Why Do Flock Cameras Need to Be About Abortion?

Flock cameras have been a hot news topic, bringing together those who might not normally be on the same side of a policy debate. Like many issues, though, especially when it comes to cautious allies, the nuances of certain views ought to be further examined.

Who are among those opposing Flock cameras? Abortion activists in Ohio.

Ohio may be a red state, but a 2023 ballot initiative opened the door to unlimited abortion. Not only have abortions gone up, but a significant portion of women receiving abortions last year in Ohio came from out of state. Abortion activists are concerned that Flock cameras could be used against women traveling for an abortion.

On this issue, the Statehouse News Bureau highlighted remarks from Jaime Miracle, deputy director of Abortion Forward.

“The concern is a person who is leaving a state where abortion is illegal and coming to Columbus to get the abortion care they deserve should not be followed into our city by this dragnet surveillance system that we have,” she said.

The concerns mentioned involved Texas, where abortion is restricted under state law. However, interstate travel is not illegal, and the Biden administration’s Department of Justice put out a press release in 2023 arguing that it is a protected right for women to go out of state for an abortion to where it is legal.

Such fearmongering calls to mind a sense of entitlement for the abortion cause, though it’s not the only example.

When Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022 with Dobbs v. Jackson, activists were urging women not to track their menstrual cycles using apps, though the use of these apps has actually increased.

A Reddit channel on “feminism” cheered on those who were not forthcoming with medical professionals about their last menstrual period. “Doctors, nurses & basically anyone has no right or need to know when your menstrual cycle is,” claimed one user, despite there being valid health reasons that may have nothing to do with abortion.

There are reasons to oppose Flock cameras. But abortion activists seem to have a habit of making unrelated issues about them and their causes. That doesn’t necessarily mean one should support Flock cameras, but Flock opponents don’t need abortion activists as allies in this fight.

During “The Tony Kinnett Cast” on Monday, host Tony Kinnett addressed general concerns with Flock cameras, referencing strong feelings from both sides.

“They’re mounted on poles and streetlights, and these solar powered cameras capture vehicle details, including license plates, make, model, and color to help law enforcement track stolen cars and investigate crimes,” he said, adding, “I don’t like these at all.”

Although Kinnett said it is good to provide resources to law enforcement, he stressed that he doesn’t like “increasing CCTV [closed-circuit television] coverage for automated car information and tracking.”

Kinnett’s opposition has to do with how COVID was handled and how Flock cameras “do explicitly seem built for the purpose of capturing automotive data and transferring that information to law enforcement.”

He also addressed the argument that non-criminals shouldn’t care.

“The people who were debanked during the COVID-19 era, were they criminals? When the FBI under the Biden administration … classified Catholics as a terrorist threat, those who went to school board meetings as a terrorist threat, could you see the federal law enforcement requesting information from Flock?” Kinnett asked.

“I don’t think that creating a a broader camera-ized surveillance state in that manner is a good method,” he continued, pointing to “better ways” to protect vehicles and property.

On Thursday, Fox Business’ “Varney & Co” spoke with Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley, who announced his company is mandating that law enforcement agencies use features that audit how tracking capabilities are used.

Four months ago, Flock Safety built a tool to automatically flag potentially abusive behavior, which about one-third of customers turned on, something Langley said “is working.”

Langley also shared that data is not saved forever, but for 30 days. Given that over 90% of crimes are solved in seven days using Flock, Langley continued, there are now recommendations for seven-day retention before data is deleted.

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