WPRO News
The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island has sent a letter to Providence Police asking them to stop the practice of filming peaceful protesters.
The letter sent to Public Safety Commissioner Steven Paré on Thursday states that for the past two years the department has been filming protesters, but a review of the footage allegedly shows officers were more focused on individuals, such as journalists, who were observing the events.
“There peaceful demonstrations are being viewed as a sort of hotbed of criminal activity for no reason,” said Hillary Davis, Policy Associate for the ACLU.
The letter cites five instances of the last two years in which police recorded demonstrations including the past two protests last year in response to the Ferguson and Staten Island grand jury decisions. The ACLU believes filming the protests is an intimidation tactic being used by police to suppress First Amendment expression.
“Demonstrators have felt intimidated out of taking their own pictures [and] they have become concerned about how this video is being used,” said Davis.
The ACLU is asking Commissioner Paré halt the practice of recording protests and to set clear policies and guidelines of how video recordings should be used.
