"As the Trump administration turbocharges the growth of a nonstop dragnet, turning daily life into a data trail ready to be weaponized, Chicago is serving as one of its most visible targets. The city has long been a flashpoint for the oppressive expansion of digital surveillance. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), universities, and local police have all deployed powerful new technologies to monitor immigrant communities, pro-Palestine organizers, and other targeted groups."
"Companies like Palantir - seeded by the CIA and co-founded by billionaire Peter Thiel - quietly power ICE's deportation machine by linking arrest records, social media posts, and even utility bills into a single profile. Flock Safety, meanwhile, floods neighborhoods with automated license plate readers that track everyday movements - who you visit, what clinics you go to, which protests you attend."
Chicago is experiencing intensified, layered surveillance from federal agencies, local police, universities, and corporations. ICE and local law enforcement use integrated databases and new technologies to monitor immigrant communities and political organizers. Corporate systems combine arrest records, social media, and utility data into comprehensive profiles that facilitate deportation and targeting. Automated license plate readers and facial recognition track everyday movements, including visits to clinics and protests. Expanding data centers enable large-scale storage and analysis. Political rhetoric and federal deployments have accelerated raids and National Guard use, normalizing expanded surveillance and policing in the city.
Read at Truthout
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