Devious Licks TikTok Trend Strikes Aliso

The latest TikTok trend has middle and high school students stealing a variety of items from school property and posting them on social media. This new trend is called “Devious Licks,” in which lick means theft. Students have stolen soap dispensers, clocks, fire alarms, as well as other school supplies. 

  Students have mainly targeted bathrooms by taking stall doors, sinks, mirrors, and urinals. Some schools have had to shut down their bathrooms due to a lack of sanitary supplies and toilets, which has caused students to have to go all day without using the restroom.

  The trend started on Sep. 1 when a TikTok user posted a video of them showing off a box of disposable masks that they supposedly stole, with the caption, “A month into school… absolutely devious lick,” according to Know Your Meme. Their video got more than 345,800 views before it was removed. 

  The trend consists of the sped-up beginning of the song “Ski Ski BasedGod” by Lil B building up as the user unzips their backpack to reveal their steal. The hashtag, DeviousLicks, had millions of views before TikTok deleted the hashtag and related hashtags on Sept. 16.

  At Aliso, there have been attempts to commit devious licks, some successful and others not so much. This vandalism has caused issues for fellow peers, as well as janitors on campus.

  Head janitor Jonny Portolol said that he has heard about the TikTok trend and does not find it very funny. He explained, “It adds extra work for us, it makes it harder for our custodians here to keep up and keep the bathrooms clean for students.”

  The theft on campus has created excess costs for the school. Portolol said “I don’t know the exact cost, but it’s definitely creating extra costs. [We’re] having to buy extra soap dispensers, paper towels, and even chemicals to clean graffiti.”

  Portolol also brought up the attempt to steal the water fountain from the wall near the outdoor basketball courts. He pointed out the inconvenience it causes to students, and states “It’s also expensive to replace that.”

  He also mentioned how it’s disappointing since “Closing bathrooms down hurts the students,” and the janitors sometimes have to do this to clean or do repairs to damage caused by the devious licks on campus.

  So far at Aliso, there have been attempts to steal objects from the school, mostly soap dispensers and paper towel dispensers. According to Mr. Nichols, the school has caught various students, and the punishment for stealing is a suspension. Students who are caught also face the possibility of having to pay back the damage, or having to deal with law enforcement.

  For now, there is no plan to close bathrooms, but if the vandalism continues the school is considering closing the restrooms down so that only one student is allowed in at one time. This policy would affect not only the students who stole the items, but also the students who are innocent and have done nothing wrong.

  Mr. Nichols urges students to make good choices, and says that although TikTok can be entertaining and informative, this trend is not a good one to follow because it is encouraging students to engage in illegal actions. 

  Recently, there have been new videos going viral on TikTok where kids are claiming to hit an “Angelic Yield.” This trend counters the “Devious Lick” videos, and shows people bringing new soap or refilling soap dispensers, putting out “caution, slippery when wet signs,” or even bringing TVs into the school bathroom.

  It seems that the students who are disappointed with the effects of vandalism on campus are the ones pushing this “Angelic Yield” trend. Many high school students have expressed that the bathroom closures or other measures taken to counteract theft have made their lives on campus more difficult.