Minnesota cities pull back on Flock cameras amid public pushback
The short version: Minnesota cities are hitting pause on Flock ALPR contracts as residents push back, proof that organized pressure can actually slow mass surveillance.
Our Take
FOX 9's report out of the Twin Cities is a good reminder that these fights are winnable. When local officials start hearing from enough residents who don't want a permanent, searchable record of every car that passes through town, some of them actually listen. Minnesota cities pulling back or reconsidering their Flock contracts isn't an isolated blip — it's what happens when people stop assuming this stuff is inevitable and start showing up to council meetings.
Credit to FOX 9 for giving airtime to the skeptics alongside the usual police talking points about crime-fighting. What often gets lost in those pitches is that ALPR networks don't just catch the bad guy in the one case cited in a press release — they log everyone, law-abiding or not, and that data can be queried, shared, or misused well beyond its original purpose. That's the trade-off cities are quietly signing up for, often with little public debate before the cameras go up.
If you're in Minnesota or anywhere else wondering whether Flock is already watching your street, check our camera map to see what's been documented near you, and if you want to push back like the residents in this story did, our take-action page has the tools to get started.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.