Policing the Planet: Why the Policing Crisis Led to Black Lives Matter by Jordan T. Camp

Author:Jordan T. Camp [Camp, Jordan T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Verso Books
Published: 2016-06-07T06:00:00+00:00

Surveillance

Surveillance is another crucial feature in the command and control repertoire. The department’s surveillance infrastructure has become increasingly dispersed throughout public space, while its command system has become increasingly centralized and insulated from public oversight. For one, the total count of public CCTVs (video surveillance) throughout the five boroughs has expanded dramatically over the last fifteen years, increasing from 769 in 1998 to 4,468 in 2005.26 Today there are over 6,000 cameras throughout the cityscape, 4,000 in lower Manhattan.27

In addition to technology-based monitoring, the NYPD also practices aggressive forms of intel-based surveillance, actively targeting and tracking select social groups throughout the city. In 2005 the NYPD created a Demographics Unit to collect broad-based data on the activities of Muslims in restaurants, bookstores, college campuses, and religious settings. Most of this was done in the absence of any specific criminal allegation or suspicion, but instead was intended as baseline intelligence gathering that might either generate leads or provide useful information in future investigations.

The NYPD has also used social media to generate a list of over 28,000 alleged gang members. That list has been used to aid investigations and, presumably, to direct additional undercover and online surveillance. The result is the NYPD’s steady movement towards establishing an inescapable presence across public space and into the private realm as well.

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