I went to the Bakersfield City Council meeting because I could not stay quiet while our city keeps normalizing surveillance as if it is just another line item. I spoke out against the use of Flock surveillance cameras because this is not some abstract debate to me. This is about what kind of city we are building right here in Bakersfield. When cameras like these go up across our community, they do not just watch cars. They change how people move, gather, and live.

We are being asked to accept constant monitoring in exchange for promises of safety, but our basic rights should not be negotiable. A system like this collects information on all of us, not just people suspected of wrongdoing. That means ordinary residents, families, students, workers, and neighbors are all swept into a surveillance network without real consent. Once a system like that is in place, it becomes easier to expand it, extend it, and treat it as permanent.

That is why I am calling on the Bakersfield City Council to remove the existing Flock surveillance cameras and reject any future extension of this camera system. If city leaders truly want public safety, they should invest in solutions that build trust instead of tracking our movements. We do not need more infrastructure that treats every resident like a data point. We need decisions that respect privacy, civil liberties, and the dignity of the people who live here.

If you believe Bakersfield should not become a city where surveillance quietly becomes the norm, please sign this petition. Let the council know that we see what is happening, we understand what is at stake, and we are demanding a different path.