Through the Static

By Hannah Saunders

Since the Redmond Police Department integrated automatic license plate readers (ALPRS) in an attempt to increase the city’s safety on August 12, the Diversity Alliance of the Puget Sound (DAPS) has been alarming the public. Thousands of community members attending Redmond Pride and a Cyprus Hill concert may have their license plates scanned, and while the cops claim “non-hit” data isn’t stored, it can strike fear into Queer and BIPOC communities attending these weekend festivities. 

ALPRS collect images of the license plate of every vehicle that passes the reader, and flags those that are linked to crimes, warrants, and Amber Alerts; it also notes the data and time. As soon as leaders at DAPS heard of the ALPRS, it began outreach with city officials and conducted research, and found that over 100,000 people’s license plates were potentially scanned during the first 19 days of implementation— almost 1.2% of Washington’s population. 

DAPS said about 5,000 people are expected to attend Redmond Pride on August 30, and Marymoor Park— the venue for the August 31 Cyprus Hill concert— can host up to 8,000 people per show. Thousands of Black, LatinX, BIPOC, Queer, and immigrant Hip-Hop fans could have their license plates scanned.

Jill Green, Public Information Officer at RPD, told DAPS that the ALPR program was discussed in Council study sessions and during business meetings, and that “the public was informed on the ALPR program via a news release on August 12 and on our social media channels.” She also noted how the program is funded by the Washington Auto Theft Prevention Authority grant. 

While DAPS has alerted Redmond Pride vendors, performers, volunteers, and community members of the ALPRS and increased surveillance, it has also reached out to legal partners for advice and has been monitoring the situation. But DAPS also emphasized how this tool (which has been used for mass surveillance) impacts many of the city’s residents. Redmond is a technology capital due to the Microsoft HQ, and is home to many tech workers who are visa holders.