Morning Note

A pair of San Francisco gay bars are pausing the use of a facial scanning program after backlash from the gay community. 

The technology aimed to identify fake IDs through a forensic ID scanner that runs over 8,500 checks on each ID it reviews. The system stores information such as clubgoers’ ZIP codes, genders, birth dates, and ID expiration dates, plus their photos. Many gays grew very hostile upon learning of their clubs’ use of the software, leading to boycotts of the venues and roughly 2,000 people signing an anti-forensic-ID petition. 

We have never set foot in a gay bar, but those who yearn to should obviously not have to sacrifice their privacy when they feel like getting zesty. Clubs that believe otherwise will likely have trouble attracting enough gays to keep their business afloat. The gays want to do their gay stuff without feeling like they are under the oppressive watch of Big Brother. Hear hear.

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