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posted by martyb on Friday March 15 2019, @12:59PM   Printer-friendly
from the Both-Sideism dept.

Homeland Security’s Intelligence Overreach: Two Cases Illustrate Risks to Civil Society:

Two stories this week show how the Department of Homeland Security is deploying its intelligence apparatus against activists, journalists, and human rights lawyers. While this type of political surveillance rightly raises serious concerns, it is hardly surprising given the immense growth in DHS’s intelligence gathering programs during and since the Obama administration, and the lack of meaningful standards, safeguards, and oversight of their operation.

[...]NBC7 San Diego published a leaked copy of a set of slides titled “San Diego Sector Foreign Operations Branch: Migrant Caravan FY-2019, Suspected Organizers, Coordinators, Instigators and Media,” dated January 9, 2019. The document, which appears under a U.S.-Mexican seal, is essentially a surveillance target list with photographs of 59 people, 40 of whom are identified as U.S. citizens, all of whom seem to have some connection to migrant caravans heading from Central America to the United States. “Alerts” have been placed against the information of 43 people, including 28 Americans. DHS kept dossiers on the targets as well, including one that was shared with NBC 7 on[sic] Nicole Ramos, an attorney with a legal center for migrants and refugees in Tijuana, Mexico.

DHS claims it was tracking people who were in the vicinity of violence near the border in November 2018 and just wanted to talk to them as part of its investigation of those incidents. This justification rings hollow; it is much more plausible that the agency was tagging people based on their perceived involvement with the caravan, not as potential witnesses to any incident of violence.

[...]Far from the southern border, officers of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division of DHS in New York City were also keeping tabs on protests. Documents obtained by The Nation via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request included a spreadsheet of public protests, titled “Anti-Trump Protest Spreadsheet 07/31/2018.”

The document covered protests during the two-week period from July 31 to August 17, suggesting that such monitoring may be undertaken on a regular basis. It also showed the number of people who had signed up for the protests on Facebook, indicating that ICE was monitoring social media to follow political movements.

DHS claims it was monitoring leftist activists in New York to provide agents from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit with “situational awareness” information in case they were traveling through the city “on work or personal time.” Again, the title of the document gives away what is likely the agency’s true intent: the list is not about protests or demonstrations in general, it is focused on “anti-Trump” (and anti-ICE) political activity.


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  • (Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Friday March 15 2019, @05:57PM (1 child)

    by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Friday March 15 2019, @05:57PM (#814919) Homepage Journal

    "A coalition of human rights groups and technology organizations has blasted House Democrats’ high-tech border security proposal as a potentially invasive form of surveillance that would curtail Americans' privacy and target minorities.

    'We know that the border is often a testing ground for surveillance technology that is later deployed throughout the United States,' the letter, which was signed by groups including the ACLU and the National Immigration Law Center, states. 'Ubiquitous surveillance technology poses a serious threat to human rights and constitutional liberties.'" foxnews.com/tech/us-border-high-tech-solutions-proposed-by-dems-blasted-by-27-tech-and-human-rights-groups [foxnews.com]

    My Sub from more than a month ago. Censored -- they call it Rejected -- by Editors. No explanation, as usual. But, none needed. They're Fake Editors for a Fake News sight. And they're doing great.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   2  
  • (Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Friday March 15 2019, @06:25PM

    by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Friday March 15 2019, @06:25PM (#814937) Homepage Journal

    (cont)

    "We will push for a smart, effective border security posture, one that does not rely on costly physical barriers. House Democrats’ proposal funds: .....New cutting edge technology along the border to improve situational awareness" The Press Release of the Dem proposal (Jan.). And those of you (not many) that can read, maybe you want to read that one. appropriations.house.gov/news/press-releases/house-democratic-conferees-unveil-proposal-for-smart-effective-border-security [house.gov]

    The situational awareness is what NBC 7 is talking about. And they call it that. They call it that. But, dumb Moderators don't want to see that. They don't have the Brains to see that. And when I talk about Border, they don't have the Brains to see that this is about Border. About keeping Border Safe. Keeping tabs on the people that are helping the Caravans. Can we call it treason? Why not? We're trying very hard to stop those people.

    And by the way, our Border is not one dimensional. It's not an Arnold Schwarzenegger character. Do you remember Arnold Schwarzenegger, do you remember the maid, Arnold's maid? What a disgrace. Some say, he's a has-been. And some say, he's a never-was. Our Border doesn't just go straight up & down & wiggle around. It has a width. And the width is about 100 miles. More if our brave Border Patrol is chasing someone. Everybody in San Diego is on our Border. And most American people are on our Borders. Where my D.H.S., my Homeland Security, has very special powers. Powers that, it's almost impossible to "abuse" them. Because they're TOTAL & COMPLETE. And possibly you're "thinking" (the few that can think), "oh, of course President Trump would say that, he's the one with the very special powers!" It's me, it is me, I'm very happy to have those powers. Powers the American People (E.C.) gave to me. So I can protect our Country from those who would destroy it. But, it's not just me. All agree on that one. Even liberal A.C.L.U.!!!! aclu.org/other/constitution-100-mile-border-zone [aclu.org]