San Francisco Gets an Invasive Billionaire-Bought Surveillance HQ
17 hours ago
- #police surveillance
- #privacy concerns
- #billionaire influence
- San Francisco billionaire Chris Larsen funded a $9.4 million Real-Time Investigations Center for police surveillance.
- The center will be located in Larsen's Ripple Labs building, costing $2.3 million in lease expenses until 2026.
- Larsen's San Francisco Police Community Foundation contributed $7.25 million to fund police technology not covered by the city.
- Police foundations, like those in LA and Atlanta, enable surveillance and controversial projects without public transparency.
- Larsen previously backed Proposition E, which weakened San Francisco's 2019 surveillance accountability rules.
- Real-Time Crime Centers (RTCCs) consolidate mass surveillance, including license plate readers, cameras, and drones.
- SFPD has already shared surveillance data with federal immigration agencies, raising privacy concerns.
- Larsen also funded 15,000 semi-private cameras, used to monitor lawful protests.
- Studies show surveillance tech fails to prevent crime and can harm marginalized communities.
- Elected officials should reject private funding of police surveillance to maintain public control and accountability.