In her article, Kimberly Atkins Stohr discusses the chilling implications of the Mobile Fortify app, which uses facial recognition to enable rapid identification without consent or warrants. This technology represents a form of “fascism without friction,” where the human pauses that traditionally limit violence and dehumanization are eliminated. Drawing parallels to historical atrocities, she argues that such tools can expedite state brutality, contrasting mobile technology’s instantaneous actions against the lengthy propaganda processes of the past exemplified by leaders like Hitler and Mussolini.
The article emphasizes the dangers of normalizing surveillance technologies that mirror tactics used by authoritarian regimes, and highlights troubling instances where families are separated without due process. The infrastructure supporting these technologies poses significant risks, particularly for marginalized communities, reinforcing power asymmetries and facilitating systemic dehumanization. Despite law enforcement withdrawals, the algorithms persist, continuing to operate without moral consideration or human oversight. The piece ultimately warns that this frictionless execution of power removes necessary moral barriers against atrocities, inviting a future where dehumanization is automated and unchallenged.
