DHS Uses Predator Drones to Watch Over LA Protests

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has deployed MQ-9 Predator B drones over Los Angeles in response to ongoing protests of operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The Details: DHS said the drone flights are to provide aerial support for federal law enforcement operations in the Greater Los Angeles area. The drones are equipped for high-altitude surveillance and have previously been used in search-and-rescue missions and to aid in border patrol. The decision to use drones has sparked controversy among civil rights advocates, who argue that such surveillance activities violate privacy rights and constitutional protections. In a statement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stated that its Air and Marine Operations (AMO) units are not engaged in surveillance of First Amendment activities.

For Context: Unmanned surveillance technology has been used before by military and law enforcement. Similar drones were deployed over Minneapolis in 2020 during protests over the murder of George Floyd. The current LA protests are a response to escalated ICE activity in the city.

How the Media Covered It: The Guardian (Left bias) focused on the potential surveillance capabilities of the drones, and referenced footage from the DHS that appeared to be zoomed-in clips of protestors. Fox News (Right) emphasized that the drones were unarmed and were deployed to monitor criminal activity on the ground.

Revised by the AllSides staff (of humans) after a first draft from our custom AI. Learn more. Support our mission. Suggest an improvement to this summary.