It has been just 2-weeks since rioting and protests began across the nation in response to the killing of George Floyd on the streets of Minneapolis. Citizens in cities all over the country are now a part of a cataclysmic societal reckoning on police brutality, injustice, and the racist treatment of African Americans. While there have been numerous cases of police brutality previous to this one, we have never before seen outrage, revulsion, and condemnation as widespread as we are now experiencing. The videos taken of Floyd’s murder by multiple witnesses exemplify the power and accountability that smartphone technology provides. No longer is it only media coverage that is able to provide indisputable proof of incidents of public interest — citizen journalists and concerned bystanders can now upload video to social networks to illuminate injustice and force the hand of accountability.
Technology is also helping to connect people in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. The real-time safety-alert app Citizen has been downloaded more than 230,000 times over the last 12 days, making it the fourth most downloaded app, according to Apptopia. Citizen sends notifications to users about potentially dangerous situations in their area. The data is sourced from police and emergency responder scanners, and users can upload videos as well as add comments to each incident. When police call for backup, that is added into the incident report too. The result aims to be a thorough picture of local crime — and situations to avoid — that can be seamlessly sent to friends via text messages.
Citizen was launched in New York City in 2016 and came to Southern California in 2019. It has been used widely in Los Angeles throughout the recent protests and riots to let citizens know where people are gathering. A quick check of the Citizen app can provide information on the size of the crowd that is protesting, if it is peaceful, and whether arrests or looting are taking place. Videos uploaded to the app by the public facilitates information on the incident from multiple perspectives.
Social media app Twitter has also seen increased downloads over the last two weeks. Twitter is a go-to platform for journalists, news videos, and information, making it particularly relevant in this time of increased demonstration and civil disobedience. Finding the location of the protests has also been made significantly easier, thanks to the new website 2020protests.com that compiles information on marches in each city, as well as tips on how to protest safely, phone numbers to call for an unlawful arrest, curfew information, and even local COVID-19 case totals. 2020protests.com was built by 17-year old Seattle sensation Avi Schiffman, who was also behind one of the very first sites to aggregate impactful information on the Coronavirus. Schiffman launched his sophomore site focused on the Black Lives Matter protests on June 2nd, sending out a tweet to his 53,000 followers.
Digital technology is also used by police during protests. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a nonprofit that defends digital privacy, free speech, and innovation. The organization notes that it is committed to “beating back police surveillance and abuse” and released a comprehensive report this week on ‘How to identify visible (and invisible) surveillance at protests.’ The report details the use of body cameras, drones, and automated license plate readers as visible technology that is commonly utilized by the police during protests. The EFF cautions that facial-recognition technology, social media monitoring, cell-site simulators, and real-time crime centers are also used in policing — though the use of this technology is often not visible or disclosed to citizens.
As we reach the 2-week mark on civil unrest in response to the asphyxiation of George Floyd on a public street at the hands of police, protests are not only continuing but escalating in size and scope. Digital technology plays an important role in connecting us to one another, and to holding those breaking the law – both civilians and police – accountable. It is important that we understand the tools available to us, as well as those that can be used surreptitiously to our detriment.