Cop vs. Crowd: A Timeline of Surveillance and Militarization

The story of racial injustice in America is long and all-encompassing. Students like me are usually spared the details.

It seemed to me that Martin Luther King Jr. was a beloved figure who just happened to be murdered. I was taught that first there was slavery, then Jim Crow, then segregation, then-- well, nothing. For all I knew, the story was over. But as I know now, that's hardly the case.

In more recent years, I've learned that the path towards justice has hardly ever been unobstructed, and it would be foolish to say that it's over. Throughout history, every pro-black organizer-- from the abolitionists to the black panthers-- have been a target. They were hunted. And not just by individuals, mind you, but by institutions. These institutions were founded to "protect law and order", but more often than not, this was code for "suppressing dissent." Here's what CNN commentator Van Jones had to say in the Netflix
documentary 13th:

"You can tell the story of white leadership in America, and never mention the FBI one time. You can’t tell a story of black leadership, not one, without having to deal with the full weight of the criminal justice system weaponizing its black dissent."

With this in mind, here's a brief timeline of the use of surveillance / military equipment to preserve white supremacy.

Right now, white supremacy plays the same game on a different field. Constitutional law can give us a rough idea how to proceed when it comes to modern injustices, but its hard for policy to keep up with technological advancement. 

Expecting the founding fathers to have prepared for facial recognition and cell site trackers is like expecting a caveman to have prepared for the perils of nuclear war. The point is, unless we set up some regulations, and fast, modern discrimination will be streamlined and left largely unaccounted for because the old protections simply don't do the trick.

So what would these regulations entail? A bill called Community Control Over Police Surveillance (CCOPS) is a good start. In short, this ordinance would require local police departments to get city council approval before obtaining or using surveillance technology. The department would also have to write a yearly report describing the use of the technology, and addressing any concerns of privacy violation or discrimination on the basis of ethnicity or political affiliation. In order to cover all of our bases, we must also apply these same regulations to the local use military-grade equipment. Need I remind you that there are tanks in Richmond?

Now, it's safe to say that many inner city and low income communities are already on board with CCOPS. They have to deal with the specter of excessive surveillance every day. But the sad truth is that many privileged people believe if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. This mindset is a slippery slope. Even though those harmed are typically poorer and of a darker skin tone (at least according to Pacific Standard Magazine), any system that allows itself to operate unchecked is by definition authoritarian. 

In summary, whether it be through facial recognition devices, closed circuit cameras, or cell site trackers, someone will always be watching. And especially as the protests continue, we must always remember who has eyes and who doesn't. Once we do that, we can finally watch the watchers.

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