The National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) called on TikTok to act after it became aware of the channel Bad2TheDrone, now known as BumsNDrones, which shares multiple videos of homeless people in Pueblo.

According to the NAEH, there were 9,846 people homeless on a given night in Colorado in 2020. This meant 17.1 of every 10,000 people in the state were living rough that year.

In 2021, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said more than 326,000 people experienced sheltered homelessness in the U.S. on a single night.

Drone videos on the channel show homeless people on the city’s streets and include several instances where the remote-controlled device follows people who on several occasions run away or throw objects toward the camera.

In one clip, the drone hovers above a man who is asleep and has a noticeable wet patch on his shirt just above the waist. Throughout the video, the track “Pee in the Bathroom” by CanonCable plays in the background.

Another video showed a woman throwing a stick at the camera and running into oncoming traffic as the drone hovered above and followed her.

TikTok shared a disclaimer on the video that read: “Participating in this activity could result in you or others getting hurt.”

Videos on the channel regularly attract tens of thousands of views while some have been seen millions of times.

But the NAEH called on TikTok to take action against what it called “cruel” and “harmful” content.

Ann Oliva, NAEH CEO, told Newsweek: “Homelessness is a national tragedy. When we mock people who experience it, we dehumanize them and send a message that their suffering does not matter.

“And this establishes a tolerance for cruel, violent, and coercive behavior and policies towards them. Harassment is not a form of entertainment, and social media platforms must commit to identifying and rooting out this kind of harmful content.”

According to Colorado-based law firm Robinson and Henry, P.C., the state does not regulate drones and, while the Federal Aviation Administration does, it does not delve into what you can do if you feel your personal space has been compromised.

The law firm noted in some instances that people could make a case for stalking or harassment, although it said harassment law in the state was “very vague.”

“But repeatedly following someone around in public is considered harassment in Colorado. This could be just one instance. Stalking, on the other hand, requires a pattern of behavior. Hovering above your yard once would neither be considered harassment nor stalking.”

In a response sent to Newsweek, the person behind the Bad2TheDrone TikTok channel said they were “shocked, appalled and even saddened” by how homeless people lived on the streets of Pueblo.

However, the account owner added: “But, also I don’t think kids and families should be seeing people strung out and shooting needles in broad daylight. Ultimately my goal was to inspire change.”

When asked whether they were concerned about the homeless people’s health, the account owner said: “Yes. But, not because of my drone or my videos or my TikTok page. I’m shining a light on how people are actually living among us.

“Virtually everyone living on the streets is hooked on drugs. Opioid overdose deaths have doubled since the start of COVID. That’s because opioid addiction has doubled during this time.

“That is what is driving homelessness. Most people don’t ever get a chance to see how street people are living. They drive by. Largely, our homeless neighbors living among us are sick,” the TikToker said.

“We’ve seen people urinate themselves. We’ve spotted people shooting up needles in public spaces. And they live in scary situations. People need to wake up to what is happening to our country. The people who created Fentanyl need to go to prison for life.

“The people living in the streets, bushes, [and] river bottoms don’t need our cash. They need to get addiction treatment. But I also care about the destruction that is happening in our society from the scourge of opioids, especially heroin and Fentanyl.

“They are rotting our community. What are our policymakers going to do about this? Prison sentences don’t deter junkies. Nobody grew up saying they wanted to be a junkie. It’s not a life path anyone wants to take.

“I don’t have all the answers, but I know we need to focus more on prevention and treatment than incarceration. But change has to happen.”

The account owner said that those who had seen a family member in their video are now reconnecting with the homeless person and that most of the people in the video “are excited for the fame” and “they think it’s cool.”

The TikToker added: “I’ve been able to show how people are really living on the street better than any newspaper story can ever accomplish.”

“Homelessness is growing. The traditional fixes aren’t working. What are we doing to fight drug addiction? That is the solution.

“Anything short of that is rhetoric. That’s where the National Alliance to End Homelessness should be putting their energy,” the account owner said.

“In the meantime, we’re having a little bit of fun, and we’re showing the public exactly how our homeless brothers and sisters are living in our communities.”