Through the Static

By Hannah Saunders

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s highly anticipated March 27 Town Hall regarding camera surveillance has just added a virtual option. This comes after a March 19 press briefing, where Mayor Wilson announced her CCTV plans for the city, which include turning off one camera but adding several more.

The following day, she announced on her social media account that she’s holding a Town Hall with the South Seattle Emerald’s Florangela Davila, which will feature an audience Q&A session. On the evening of March 26, Mayor Wilson announced in a new social media post that the event now has virtual participation and live stream options for community members.

In its original event post, the Mayor’s Instagram account advertised it as starting at 7 p.m., and did not issue a correction for three days. But the correction wasn’t visible unless users opened the comment section, where it is pinned at the top.

The false advertising for the time of the Town Hall about one of the most pressing issues facing the city could have been a mistake by Sage Wilson, Mayor Wilson’s media contact, who told TtS all social media tasks can be attributed to them. But the lack of visible correction on the still-pinned post has some of her voters concerned about her transparency, particularly regarding surveillance, with constituents demanding she turn the cameras off as promised during her campaign season.

On January 30, Tyjon Stewart and Tra’veiah Houfmuse, two Rainier Beach students, were gunned down at a bus stop, drawing attention to the need for students to be and feel safe. A larger police presence during the morning and afternoon is expected, and SPD Chief Shon Barnes told Converge Media that the department is using the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) to track trends in violence. CCTV footage is automatically recorded then stored on the RTCC. If footage is connected to an incident, it’s uploaded and retained on Axon’s servers, and Axon works with ICE.

Technologies are being used to track American citizens at an alarming rate, which has been leading to arrests by federal law enforcement officials for immigration and abortion, among others. There’s no guarantee that federal officers will not be able to access surveillance data for unconstitutional activities, and undocumented community members are demanding that Mayor Wilson turn off all surveillance cameras. But to those in South Seattle, these cameras can help keep their children safe.

The Town Hall starts at 6 p.m., with doors opening at 5 p.m., at the Wyncote NW Forum, located at 1119 8th Ave. It’s expected to be about 75 minutes long, and there will be a live Spanish interpreter. Tickets are free and available at townhallseattle.org/event/seattle-surveillance. Tickets for in-person attendance are no longer available.

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