Teens disguise themselves as mask-wearing OAPs to buy alcohol

Members of Gen Z are often known for their creativity and love of the platform Tik Tok, and now they’re transferring those skills into the real world to clandestinely buy alcohol during the pandemic.

The Zoomer trend has taken off on the platform during the COVID-19 lockdown after underage users noticed the facial obscurity a protective mask provides, sometimes coupled with a fake ID, helps them secure booze illegally.

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The New York Post has uncovered some examples, including a video set to the soundtrack of J-Kwon’s ‘Tipsy’ and its opening “Teen drinking is very bad. Yo, I got a fake ID though” refrain.

A caption on the post states: “PSA: use ur fakes as much as possible rn bc if you wear a mask they cant see ur whole face lol”.

One post, since made private after surpassing 1.5 million views, shows a teen drawing wrinkles on her face with make-up, wearing wire-rimmed glasses and walking with a zimmer frame. Another with more than 2 million views sees a girl doing to the lengths of wearing a latex mask.

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Although a 2016 report suggested that young people’s love for clubbing is waning, their inventiveness in getting their hands on intoxicants seems to be in good health.