Big Brother Watches Us Everywhere

Big Brother Watches Us Everywhere

By Bob Small

Swarthmore College spies on it’s students, even in Crum Woods.

Kya Butterfield ’25 handled one of the observation cameras and was charged with violating the college’s vandalism rule in the Student Code of Conduct.

The initial penalty was $4,800.

Butterfield said, however, it was reduced to $2,400 “out of good faith.”

Swarthmore History Professor Timothy Burke estimated the first camera was installed 15 or 20 years ago.

Citing security concerns, Interim Director of Public Safety Colin Quinn would not disclose the number or location of the security cameras.

By comparison, in 2024 Haverford College reported 85 cameras on campus, up from 45 in 2022.

Swarthmore has re-defined disorderly conduct to include “any other action(s) that result in the unreasonable interference with the learning/working environment or the rights of others.”

Erin Picken sums up his argument by stating “If you only protest against a stubborn institution along the guidelines it has provided, how much change can you really make? 

The urban campus of the University of Pennsylvania, which has 120 officers and is the second-largest police force of any private university in the U.S.

Penn uses 145 pan–tilt–zoom cameras, which are constantly monitored, and more than 1,200 other fixed cameras. 

Student Milo Garcia notes he comes from small-town Mexico and was never attacked there.

“If it hadn’t happened to me in Mexico I wouldn’t think it would happen to me here,” he said.

According to the Campus Safety Publication more than 8 in 10 Campuses use security cameras .

One in four noted that they were upgrading because the video surveillance system doesn’t integrate with other security technologies.

See the article for other statistics.

See also https://billlawrenceonline.com/privacy-concerns-aired-about-swarthmore-security

Walking out of the Swarthmore College Library DVD section, I waved to the cameras.

Big Brother Watches Us Everywhere