Our letter in the Times challenging facial recognition surveillance

We wrote to the Times along with our friends at Liberty and eleven other groups to challenge the use of facial recognition technology and call for action on the cost of living crisis, benefit cap and rocketing food prices. The letter reads:

“Sir, instead of increasing the use of oppressive policing tools such as facial recognition, the government should ensure that families should pay their rent and feed their children. That starts with supporting people who are struggling with the cost of living crisis, benefit cap and rocketing food prices. The expansion of facial recognition technology in supermarkets poses a dangerous threat to privacy. It violates our rights, targets people affected by poverty and fails to address the root causes of shoplifting.

Facial recognition has no place on our streets or in our shops. This technology subjects all of us to dystopian surveillance as we go about our daily lives, threatening our privacy and stifling free speech. Increasing it’s use will only put us further out of step with other countries that are moving to ban it.”

Museum of Homelessness has documented the impact of austerity since it’s beginning. Our Truths of the Last 10 Years exhibition in 2019 (excerpt below) charted how it was affecting our community and people living on the edge. This has only got worse since.