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DNA Databases in the U.S. and China Are Tools of Racial Oppression

Accepted submission by takyon at 2020-07-06 23:31:37
Digital Liberty

DNA Databases in the U.S. and China Are Tools of Racial Oppression [ieee.org]

Two major world powers, the United States and China, have both collected an enormous number of DNA samples from their citizens, the premise being that these samples will help solve crimes that might have otherwise gone unsolved. While DNA evidence can often be crucial when it comes to determining who committed a crime, researchers argue these DNA databases also pose a major threat to human rights.

In the U.S., the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has a DNA database called the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) that currently contains over 14 million [fbi.gov] DNA profiles. This database has a disproportionately high number of profiles of black men, because black Americans are arrested five times [thehill.com] as much as white Americans. You don't even have to be convicted of a crime for law enforcement to take and store your DNA; you simply have to have been arrested as a suspect.

[...] As for China, a report [aspistrategist.org.au] that was published by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in mid-June claims that China is operating the "world's largest police-run DNA database" as part of its powerful surveillance state. Chinese authorities have collected DNA samples from possibly as many as 70 million men since 2017, and the total database is believed to contain as many as 140 million profiles. The country hopes to collect DNA from all of its male citizens, as it argues men are most likely to commit crimes.

DNA is reportedly often collected during what are represented as free physicals, and it's also being collected from children at schools. There are reports of Chinese citizens being threatened [nytimes.com] with punishment by government officials if they refuse to give a DNA sample. Much of the DNA that's been collected has been from Uighur Muslims that have been oppressed by the Chinese government and infamously forced into concentration camps [washingtonpost.com] in the Xinjiang province.

Related:

EFF to Supreme Court: The Fourth Amendment Covers DNA Collection [soylentnews.org]
EFF Sues Justice Dept. Over FBI's Rapid DNA Plans [soylentnews.org]
Kuwait Creating Mandatory DNA Database of All Citizens, Residents--and Visitors [soylentnews.org]
San Diego Police Department Accused of Unlawful DNA Collection From Minors [soylentnews.org]
Massive DNA Collection Campaign in Xinjiang, China [soylentnews.org]
Study Predicts Appearance From Genome Sequence Data [soylentnews.org]
GEDmatch: "What If It Was Called Police Genealogy?" [soylentnews.org]
Bavarian Law Broadens Police Surveillance and DNA Profiling Powers [soylentnews.org]
DNA Collected from Golden State Killer Suspect's Car, Leading to Arrest [soylentnews.org]
Another Alleged Murderer Shaken Out of the Family Tree [soylentnews.org]
Indiana Murder Suspect Found by Using Genealogical Website [soylentnews.org]
Public Ancestry Data Can be Used to Narrow Down the Identity Behind an Anonymous DNA Sample [soylentnews.org]
Rapid DNA Analysis Machines Coming to Police Departments [soylentnews.org]
FamilyTreeDNA Deputizes Itself, Starts Pitching DNA Matching Services To Law Enforcement [soylentnews.org]
Genealogy Sites Have Helped Identify Suspects. Now They've Helped Convict One [soylentnews.org]
U.S. to Collect DNA of All Undocumented Migrants [soylentnews.org]
US Court Let Police Search GEDmatch's Entire DNA Database Despite Protections [soylentnews.org]
China Uses DNA to Map Faces, With Help From the West [soylentnews.org]
Cousin Took a DNA Test? Courts Could Use it to Argue You are More Likely to Commit Crimes [soylentnews.org]
Ancestry Says Police Requested Access To Its DNA Database [soylentnews.org]

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