How much more dystopian can modern life get here in the United States? This question feels more than a little dangerous, given that Republicans continue to show us that they seem to have no boundaries—they’re willing to attack vulnerable trans youth, argue against teaching intersectional history, and, of course, some are willing to sow anti-science hysteria during the pandemic. Even still, a recent video out of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has people feeling like we’re diving even deeper into disarray when it comes to our country’s values.

The video—which has gone viral on Twitter with millions of views—shows 10 teachers scrambling for dollar bills to go toward their classroom supplies as part of a Dash for Cash. As reported by Argus Leader, $5,000 in single dollar bills were placed on the skating rink during a Sioux Falls Stampede hockey game at the Denny Sanford Premier Center on Saturday. Teachers then competed against one another to gather as many bills as possible (shoving them into their hats, for example) in less than five minutes. Meanwhile, the stadium crowd watched and cheered. 

In speaking to the Leader in an interview, a marketing spokesperson for CU Mortgage Direct explained that they donated the money to the event. “With everything that has gone on for the last couple of years with teachers and everything, we thought it was an awesome group thing to do for the teachers,” Ryan Knudson explained. 

The outlet reports that high school teacher Barry Longden ended up with the most money, taking home $616 to go toward an esports program he puts on for his students. 

Fifth-grade teacher Alexandria Kuyper walked away with $592 and said the funds will go towards decorations and treats for her classroom. The elementary school teacher said she thinks it’s “really cool” when communities offer funds for things that educators usually “pay out of pocket for.”

What would be even cooler? If teachers were paid fairly, and schools got enough money to pay for these supplies from the start. This isn’t to shame teachers who participate, of course, especially considering, as The Washington Post points out, teachers in the state are some of the most poorly paid in the entire country. Still, we can understand why educators would want to participate while criticizing the overall system that pushes them into a spot where they’re thinking, Sure, I’ll shove dollar bills down my shirt if it means my students can get pencils this year. 

Here is some of the initial footage that went viral.

South Dakota Democratic state Sen. Reynold Nesiba spoke to the Post about this concept in an interview, saying that the competition was likely put together with the best intentions, the result was a “terrible image.”

“Teachers should never have to go through something like this to be able to get the resources they need to meet the basic educational needs of our students,” Nesiba stated, noting that this should be the case whether it’s in Sioux Falls or anywhere else in the country.

People online certainly agreed, with plenty of comparisons to The Hunger Games and Squid Game dystopian series coming up. 

You can also watch a short clip below, originally from Annie Todd at the Argus Leader and reshared by The Guardian on YouTube.

YouTube Video