‘Devious licks’ videos of damage, thefts bedevil US schools

A photo courtesy of Cuyler Dunn shows a message on a white board at Lawrence High School in Lawrence, Kansas, that says 'PSA Stop the Devious Licks Children'. Students across the US are videoing themselves stealing soap dispensers, microscopes and even turf off stadium football fields and posting their heists on TikTok in a phenomenon dubbed 'devious licks' that is bedeviling administrators and forcing them to shut down bathrooms. — Cuyler Dunn via AP

TOPEKA, Kansas: Kids across the US are posting TikTok videos of themselves vandalising school bathrooms and stealing soap dispensers and even turf from football fields, bedeviling school administrators seeking to contain the viral Internet trend.

The “devious licks” challenge that swept social media this week is plaguing principals and school district administrators who already must navigate a bitter debate over requiring masks to keep Covid-19 in check. Some schools have had to more closely monitor or even shut down bathrooms, where much of the damage is occurring.