Suppression by Surveillance

[F]law School

Summary:

As campus protests swept the nation last spring, invasive surveillance technology put protestors and student organizers in precarious positions. Through targeted fear-mongering, tech surveillance companies changed cities’ and university’s perceptions of activism. From racially-biased facial recognition to predatory cell towers, corporations stripped protestors of constitutionally protected speech and manifestations of democracy for profit. In this episode, Jessenia Class joins Sam Perri and Reya Singh to break down protest suppression tactics, corporations’ tactics for dodging accountability, and the importance of storytelling as a pathway to justice.

Guest Bio:

Jessenia Class is a law student at Harvard Law School and a graduate of Harvard College. Before law school, Jessenia was a program associate at an organization that engaged in public interest law and philanthropy.

Editors:

Special thanks to Mirei Saneyoshi and Pragnya Vella for production and editing assistance.

Chapter Markers:

• Introduction [0:00]
• Campus Protests in 2024 [3:10]
• Dangers of Surveillance Technology [5:28]
• Misleading Corporate Narratives [8:00]
• Protest Suppression [11:28]
• Holding Corporations Accountable [15:21]
• Ruse of Consent for Protestors [19:33]
• Corporate Power Imbalances [21:18]
• Impact of Storytelling [23:22]
• Perseverance Under Surveillance [25:27]
• Action Steps & Resources [27:38]

[F]law Resources:

• Suppression by Surveillance by Jessenia Class ([F]law Article)
• Corporations are Keeping Cop City Alive by Jessenia Class
• Shots Fired, and Profited On: Inside the Campaign against “ShotSpotter” in Chicago, by Anna Bower
• Nowhere to Hide: A World Without Privacy, by Jessica Grubesic
• Surveillance Advertising, by Amer Mneimneh

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