Monday, July 22, 2019, 7:00 – 9:00 PM
Based on Ronald Deibert’s book of the same name, Nicholas de Pencier’s gripping Black Code follows “internet sleuths” - or cyber stewards - from the Toronto-based group Citizen Lab, who travel the world to expose unprecedented levels of global digital espionage. The film reveals exiled Tibetan monks attempting to circumvent China’s surveillance apparatus; Syrian citizens tortured for Facebook posts; Brazilian activists who use social media to livestream police abuses; and Pakistani opponents of online violence campaigns against women. As this battle for control of cyberspace is waged, our ideas of citizenship, privacy, and democracy are challenged to the very core.This film seems especially timely since law enforcement has been using facial recognition technology to scan Ohio and other BMV records.  Yes, these records have long been available to law enforcement, but this is a new use.  What limits or controls exist? It was also reported recently that the US government decided to stop collecting massive amounts of phone records, deciding that there was so much data that it was not helpful. We have seen how useful phone videos and live streams of police interactions has begun to change the ways we understand those interactions by bringing evidence of another point of view to the discussion. Finally, in July we remember the formation of the United States and the signing of the Declaration of Independence which states that we are to enjoy inalienable rights such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. How do the internet and social media promote these rights? How do they hinder it? Location: Columbus Mennonite Church, 35 Oakland Park Avenue, Columbus, Ohio. For information about COFP, visit our website. Facebook