An unidentified cosplayer dressed as Darth Vader attended a meeting of the San Diego City Council’s Public Safety and Livable Neighborhoods Committee, where he satirically defended the use of Flock cameras and other ALPRs. The cosplayer fully embodied the iconic Star Wars villain, using Vader’s signature heavy breathing and dramatic tone to proclaim his approval of the cameras.
The Emperor is a fan of Flock, and we must continue utilizing Flock technologies so that we can follow and surveil the rebel scum as they move from playground to playground, from playground to pool, from pool to gymnasium. Because we all know that the Flock cameras are not only following the license plate readers. They are following children. They are following children in parks and gymnasiums. And we need this. I need this so I can stalk my ex-girlfriend.
When “Darth Vader” later returned to the microphone, he added his own opinion about where public funds should go.
This council has done well. I am pleased. And so is the Chomo emperor. But we have given too much money to our libraries, too much money to our parks. We need SDPD to have more money. More money for the emperor to rule over the entire universe. … We do not need parks. We do not need libraries. We do not need daycare centers. We do not need homeless shelters. All we need is money for our Stormtroopers.
The performance was a pointed form of satirical protest.
The speaker used the character to raise concerns about privacy, government surveillance and how information collected through automated license plate readers can potentially be accessed or misused. …While Darth Vader may have been playing it for laughs, his appearance highlighted a very real and ongoing debate in San Diego over the balance between technology used to fight crime and residents’ expectations of privacy.
