Smile for the camera - The effect of surveillance cameras on young women in Stockholm, Sweden

Sammanfattning: The city of Stockholm has increased its number of surveillance cameras in public places the last few years in the name of crime prevention. However, as the number of cameras increases, how does this affect the people living in the city? This paper examines how surveillance cameras affect young women between the ages of 18-24 and their perception in different area around Sergels torg, T-Centralen and Centralstationen in Stockholm, Sweden, as well as how the cameras affect their perceived Right to the City. By using the theory of the right to the city and feminist geography and focus groups and observations as methods, this paper shows that while surveillance cameras do not affect the women who participated in the study right now, it would affect them negatively if either the number of cameras increased or if the quality of the cameras became higher. However, it is not concluded how it affects their perception of their right to the city, as it could be both positive and negative in that regard, depending on how the women perceive the cameras.