NYC Mayor Eric Adams Brushes Off Complaints About NYPD Surveillance At Drake Concert
Written by djfrosty on January 24, 2023
Source: Cindy Ord / Getty
It seems like every month New York City Mayor Eric Adams finds a new way to frustrate and alienate his Big Apple constituents, and now he’s showing that he simply does not give a f*ck.
Over the weekend NYPD was criticized for taking videos of everyone attending Drake’s show at The Apollo Theater with fears that they’d be used for facial recognition. When asked about the practice, Mayor Eric Adams applauded the NYPD for the controversial tactic. Gothamist is reporting that Adams praised Police Captain Tarik Sheppard of the 28th Precinct saying “Thumbs up to that great captain,” before adding “And I encourage all of my commanding officers to be creative on how we engage with our residents,” he said, adding, “That was a safe event.”
That’s considered “engaging” with residents?! Feels more like a violation of our personal space. More and more it’s looking like Eric Adams is going to be a one-term Mayor.
A spokesperson for the 28th Precinct meanwhile said that the officer taking the videos of the people exiting the Drake concert is a part of their social media team and that “The officer was taking video for an upcoming twitter post that will highlight local community events. The video will not be utilized for any other reason.”
Yeah, ok.
Will Owen, of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, an anti-surveillance and privacy rights group, isn’t buying that explanation (neither are we) and feels that “This is yet another example of NYPD’s racist use of surveillance technology, following the department’s long legacy of targeting rap concerts. We’re deeply concerned facial recognition may have been involved, and demand the department destroy any footage it took. This is the latest proof that the city and state must ban its use at venues once and for all.”
We doubt that Eric Adams will hear the outcry from his constituents as he’s blatantly brushing off any criticism that’s come with this past weekend’s suspect practice.
“Those who are naysayers find reasons to complain about everything,” he said. “That’s not reality. Let them keep complaining.”
What’s the chances that Eric Adams is actually a MAGA Republican on the low? Just sayin.’
What do y’all think of the NYPD recording concertgoers this past weekend and Eric Adams response? Let us know in the comments section below.