Well lookie here — it seems that GQ has discovered the hot new thing to come out of Occupy Wall Street, current internet it-boy Hipster Cop — aka NYPD community affairs officer Rick Lee — and conducted an interview with him about his fashion sense, among other things.
GQ: Tell me about what you’re wearing today.
Rick Lee: This is pretty average for me. For work anyway. The jacket and cardigan are Ralph Lauren. The tie is Burberry. The shirt is Ralph Lauren, too. These are J.Crew pants. And Ralph Lauren shoes. Lot of Ralph Lauren. My best friend works for Ralph Lauren.GQ: How would you describe your style?
Rick Lee: I describe it as “traditional English country.” I love traditional English country clothes.
Oh man — we’ve created a monster, haven’t we?
Hipster Cop went on to explain exactly what he does on a day-to-day basis, as well as what his role is at the OWS protests…
GQ: What are your duties down at Occupy Wall Street?
Rick Lee: Just to give you some background: I do Community Affairs down at the First Precinct. There’s basically one of me—not as smashingly dressed, in every precinct. It’s my job in general to be the liaison between the precinct and the community we serve. We serve, oddly enough, SoHo—big fashion area, TriBeCa, and Battery Park City. Basically from Houston St. down to the Battery. My specific job being down here watching the guys who bang on the drums is to keep the peace. Between not only the police and the protesters, but also the protesters and the community.GQ: Do you think they way you’re dressed helps with that?
Rick Lee: Yes. Absolutely. I’ve been doing my job for 12 years and I learned early on that the way I’m dress, or the way anyone dresses affects things. You have to know your audience. The people that I serve in this community are a lot like me. I don’t necessarily fit the stereotype of the word “cop.” So when they see that I dress kinda cool, wear thin ties, look trendy, it breaks a lot of walls down initially to get the bridge building started. It actually works. People go, “Wow! You wear Burberry. You wear Ralph Lauren. That’s cool.”GQ: Have you seen interesting fashion at the protest?
Rick Lee: No! 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.
Come to think of it, this interview just makes the Hipster Cop meme all the more funny, doesn’t it?