Public commenters press Seattle City Council for permanent ban on ICE detention centers and to curb surveillance, AI expansion

Dozens of residents used the council's two-minute public comment period on May 5 to press Seattle's elected leaders for three interlocking actions: make the temporary moratorium on ICE detention centers permanent, end partnerships with surveillance vendors, and halt the city's expansion of AI and AI data centers.

The most recurring demand came from immigrant-rights and community organizers, who said the current one-year ban is insufficient and urged the council to adopt a permanent prohibition. Taylor Ligore, identified as an elected leader of the Seattle chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, told the council that neighborhood rapid-response teams and court-accompaniment volunteers are working to protect people from ICE activities and asked elected officials to match that work with policy: "I urge you to make the moratorium on concentration camps permanent and draw down surveillance infrastructure before it's too late," Ligore said.

Speakers tied surveillance and vendor contracts directly to enforcement and deportations. Silas James, a city council candidate and disabled organizer, asked the city to cancel contracts with Axon, the vendor providing body cameras and a real-time crime center, arguing that "providing the infrastructure that can easily be used to assist in deportations is participating in the deportations." Melissa Howard, an organizer with R Seattle, said local media's use of Axon footage has been framed to push more cameras rather than prevention programs and urged investment in job training, street outreach and health services instead of surveillance.

Multiple callers also warned about the city's planned expansion of AI tools and data centers. Jim Banes and Ken (self-identified) cited risks including misidentification, wrongful arrests and data breaches; Banes said Microsoft Azure's out-of-state storage risks city data security and argued that AI "is not reliable." Alice and others raised environmental concerns, saying AI and data centers increase energy and water use and that tech firms will lobby the new sustainability director to permit larger infrastructure.

Public commenters repeatedly tied policing practices and surveillance to specific cases and demands for officer accountability. Sonia Perez, chair of the Seattle Alliance Against Racism and Political Oppression, demanded release of officer identities and full transparency in the killings of Christian Nelson and Jack Polley, which speakers said involved people in mental-health crises. Kester Hightower, whose brother Herbert Hightower Jr. was killed by SPD, urged the council to follow through on promised resources and to pass resolutions creating support for victims of police violence.

Council members did not take votes on these policy requests during the meeting. The public comment period closed after the registered list of speakers was exhausted; the council moved on to legislative business, including consideration of the consent calendar and an appointment confirmation.

The meeting record shows broad public concern about immigration enforcement, surveillance contracts and AI expansion, accompanied by repeated calls for a permanent detention ban, cancellation of certain vendor contracts and additional investments in community-based public safety alternatives.