“The Emperor Is A Fan Of Flock” — Darth Vader Appears At San Diego City Hall

Our Take

Credit to 619 News Media for capturing a moment that says more about public sentiment on mass surveillance than any council staff report ever will. When a guy in a full Darth Vader costume walks up to the mic and compares the city's love affair with Flock cameras to the Empire's surveillance state, it's not just a stunt — it's satire doing the job that earnest testimony often can't. Sometimes it takes a lightsaber joke to make people actually listen.

Underneath the costume is a serious point: San Diego, like hundreds of other cities, has quietly wired itself up with automated license plate readers that track where residents drive, park, and live their lives — all without a warrant, and often without meaningful public debate. Committee meetings like this one are exactly where that debate is supposed to happen, and it's telling that it took theater to get real attention on the agenda item.

If you want to see whether Flock or similar ALPR systems are watching your own neighborhood, check our camera map, and if you'd rather not wait for a Sith Lord to show up at your city council meeting, our take-action page has tools for raising this exact fight where you live.