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S.T.O.P. Applauds Mamdani Canceling “Cop City,” Demands Mayor Go Further To Dismantle NYPD Surveillance
(New York, NY, 10/29/2026) - Today, the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.), a New York-based privacy and civil rights group, applauds Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s decision to cancel the proposed $225 million “Public Safety Academy” in College Point, Queens, dubbed New York’s “Cop City” by activists, but warned that the NYPD’s sprawling surveillance apparatus remains fully intact. S.T.O.P. called on the administration to act on Mamdani’s previous condemnations of police surveillance tools, including NYPD’s use of facial recognition, the gang database, and social media monitoring software.
SEE: City & State - How Mamdani canceled ‘Cop City’
https://www.cityandstateny.com/politics/2026/10/how-mamdani-canceled-cop-city/416903/
The New York Times - Mamdani, a Sharp Critic of Police Surveillance, Will Soon Oversee It
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/nyregion/mamdani-tisch-nypd-surveillance.html?eafs_enabled=false
“Mamdani’s decision is a huge win for New Yorkers, but New York’s Cop City has never been just one facility in Queens,” said Surveillance Technology Oversight Project Executive Director Michelle Dahl. “It’s the surveillance machine the NYPD runs on our streets every day, all tied together by Commissioner Tisch’s panoptic Domain Awareness System. Mamdani has spoken out against harmful government spyware in the past, but ten months into his term, New Yorkers are still waiting for him to truly rein in the surveillance state.”
SEE: NPR Planet Money - How surveillance crept up on us
https://www.npr.org/2026/10/23/nx-s1-5991699/surveillance-new-york-city-nypd-police-security
In February, S.T.O.P. released Dear Mamdani: Dismantle NYC’s Surveillance State, a report detailing how the mayor can use the powers of his office to rein in the NYPD’s vast surveillance apparatus and fulfill his campaign promises. In a 2024 City Limits op-ed, the civil rights group warned that New York’s “Cop City” would spread the NYPD’s training model and surveillance-first approach to 18 city agencies, at a time when the city was cutting essential services like public libraries.
SEE: Research Report - Dear Mamdani
https://www.stopspying.org/dear-mamdani
Op-Ed - Mayor Adams Wants to Turn NYC Into ‘Cop City’
https://citylimits.org/opinion-mayor-adams-wants-to-turn-nyc-into-cop-city/
In 2023, S.T.O.P. joined then Assembly Member Mamdani and state Senator Cordell Cleare in writing a City & State New York op-ed calling on the New York State legislature to pass a bill banning police use of fake social media accounts.
SEE: City & State New York - Opinion: New York must say no to social media surveillance
https://www.cityandstateny.com/opinion/2023/06/opinion-new-york-must-say-no-social-media-surveillance/387335/
The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project is a non-profit advocacy organization and legal services provider. S.T.O.P. litigates and advocates for privacy, fighting excessive local and state-level surveillance. Our work highlights the discriminatory impact of surveillance on Muslim Americans, immigrants, and communities of color.
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