S.T.O.P. Condemns NYPD Facial Recognition Surveillance Of BLM Protest Leader

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View this email in your browser For Immediate Release S.T.O.P. Condemns NYPD Facial Recognition Surveillance Of BLM Protest Leader New evidence shows facial recognition sparked the NYPD’s hours-long raid on the house of Derrick Ingram, co-founder of the nonviolent activist group Warriors In The Garden.   [NEW YORK, NY, 08/14/2020] – Today, the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.), a New York-based privacy group, condemns the New York City Police Department for its facial recognition surveillance of Derrick Ingram, co-founder of the nonviolent activist group Warriors In The Garden. As first reported by George Joseph and Jake Offenhartz of Gothamist, video of last Friday’s hours-long raid on Ingram’s Manhattan apartment shows officers holding a facial recognition report on Ingram.   SEE: Gothamist - NYPD Used Facial Recognition Unit In Siege Of Black Lives Matter Activist’s Apartment https://gothamist.com/news/nypd-used-facial-recognition-unit-in-siege-of-black-lives-matter-activists-apartment   Video - Protest Leader Emerges to Cheers after Six Hour Stand Off with Police Ends in Manhattan https://youtu.be/xGx_FBq-Xe4?t=64   “Facial recognition surveillance of protests is a threat to both protesters and democracy itself,” said Surveillance Technology Oversight Project Executive Director Albert Fox Cahn. “The NYPD claimed that they need this biased and broken technology to protect us from violent crime, but now they are using it to suppress dissent. No police department can be trusted with a surveillance tool this dangerous, but especially not the NYPD. The NYPD raid on Ingram drew international condemnation, but their use of facial recognition is truly indefensible. If the NYPD already used this technology to track one protest leader, how many others are in police crosshairs?”   During last Friday’s raid on Ingram, the NYPD deployed dozens of heavily armed officers, shutting down his residential Manhattan block. Live-streamed video from Ingram’s apartment showed officers banging on his door, threatening to break into his apartment. Officers also claimed repeatedly to have a warrant for Ingram’s arrest, but they refused to slip a copy of the document under his door.   SEE: N.Y. Times - N.Y.P.D. Besieges a Protest Leader as He Broadcasts Live https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/07/nyregion/nypd-derrick-ingram-protester.html   CNN - New York activist turned himself in Saturday after standoff with police on Friday ended in no arrest https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/08/us/nypd-protest-derrick-ingram-trnd/index.html   Cahn continue, “many have asked why the NYPD never got a warrant to arrest Ingram during this tense standoff. If the Department only had a so-called ‘facial recognition match’, then it’s clear that they never had enough evidence for a warrant, and that this whole episode was illegal.”   The civil rights group previously sued the NYPD for records about its facial recognition program. In that case, S.T.O.P. sought data on previously undisclosed NYPD facial recognition systems, including tools potentially used to target protesters.   SEE: S.T.O.P. Sues NYPD For Facial Recognition Records https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2020/7/21/stop-sues-nypd-for-facial-recognition-records The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project is a non-profit advocacy organization and legal services provider hosted by the Urban Justice Center. S.T.O.P. litigates and advocates for privacy, fighting excessive local and state-level surveillance. Our work highlights the discriminatory impact of surveillance on Muslim Americans, immigrants, and communities of color.   - END – CONTACT: S.T.O.P. Executive Director Albert Fox Cahn;   Copyright © 2019 Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, All rights reserved. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.