Intersecting Positionalities and the Unexpected Uses of Digital Crime and Safety Tracking in Brooklyn

Citizen is a live crime and safety tracking app in New York City that uses AI to monitor police scanners for incidences are relevant “public safety,” whilst also utilizing user‐recorded footage, as users near crime, fire, or accident encouraged “go live” film unfolding events. Users comment additional information post expressive emojis unravel. In sharing across digital network, functions both form of social media peer‐to‐peer surveillance app. Through this lens, my ethnographic research investigates the impact digitization an everyday experience increasingly gentrified neighbourhoods Brooklyn. The question whether technology marker simultaneous inclusivity exclusivity speaks dialectical nature technology, producing concurrent “good” “bad” effects. This article explores ways exemplifies these tensions: makes feel safer but more anxious; place community productive pejorative effects, it used surveil one’s neighbourhood, instilling fear mistrust, sousveil law enforcement circumnavigate NYPD at protests, accountability sense safety. examples, further navigates cultural local specificities use, complex positionalities mediated by consequences has those who inclusion exclusion.