My name is Blair Overstreet, and I am the Central San Diego organizer for the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties.
People deserve the right to move freely and live their lives without worrying about who or what is watching them. And yet, the dystopian future George Orwell envisioned in 1984 is our current reality – big brother is watching. Or, in this instance, the 500 automated license plate readers (ALPR) owned and operated by the city of San Diego, along with the numerous private license plate readers that contribute to the ALPR system operated by Flock Safety, including cameras at the Las Americas Outlets in San Ysidro and the Fashion Valley Mall.
ALPR technology has extensive capacity for abuse and chilling of communal activity. It can be used to record people going to union meetings or political gatherings, and it has already been used across the country to monitor people gathering at religious institutions, accessing medical care, and engaging in protected First Amendment activity like the “No Kings” protests.
The Trump administration has maliciously exploited this technology to further their mass deportation agenda, collaborating with some law enforcement agencies, and exploiting some jurisdictions without their knowledge or consent.
We must end the Flock Safety ALPR contract now. We must redistribute the millions of dollars used in the installation and implementation of this dangerous technology to fund proven solutions to public safety like affordable housing, access to medical care, food security and childcare. San Diegans don’t need more watchful eyes, they need a helping hand. We urge the San Diego City Council to end the contract with Flock Safety.
