For reasons that will soon become clear, it’s worth revisiting Nashville Mayor’s past opposition to surveilling his neighbors—a stance that has shifted since he became the city’s highest elected official.
Originally Posted Feb 28, 2025
Mayor O’Connell still supports the Axon corporation’s “FUSUS” system that integrates private cameras in commercial spaces with MNPD surveillance. That’s just weird to me, given his track record of denouncing this exact type of thing for years while on Metro Council, especially in today’s climate of federal encroachment into local law enforcement autonomy.
I’ve struggled with how to articulate my concerns and values about public privacy and the dangers of “surveillance state theater”. How should I explain that promises of alleged crime-solving and cost-saving benefits (which are not well evidenced) are no reason to opt into well-documented examples of technology like this exacerbating bias against vulnerable populations?
But someone else already created a body of evidence of why we should be concerned about things like this. Former District 19 Metro Council Member Freddie O’Connell was uniquely fixated on this subject before and during his time on the Council, and his Twitter account preserves this deep-held belief.
I turn the argument over to him.
In reference to Bloomberg article:
Mayor O’Connell, however, seems to have changed his views on privacy and what counts as “instruments of surveillance” that can harm vulnerable populations.
I wish Axon’s lobbyists would bother to spend time with me to assuage my concerns about FUSUS. I’m sure the taser manufacturer’s arguments would be stunning.