fashion at the protest," Lee replied with an emphatic "No!" And his fashion policing didn't stop there:
I was talking to a photographer, he was looking for fashionistas here, and I said, "Dude, you're in the wrong place." I guess if I had to pigeonhole the look here I'd say it's kind of grunge. You remember the grunge phase. That's kind of it. Very grunge-y. There aren't a lot of men walking around in bow ties and Ralph Lauren. I know some protesters brought some used suits, which was kind of funny. None of them were tailored though, so...[laughs]
Seriously, how do these walking eyesores in Zuccotti Park expect anyone to take them seriously when they don't even wear bespoke suits? We realize they're camping out in the elements, but Land's End sells a wide variety of durable yet stylish items that would be perfect for the occasion. As for Detective Lee, he's partial to "Tweeds! I like traditional English style. I'm glad to see straight ties are coming back into fashion... I like Burberry. I like Ralph Lauren and Brooks Brothers. A lot of Theory's stuff."
So yeah, his taste in clothes isn't hipster at all, but compared to everyone else in the NYPD, Lee certainly stands out as fashion-forward, which of course is an essential hipster qualification. He'd prefer to be called the "Country Gentleman" Cop, or the "Gentleman Police Officer." (Gothamist readers overwhelmingly voted for "Detective Wes Anderson.") But it's important to note that off duty, Lee dons skinny jeans, a T-shirt, and a cardigan. "I guess you could say I look more hipster on the weekend," he concedes.
So what's next for Lee? His own clothing label? A catalog modeling career? Rap album? We've clearly created a media monster here, and, ironically, Lee's the best thing to happen to the NYPD in recent memory—which of course is why the NYPD press office is pimping him out. Forget about white shirts cracking skulls and focus on the fashionable face of the Detective Dreamypants, sheeple. Sure, he may have you arrested for exercising your First Amendment rights, but at least he'll use handcuffs he bought on Etsy. Can't ask for more than that!
Tagged
fashion
hipster cop
occupywallstreet
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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