'Get the Flock Out of Kzoo': Flock Safety responds to privacy concerns raised in Kalamazoo
The short version: WWMT-TV covers Kalamazoo residents organizing against Flock Safety's ALPR network while the company offers its standard reassurances.
Our Take
Credit to WWMT-TV for giving airtime to the "Get the Flock Out" pushback in Kalamazoo, because this is exactly the pattern we track nationwide: cameras go up quietly, residents notice later, and then a company spokesperson shows up with the same reassuring talking points about solving crime and protecting privacy. Those two goals are not naturally compatible, and no amount of corporate messaging changes the fact that a network of always-on plate readers creates a permanent record of where everyday people drive, park, and live their lives.
What's notable here isn't the technology itself — it's the pattern of local officials approving these systems with minimal public input, then having to play defense once residents start asking who's watching the watchers. Kalamazoo joins a long list of towns where the "public safety" pitch arrived without equally public scrutiny of data retention, access logs, or audit policies. That gap between quiet rollout and after-the-fact accountability is the real story.
If you're in Kalamazoo or anywhere else wondering whether these cameras are already on your route, check our camera map to see what's been documented nearby, and visit our take-action page for tools to push your city council toward real transparency instead of just a press statement.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of WWMT-TV, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.