By Allegra Harpootlian, senior communications strategist, ACLU Today it is easier than ever for the U.S. government to spy on us and access our private data. Whether it’s using license plate readers to track protestors’ movements, faulty facial recognition software to check people’s immigration status, or buying our data in bulk to avoid getting a warrant, federal, state, and local government are repeatedly violating our rights in an effort to scoop up as much information about us as possible. Without safeguards, federal agencies will continue to exploit their partnerships with tech companies to sow fear and violate our rights, which is why the ACLU is advocating for Congress to pass legislation that would protect our privacy in the digital age. These bills include the ICE Out of Our Faces Act, which would ban ICE and other immigration agencies from buying, acquiring, or using facial recognition software and the Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act, a bipartisan bill that would ban the government from buying our data from Palantir and other companies without a warrant. To pull this dystopian Big Brother act off, the U.S. government needs us to feel powerless. But we can all push back against this unjust surveillance in the streets, the courtroom, city hall, and our art. Matthew Libby, the creator of a new off-Broadway play called “DATA,” is using theater to fight against the surveillance state. He became inspired to write the play after seeing how Big Tech companies are used to supercharge President Trump’s deportation agenda. Below, we discuss how “DATA” pushes back against public-private surveillance partnerships, and how we should all speak out against this obscene government overreach. Allegra Harpootlian: How did this play come about? What made you want to focus on privacy and surveillance? Matthew Libby: The play grew out of