1. United States
2. Ariz.
3. Letter

Our government should not spy on us, yet right now unvetted, under-trained, and unprofessional ICE agents are leveraging a multi-billion dollar panopticon to surveil and terrorize our communities. There is a clear path to stop ICE surveillance in its tracks and also reject the executions of Renee Good, Silverio Villegas Gonzalez, and Keith Porter, as well as the deaths of many other people who were shot or died in custody over the past year. Lawmakers need to block funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) until its ICE agency is abolished. A major part of the $170 billion in funding that ICE has received from the Trump Administration is being leveraged to supercharge ICE violence and intimidation using surveillance tech. DHS, ICE, and CBP are: - Building databases of biometrics, sensitive personal data, and daily movements of not only immigrants, but everybody in the US - Leveraging data to intimidate protesters - Tapping into a nationwide network of insecure & dangerous Flock and Amazon Ring doorbell cameras - Suing to end the ability to speak about ICE anonymously online - Purchasing technology to surveil all the phones in a neighborhood without a warrant - Recklessly relying on facial recognition technology that is banned in some states - Preparing to purchase and deploy AI drones that may be weapons-capable Lawmakers must act immediately to stem the tide on ICE violence and the technology and data spending that help it spread. Communities across the country need a federal firewall as they catch up and dismantle the surveillance apparatus ICE is weaponizing by, among other things, canceling all contracts with Flock, enforcing privacy-preserving laws on Amazon Ring cameras, banning facial recognition by government and in places of public accommodation, ending private camera registries, and passing robust data privacy protections. I urge you to do everything within your power in order to block ICE’s reign of terror in our communities and halt the build out of surveillance tech infrastructure that will make it impossible for everyday people to do anything at all without Big Brother watching. Milquetoast calls for better identification, bodycams, and training fall far short of what is required of you to meet this moment.