continued on page 35

“Actions
 Matter”

Local photographer’
s social media posts lead
to removal of Shelby Township police chief.

ROBIN SCHWARTZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER
D

an Lippitt wants to make it 
crystal clear — he didn’
t do 
anything special. 
“I sat on my couch and posted 
something on Facebook; 
that’
s about as lazy as 
you can be,” says the 
former photojournalist, 
who once worked at the 
JN and is now a com-
mercial photographer.
But that “something” 
he posted on Facebook 
led to the removal of 
Shelby Township Police 
Chief Robert Shelide, 
who is now on paid 
administrative leave 
pending an investiga-
tion. 
Like so many 
Americans, Lippitt has 
been watching recent 
news events — from the 
police killing of George 
Floyd to violent stand-
offs between police and 
protesters nationwide 
—and feeling angry, helpless and 
frustrated. Scrolling through his 
Facebook feed only made matters 
worse. And then he saw a friend 
doing something that inspired 
him — outing people making racist 
and offensive comments online. He 
decided to try it, too.
“I’
ll be outing all the racists that 
message me or that I see,” Lippitt 
posted on Facebook. “If you are 

afraid to out someone, screenshot 
and send it to me. I’
ll do it.”
Lippitt, who used to attend ser-
vices at Temple Shir Shalom in 
West Bloomfield, posted 
a series of screenshots 
highlighting inflamma-
tory, hateful tweets and 
posts from various busi-
nesspeople, politicians 
and others starting June 
2. Within two days, he 
was posting screenshots 
of tweets glorifying 
police brutality from the 
Twitter account of @
sheepdawg711, which 
Chief Shelide now admits 
he wrote. Lippitt says 
a source provided the 
screenshots.
“So this is a ‘
fun’
 one. 
Ladies and Gentlemen 
your Shelby Twp. Chief 
of Police,” Lippitt wrote. 
“Please share this far 
and wide. Let’
s get this 
a**hole fired please and, 
yes, I have private confirmation that 
it is irrefutably him.”
The Twitter account has since 
been taken down, but in screen-
shots, the tweets refer to protesters 
as “wild savages” and read, “body 
bags for these vicious subhumans.” 
One says, “I would hit them with 
tear gas and water cannons. Rubber 
bullets.” Another reads, “Unleash 
the real cops … I promise it will be 

34 | JUNE 18 • 2020 

COURTESY DAN LIPPITT
COURTESY DAN LIPPITT

Dan Lippitt

COURTESY OF DAN LIPPITT

Chief Robert Shelide

COURTESY OF SHELBY TWP POLICE DEPT

Jews in the D
jews and racial justice