Boston Dynamics Workers Protest Use Of Robot Dogs By ICE

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Boston Dynamics makes those cute little robot dogs that amaze and amuse us in videos like this one. How could anyone possibly object to something so endearing?

When it was revealed recently that four of its robot dogs have been acquired by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement for $1.3 million, many workers at Boston Dynamics were aghast. The four machines have been specially modified to include a robotic arm, thermal camera, and sensors for explosive materials.

They were not sold directly by Boston Dynamics but rather by a Connecticut company known as RADeCO, which markets the modified robots under the trade name Cerebus. In Greek mythology, Cerebus is the three headed dog that guards the gates of hell. How charming. While the contract from ICE is with RADeCO, Boston Dynamics is directly involved with technical support.

Boston Dynamics is 100 percent owned by Hyundai, by the way. So now a South Korean company that was humiliated by ICE agents a year ago when hundreds of its employees and sub-contractors were arrested, placed in handcuffs, and frog marched onto buses as undesirable aliens, is supplying ICE with advanced robots so it can better pursue its campaign of terror all across America. Greed conquers all, apparently.

Employees Protest

In a letter to top executives reviewed  by the Boston Globe, hundreds of Boston Dynamics employees said they are “uncomfortable” with the deal, and warned it could hurt the company’s reputation and workforce. “We cannot be proud of working at BD when that work is being used by a government agency that brutalizes civilians.”

In the letter, they expressed concerns that they will be seen  by their family, friends, and community as “working directly with ICE. “Many of us have gotten messages from friends and family, asking us in disbelief and horror if this news is true, and how we can live with ourselves if it is.” The letter says the risks for Boston Dynamics are “simply too great to continue with this deal. We fear we will lose teammates over this decision, and worry about the risk it creates to achieve our shared company goals.”

In response, the company issued a statement saying the purpose of the robots is to keep people safe, and that the Department of Homeland Security must follow the company’s terms and conditions, which prohibit weaponization of the robots or using them for harm or intimidation.  A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told The Globe the robot “provides law enforcement officers with an additional tool to safely assess potentially dangerous situations before placing personnel or the public at risk.”

Anyone who thinks ICE will adhere to any guidelines is a fool. Ask the heirs of Alex Pretti and Rene Good if they think ICE agents can be trusted to act appropriately. Just this week, Pretti’s parents spoke publicly about their son’s execution by ICE in January. At a press conference, they said the federal government had not provided them with meaningful information about his death. “At every turn, they have ignored us, misled us, and shielded Alex’s killers,” said Michael Pretti. “We are a family who love this country. We trust in the institutions of this country. We believe in the rule of law — and that people should be held accountable through that law.”

Shock Gloves

Or consider the electric shock gloves ICE will use to torture detainees. The gloves carry the brand name G.L.O.V.E., which stands for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter, and are manufactured by Compliant Technologies, a company owned by military veterans and based in Lexington, Kentucky.

According to The Guardian, during experiments involving “volunteers” at Leavenworth military prison, the people subjected to the gloves felt intense pain, stopped fighting immediately, and feared additional exposures, an army study found. The authors of that study told the Associated Press, “After experiencing the effects of the GLOVE … participants stated just seeing the GLOVE was enough to make them want to comply.”

The electric shock from the gloves does not cause the body to freeze like a Taser. Instead, it “works by overloading the peripheral nerve endings” of the skin to cause pain, the study found. Participants who were wet or had oil on their skin described even more powerful shocks, with one reporting discomfort for 30 minutes afterward.

Just what the doctor ordered, ICE decided. After reading the report, it ordered 6000 pairs at a cost of $16.7 million. And while the company has a detailed list of do’s and don’ts, what is the likelihood that ICE thugs will abide by them, if they know about them at all?

Dogs And Civil Rights

There is another component of the dog robot story. Students of history know that the Nazis used dogs that had been trained to be especially aggressive to terrorize people detained in their concentration camps. The dogs were trained initially at Buchenwald and later at Auschwitz. Surely those in charge of things at DHS and ICE are aware of the historical context between dogs and detainees?

Older Americans will vividly recall how police in southern US states used dogs to intimidate civil rights protesters. Boston Robotics can issue all the press releases it wants, but the connection between dogs and interference with freedom of expression cannot be ignored. Overall, it is not a good look for the company.

Trusting ICE To Do The Right Thing

A spokesperson for the company pooh poohed the letter, noting that half of its 300 signatories did not identify themselves by name and that 300 was just a fraction of the company’s 1,400 workers. Amanda McMaster, who once served as interim CEO of Boston Dynamics was unmoved by the workers’ concerns. She said the company is “standing behind the decision to move forward with this and other potential sales to government customers.”

She cited the company’s anti-weaponization guidelines, and vowed to make sure the dog robot is not misused. “We believe this decision is in line with our purpose of ethically advancing intelligent machines in service of humanity,” she wrote, asking workers to “accept this decision, even if you do not agree with it.” Some readers may recall when Google’s motto was “Don’t be evil,” That was before it became one of the prime enablers of government surveillance in the US.

The deal has drawn criticism from advocacy groups in Massachusetts. Barbara Katzenberg and other members of the De-Ice Action Network have staged protests outside of Boston Dynamics’ headquarters. In agreeing to let ICE have the modified robots, Katzenberg said Boston Dynamics is “hoping and believing that ICE will stand by their terms and conditions and ethical principles. We believe that’s naive.”

It may be beyond naive. It may be a danger to anyone who encounters one of these robots. We recognize that the specialized sensors could be used to sniff out explosives, which is a potential benefit, but the possibilities for abuse and misuse are enormous. Readers are free to decide for themselves whether the Cerebus robots are a wise investment for US taxpayers.