As drones, CCTV cameras, and various other surveillance technologies continue to proliferate in New York City and around the world, one city has taken it a definitive, if temporary, stance against the eyes in the sky: Iowa City, Iowa. City Council voted unanimously to approve the first reading of a bill that would outlaw drones, traffic cameras, and license-plate readers. City attorney Eleanor Dilkes expects the bill to pass all three required readings, in which it will go in to effect for two years beginning this month.
The vote came after an organization called Stop Big Brother collected 4,000 signatures on a petition calling for legislation banning the aforementioned devices. It’s not a total victory for privacy, however. According to the Iowa City Press-Citizen, many council members only supported the bill to comply with public opinion as Iowa’s state legislature reviews legal restrictions on red light cameras.
Stop Big Brother’s Aleksey Gurtovoy was restrained in his celebration of the victory. “We had no illusions as far as their intentions,” he said. “It’s definitely in the city’s interest do do this, especially with three of them up for re-election this year.”
(Photo: Alan Light/Flickr)
